TravelMole Guest Comment: The birth of a new giant
In light of Thomas Cook's merger with the Co-operative Travel Group, Directline Holidays CEO Maria Whiteman warns about the wider impact.
“Should we care that the Competition Commission has given the go-ahead for Thomas Cook to merge with The Co-operative group’s travel arm and create the largest high street travel agency in the UK? I’m not so sure the further consolidation of the UK travel market is necessarily good news for travellers, and I certainly do care that the reduction in competition may dilute customer choice and see holidays become pricier.
Given that British consumers are facing falling disposable incomes, rising taxes and an economy shaken by financial fiascos on both sides of the Atlantic, the trend for fully-inclusive breaks and the return to traditional package holidays among some travellers is understandable – the underlying pressure here is price, and price is a key driver now more so than for some time. That means one thing for operators – squeezed margins; hence the proposed merger.
Both Thomas Cook and The Co-operative have a high number of affiliates which means that holidaymakers searching for bargain breaks may not realise that the majority of their holiday options could now come from the same, newly-merged company rather than a range of more independent – and competitive – operators.
Consumers need to know that perhaps seven out of 10 of their holiday choices come from the same source and that independent alternatives – offering a much wider range of product at great value – are available.
TUI Travel was created out of a merger in 2007 and now we face the birth of another giant. In a crunch climate, where wallets are watched and purses pinched, we believe fair competition from a healthy number of operators is vital so that holidaymakers can choose the best value deal for their specific needs, whether that be a weekend city getaway, all-inclusive beach break or ski holiday.
So what next? Given the financial pressures on the holiday industry, further consolidation may lie ahead. Will we see further smaller travel agents go to the wall unable to compete on margins even though their service may be superior? I hope not. We’re independent and have to compete aggressively on price and service to deliver the best value holidays from a range of our own bespoke packages and those from operators. I very much hope, for the sake of the British holidaymaker, that the number and variety of operators doesn’t shrink further.”
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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