Holiday Hypermarkets creator John Donnelly has joined an advertising agency as a non-executive director.
West Midlands-based M3 handles the accounts of Aria Resorts, Co-op Travel, Marston’s Inns, Solmar Villas and West Midland Safari Park.
Donnelly, also former managing director of First Choice Retail and Harvey World Travel, will look to combine the agency’s skill set with his industry contacts to develop a range of collaborations and UK representation for foreign destinations.
His travel company JDA includes Ethan Mason Sports, CBR Classic Cars and Travel Members Benefits Programmes.
Donnelly said: “The travel industry is continuing to evolve and I feel there’s a big opportunity around the popularity of ‘staycations’, representation marketing for foreign destinations and membership and reward programmes.
“I genuinely don’t think the sector has ever got to grips with the latter and that is something we will actively look to change, using all of M3’s creative and digital marketing techniques to achieve that.”
The agency’s managing director Nick Lovett said: “Travel is one of our fastest growing sectors, up from £1 million last year to £2.5 million in gross annual billings in 2018.
“The appointment of John will take us to the next level, putting us in front of some of the most influential people and brands.
“His track-record and knowledge of the travel industry is second to none and we will look to leverage these qualities to develop exciting new marketing offers for companies working in the sector.”