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Stelios predicts bleak future for agents
EasyJet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou gave a rousing speech at this week’s EyeForTravel Travel Distribution Summit that included some scathing comments about the future of the travel agent, and hinted at future ventures involving dynamic packaging.
Stelios said he thought there was little future for travel agents. “It is highly inefficient in this day and age that there are people sitting behind desks in shops waiting for a passer-by to drop in.
“It is a business model that will be overtaken by development…You have people coming into shops asking about information that was published in a brochure a year before.”
Stelios said he thought there was an opportunity for up-market brands to offer a more personalised service, but beyond that he thought it was more efficient for suppliers to distribute through online intermediaries.
He later said that the distinction between the agent and the principle was becoming blurred as more travel is bought online. He said: “Not paying a commission to a travel agent makes business sense.”
Stelios also said that he thought dynamic packaging was an interesting business model. “The days when you package together a product to sell are over. EasyJet has 150 routes in Europe and the number of permeations on that are enormous.”
Report by Ginny McGrath
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