TravelMole Interview: Steve Born, director of marketing, Globus

Globus is guaranteeing 36% of its departures in 2004, which helps show its commitment to travel agents as its “bread and butter,” according to Steve Born, director of marketing. He told TravelMole: “One of the things we’ve heard is an issue in the last few years is that operators find their partner has the perfect price, with a great sales department, and they do all the right things. But they find out later what they wanted is not available, of they actually make the booking but it‘s no longer there for one reason or another. That can be frustrating.” To help ensure everything is properly in place, Globus says it will update its guaranteed departures every two to four weeks in line with sales, among other measures to avoid cancellations. Mr Born said 95% of the tour operator’s sales go through agents. “The other five percent is typically groups or through group leaders,” he said. “But even with a group, if they don’t have a travel agent, we try to find ways to recommend them.” Average commissions at Globus are 15%, Mr Born said, but 18% is not uncommon. “Our commissions are as good as any other tour operator, though there are some cases where the structure is better, and some where it’s worse,” he said. Among perks offered agents is special, dedicated telephone lines so they can immediately reach company officials, added Mr Born. The Littleton, Colorado-based Globus and Cosmos carry approximately a half million passengers a year. The two companies travel to all seven continents, visiting more than 65 countries. In 2003, they received the Recommend Magazine Readers’ Choice Award for best tour operator to Europe. Additionally, Globus was recognized as one of the top three operators for best travel agent support.