Travel Counsellors founder David Speakman plans to “improve and grow” the high street agency in Newcastle he has just bought and said he would be “very hands on in terms of business strategy”.
Speaking after it was announced he’d acquired the Travel Bureau in Gosforth from owners Jeanne Lally and Anne Bromley, Speakman said it was great to be getting back into the travel industry.
He has already decided to refurbish the branch, put in new systems, add more staff, separate customer money and add supplier failure insurance to every booking as standard.
“I just love having a business that is all about great customer service. So we’re going to refurbish the shop and really modernise it. That will involve putting in new systems – and we’re also going to employ new staff,” he said.
More: Travel Counsellors founder David Speakman acquires Travel Bureau
The Travel Bureau currently has nine staff, including Lally and Bromley, who will stay on as joint managing directors.
Speakman described the current workforce as “tops” and said he would be looking to add three or four more.
“They are proper travel agents and it’s hard to get more people like that at the moment, but we’ll definitely add more,” he said.
Speakman said he would be creating a “brand new cruise lounge” and generally making the shop attractive for staff to work and for customers to come into.
“I want it to really appeal to the local clientele,” he said.
Speakman said he would be immediately separating customer money from the business’ own accounts, a policy he employed at Travel Counsellors.
“I think this should be mandated in the industry that every business does this to protect customer money. Not everyone agrees, but that’s what we will be doing at the Travel Bureau from now on. And we will cover every customer with Supplier Failure Insurance as well,” he said.
Speakman said it was wise be prepared for future crises.
“As an industry, we have come through the pandemic but the government is not doing enough to protect against future pandemics or lockdowns,” he said.
Asked if he was on the lookout for further investments back in travel, Speakman said: “I am happy with what I’ve got and excited about making it really good. We’ll start with that as a foundation and then we will see.”
More: Travel Counsellors founder David Speakman acquires Travel Bureau