Titan Travel is to take 100 agents on fam trips in the next 12 months after developing a new trade website and opening dedicated sales phone lines.
The tour operator, sister of Saga Holidays, has run two educationals in the last year – a river cruise and a trip to Turkey – but has at least seven fams planned for the next 12 months. The destinations include Cambodia, Canada, Croatia, India, Italy, Romania and Vietnam.
Head of trade Hayley Morris, who joined the company at the end of last year, said her priorities were “entirely focused on trade partners” and to turn Titan into the “go-to” trade brand for escorted tours.
She said: “We plan on providing an extensive fam trip programme both this year and next. We’re excited to showcase our product at its best. I believe the best way for agents to sell our tours is to experience them.”
She said the operator was committed to “listening, supporting and rewarding” agents, adding: “Trade sales are a significant part of our business and we have ambitious growth plans for the coming years, which our partners will be a huge part of. We want to grow our relationship with our partners as we see it as a win-win for everyone.”
The operator recently launched its trade website and dedicated trade sales phone lines and is keen to hear from any agents keen to work with the brand.
“The new portal is proving to be a great asset,” said Morris. “We’re still building it and welcome feedback so we can make sure we’re showcasing the information that’s really useful to agents.”
Sales to date this year are already 35% up on 2019, in part attributed to the new portal, which has 1,200 agents signed up to it.
Morris said the merger of Saga and Titan’s operations last year, with Titan becoming the key trade brand as Saga moved to work with a smaller number of agents, had helped to boost bookings but was unlikely to be the “sole driver” of sales.
“The recent launch of our 2024 programme has driven significant sales too and we’re seeing customers book once-in-a-lifetime holidays, such as our new premium jet itineraries. We’ve also seen a lot of solo travellers booking,” said Morris.
The operator also revealed it has ‘de-packaged’ its tours for the first time to enable it to work with the likes of Trailfinders, and is launching the brand into overseas markets, starting with Australia and New Zealand.
Group chief executive John Constable said Trailfinders and overseas markets were keen to work with Titan due to its “significant product differential” over other tour operators.
He also said Titan was introducing new styles of tour where customers can spend more time in a destination.
Constable said: “We really see our touring programme as a massive growth opportunity for the business,” adding that he believed between Saga and Titan, the group already accounted for 19% of the touring market, with trade brand Titan making up the lion’s share.
He said part of that was driven by making the whole process less complex, including the pricing, along with the innovation in new product for agents to sell.