The operator’s general manager and development manager tell Harry Kemble why they’re keen to work more closely with agents
When escorted touring specialist Jules Verne was first established, the idea of actively promoting itself to agents wasn’t on the table.
According to current general manager Debbie O’Neill, retired founder Philip Morrell originally focused on consumer media advertising as a route to market. And while this focus continued after the sale of the then Voyages Jules Verne to Kuoni in 1998, O’Neill believes the time is now right to turn trade sales from ad hoc relationships to a real point of focus.
O’Neill confesses she would love to know the views of her former boss, who lays claim to having organised the first group of British tourists to China in modern times in 1979.
More: Jules Verne to start actively selling through the trade
And while she is still waiting for his take, she says changes in marketing and distribution, which Morrell himself predicted, are among the reasons for the shift in the operator’s 45th year.
“When I worked for him, he never wanted to work with the trade. At that time, we were pushing out ads in the media and no one else was doing it and it was working. He is an absolute genius,” she explains.
But she adds: “Philip knew at some point that we would be copied by other travel companies and these adverts would become clutter. It started happening a long time ago.”
New destinations
To mark the Der Touristik UK owned operator’s trade launch, Pakistan and the Channel Islands have been added to Jules Verne’s near 200-strong programme of tours and river cruises spanning five continents.
Passengers on the new two-week Mughals, Mystics and Mountains tour in Pakistan will travel on the Karakoram Highway to Unesco World Heritage Sites such as Shalimar Gardens and Amburiq Mosque.
Prices for the tour start at £4,895. Jules Verne also offers coastal cruises across the world. O’Neill, who was promoted to general manager last April after more than three decades at the company, and business development manager Abbey Renshaw hint at more destinations in the pipeline.
“There’s no one else like us,” Renshaw adds. “We offer small-group tours. The average group size is 10 to 15 and the maximum is 25. That is small. We’ve got amazing itineraries.”
Jules Verne’s Atol licenses it to carry up to 10,795 passengers a year, comparable to its licence in 2019.
O’Neill says she will increase the licence if there is “a sudden spike in customer demand”.
Trade relationships
Both O’Neill and Renshaw are keen to talk about how they were previously travel agents.
“I remember these on-the-road reps coming in when I worked at Thomas Cook,” Renshaw says. “You knew each rep. You knew who was coming to the shop when they pulled into the car park.
“I’m really excited about being that person and coming into your agency and sharing such an amazing product with you.”
Jules Verne is now exploring a range of options to engage with agents, and has set up a dedicated trade Facebook page at Jules Verne Agents.
Renshaw says “all of my time” will be dedicated to the trade. “We’ve had a lot of agents approach us from different consortia,” she says. “We’ve reached out to those consortia to have those conversations with them. The independent agents are really important, so just get in touch.”
O’Neill believes having a trade distribution channel will help Jules Verne “nudge forward”. “What we do now we do really well, but we can’t rest on our laurels,” she says. “We need to make sure that what we’re doing is even better than before, and that goes from our processes to the experiences we offer.”
More: Jules Verne to start actively selling through the trade