Luxury tour operator Seasons has made two of its three full-time sales team redundant as part of an internal restructure.
Agency sales manager Nigel Ham and sales manager for the south-west Lucy Thurston have been made redundant by the Chester-based company.
The shake-up sees the creation of a new role of head of business development. Sian Juengruethmayer, previously sales manager for London and the south-east, has been appointed to the position, which covers agency sales for the whole of the UK.
Sales director Jo Clarkson said the restructure was part of a new strategy for the business. “It’s not a ‘times are tough’ message. It enables us to create a model that will be more effective with the trade in terms of our activity,” she said.
The operator sells through independent agents, with around half its sales currently through the trade.”The trade is a massive priority for us and it’s still a huge part of our business and will be going forward. The reaction of agents [to the restructure] has been supportive,” she added.
Ham, who has worked at Seasons for just over two and a half years, is well-known in the trade having worked for the Elite Travel Group, Worldchoice, Dertour and Travelscene.
He now hopes to take on some consultancy work in the trade. “I think the way the market is at the moment, consumers are reverting back to travel agents, particularly given the problems last year such as the ash cloud and the airlines strikes. People are not sure if they are financially covered,” added Ham.