Comment: Can the agency sector achieve the scale is needs to push through its agenda?

Consortia co-operating on opposing commission cuts and the formation of a new travel agents' association brings back memories of Triton, says Travel Weekly editor-in-chief Lucy Huxley

A senior agency boss made a telling remark on the latest commission cuts and the trade's chances of success in opposing them: “It's all about scale.”

He was speaking in light of the alliance forged by Advantage Travel Centres and The Travel Network Group to put weight behind the agency fight-back.

Sound familiar? You don't need a long memory to recall Triton Travel Group, the super-consortium established in 2005 when Thomson reduced commission to 7%.

By the time a combination of conflicting views and commercial self-interest saw Triton fall apart three years later, Thomson had performed a welcome U-turn on commission.

Then, supporters of Triton hailed its success in successfully fighting off commission cuts.

Yet here we are in 2012 with cruise commissions heading south and Tui Travel planning payment reductions tied to ending online discounts in two years or so.

Don't agents need a body that fights for their commercial interests now more than ever?

How interesting, then, to see the new Association of Travel Agents (ATA) held its first meeting last week.

The group's creation was prompted by Brussels' likely extension of the Package Travel Directive and a fear that this could outlaw the agency model when it comes to dynamic packaging.

However, the name suggests a wider remit and certainly it is keen to garner support among the wider agency community for its aims and ambitions.

Scale, therefore will be key to its success if it is to get its voice heard.

And what better way to achieve that than by convincing the businesses in the travel agency sector it is on their side on other issues such as commission?

It is around current business-critical issues such this that the travel agency community has a greater chance of uniting and activating its diverse membership.

A revived Triton or a niche, single-issue association? We await with interest to see what the ATA will become.