Fred Olsen Travel’s Paul Hardwick joins Advantage board
The Advantage Travel Partnership has appointed Fred Olsen Travel head of commerical Paul Hardwick as non-executive director.
He was previously a travel agent for seven years, before starting his own independent travel agency from home in 2004. Having expanded the business, in 2008 he sold it to Fred Olsen Travel and remained on the board, where he is credited with doubling the size of its retail business.
Hardiwck now oversees the commercials for the whole company, including 60+ franchisees and online businesses, whilst still running the day-to-day operation of the retail shops.
Advantage Travel Partnership chairman Steve Esom said: "We are delighted to welcome Paul to the board. In his role at Fred Olsen, Paul has grown the business through his forward thinking and progressive approach to business and we look forward to working with him. These are unprecedented times and Paul’s experience will be a welcome addition to supporting the business and our overall strategic vision."
Hardwick added: "I am delighted to have been appointed to the Advantage board and feel I have the enthusiasm, passion and experience in travel to add to the great work Advantage and the board of directors is currently doing. In this current climate, I look forward to helping members navigate through this challenging period and supporting Julia [Lo-Bue Said] and the wider team to achieve the businesses’ long term goals."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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