The boss of Midcounties Co-operative Travel has hit out at travel technology suppliers, saying their technology for agents is ‘awful’.
Speaking at this week’s ABTA Travel Convention in Seville, Alistair Rowland, the consortium’s group general manager, said suppliers need to do more to help the trade.
"There should be a piece of CRM and back office that all works seamlessly. The lag is the technology," he said.
Rowland, who was part of a panel debate on the future of the travel expert, said agents are vital for anyone with a complex booking.
"People want to feel trust and that comes with trusted agents," he said.
He said good agents are now becoming brands in their own right thanks to the loyalty they have nurtured among clients.
"We are seeing an increasing trend where agents who are transacting a million pounds worth of sales and have 200 repeat customers are now getting so brave they are leaving their agencies and becoming brands themselves, and are then rejoining consortiums," he said.
