Sunvil will proactively target younger customers as it invests further in its online presence, new managing director Chris Wright has revealed.
The company announced yesterday that Wright is to take over from MD Noel Josephides, who is currently in the running to become Abta chairman. Josephides will become chairman but plans to continue to play an active role in the business..
Wright, operations director, has acted as Josephides’ right-hand man since his appointment to the Sunvil board in 2006 and is in his 19th year with the company.
He said the group – which comprises brands Sunvil Holidays, Sunvil Discovery, Sunvil Traveller and GIC The Villa Collection – hoped to attract a younger customer base by targeting the children and families of existing, loyal clients.
“We have got an older clientele who are on average between 55 and 70. We’d like to attract clients from their mid-thirties onwards,” he added.
“We are conscious that a lot of the older clients have got children that would like to go to the destinations we offer. We have active holidays that we can push more and a loyal client base with 75% repeat customers. We plan to tap into that and encourage other family members to travel with us.”
The group is already investing heavily in social media and in terms of online bookings currently gets 25% of its Greece holiday bookings online via travel agents and its own website.
Wright stressed plans to improve its online strategy did not mean a move away from travel agents. “We are not moving away from travel agents. A lot of agents are booking us via the web.”
The operator hopes to increase the amount of information provided online about some of its other products, such as Latin America to allow agents and clients to pre-plan trips.
John der Parthog will relinquish his longterm role as chairman to become the company’s founder director.