DISNEY is set to launch its own holiday programme in the UK.
Vice-president marketing and sales Tom Allen said the operation, yet to be named, will have its own sales team.
The size of the team and its launch date have yet to be decided, but Allen said he was keen to get it started as soon as possible.
He added that he had been interested to see how the similar direct-sell situation had been working for Disneyland Paris but added that this operation had not influenced his decision to go forward with a programme in the US.
Allen said: “I don’t think operators already featuring Disney will mind. We have been good partners to them in the past and that will go on. We will continue to work very closely with tour operators because this stimulates long-term growth.”
As part of this initiative, Disney is going to plough more money into Allen’s sales team which will be enhanced with more staff helping operators to promote the brand.
He said: “The vast majority of Florida clients book through agents, but there’s a small but growing band of clients who want to buy Disney from Disney. We are seeing a lot of interest in Walt Disney World in Florida and that’s why we have done this.
“Competition is healthy and we will be putting a lot of money into the marketplace to promote Walt Disney which will benefit other operators.”
Allen said the brochure will feature Walt Disney World, Florida and Disneyland, California and Disney Cruiseline.
n Walt Disney World’s Epcot centre in Florida is planning a 15-month-long Millennium celebration. From October 1, the theme park will be staging a multi-million dollar show the size of an Olympic event every night of the year.