The Thomas Cook and Co-operative Travel retail merger will further polarise the industry and could lead to concerns for the independent sector about access to product.
John McEwan, Abta chairman and chief executive of Advantage Travel Centres said the move had not shocked him from a Cook point of view but that he was surprised the Co-op would give up its independence.
“Obviously it’s been a difficult year for the industry and you can see why Thomas Cook has done this from a distribution perspective.
“I do not see this as a decline of independent travel agents. There is a rebalancing between bricks and mortar and online, and most high street travel agents now have an online presence.
“I’m a little surprised that the Co-operative has decided to give up their independence but from our point of view it puts Advantage in a strong position because we are now the largest independent travel group.”
Asked if the move signalled the long-term decline of the high street, McEwan said he thought it was just the process of consolidation common to all industries.
“Inevitable you are going to get consolidation, but they are going to keep two separate brands. Although you expect some attrition in terms of branch closures.
“But the areas where you really get the economies of scale is in central operations, where you have the ability to move to a single platform. I guess that’s where the majority of the cost savings are going to come from.”
McEwan said the merger offered independents the opportunity to offer an alternative to the big two in what would be an increasingly “polarised” industry.
“I think there is an opportunity to provide a viable alternative to consumers by saying you can shop with the big two, now including the Co-op, or you can come to an independent travel agent.
“There will probably be concerns with the independent sector, whether it’s operators or retailers, over the long term about getting access to product.
“In the short term I do not think that’s an issue. We have healthy relationships with the big two but there is an increasing dependence on those two groups for access to product.
“If you are an independent tour operator you are going to need independent travel agents like Advantage more and more.”
Asked about the implications for Abta, which effectively would lose one major member and subscriber, McEwan said: “Consolidation is a natural process in most industries. Go back two-and-a-half years ago we had the big four operators going down to two, it’s a natural evolution.
“From Abta’s perspective it’s important we attract new members ether from the online space or from sectors like cruise as we have done successfully and continue to broaden the scope of the membership. Consolidation will continue in one form or another.”