Barrhead looks to further English expansion
Barrhead Travel plans further expansion into England as it opens its first English base with a call centre in Cumbria.
The call centre to open this month in Barrow in Furness, Cumbria, will employ up to 100 employees and specialise in cruise and tailormade holidays to destinations such as Vietnam and Peru. It will be marketed solely on the internet.
It comes as the Scottish agency group reports turnover should be up 23% on last year after a good January and February.
Chief executive of the Scottish travel group, Sharon Munro, said: "The main reason for choosing Barrow in Furness was that Thomas Cook and Co-Op are closing down Cumbria Cruise Centre, making approximately 55 great staff redundant.
"We’re offering everyone a job with us, and we intend to recruit and train more employees from the local area too.
"We do also plan to open shops in the North of England in the future, building on the success we’ve had north of the border – this is part of the long term strategy for the continued growth of the business."
Barrhead Travel saw turnover rise to £27.5 million for the first three months of the year, up 20% on Quarter 1 in 2011.
But the company, in common with the industry as a whole, had found the last two weeks of March challenging, due in part to continuous bad press affecting the whole cruise market.
Chief executive, Sharon Munro said: "Market intelligence suggests that the trend to book later is stronger than ever, and that business should improve further after Easter."
By Diane Evans
Diane
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