Riviera Travel has reported its trade bookings so far in 2024 have increased by 35% year-on-year following a “concerted effort” to boost engagement with agents.
The surge in agency sales includes an increase of 51% for river cruises and 66% for dedicated solo departures across its cruise and escorted touring products.
The operator said the trade has also prompted a “sharp rise: in demand for its long-haul Signature Tours, which have seen a 38% growth in trade revenue year-on-year.
To cater for the demand, a further four itineraries will be added to next year’s programme: Imperial Cities of Morocco, Jordan & Petra; South Africa; The Best of Japan; and Southern India’s Coastal Route – bringing the worldwide total on offer up to 20.
The enhanced engagement with agents since the start of the year includes four new key account managers, bringing the team to seven.
Two newly created roles – national sales manager, retail and OTAs; and national sales manager, homeworkers – have also been introduced and a dedicated trade reservations team is now in place.
Furthermore, the trade marketing team has been expanded by three to five.
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A bi-annual trade engagement committee, with a cross-section of agents from across the industry, has been gathering feedback, and there have been 10 fam trips, taking away a record 100 agents.
An e-learning platform, Riviera Explorer, launched earlier this month and already has more than 1,000 users – and half of them are new to the brand.
A new internal trade app allows key account managers to track their agent visits and outcomes and has reduced the time spent on administration tasks by about 50%.
Riviera has also enhanced relationships with The Travel Network Group and Advantage Travel Partnership, to secure further partnerships with more independent agents.
Vicky Billing (pictured), Riviera Travel head of trade and partnerships UK and Ireland, said: “We are over the moon with the support we have had from our amazing trade partners this year.
“My team and I are so grateful for every single booking and want to sincerely thank all our partners.
“We constantly listen to agent feedback and shape our approach in terms of being easy to do business with and offering the best possible support.
“It’s vital for us to partner with everyone we can, including retail, online and homeworkers, whether they be in a store, working remotely or in a contact centre.
“It’s been particularly satisfying to see travel agents who have never sold Riviera making bookings on a regular basis.
“We have fantastic momentum with our established partners and are now starting to see new partnerships begin to flourish too.
“The upcoming peaks period promises to be our most exciting yet, with more opportunities on offer to the trade than ever before.”