Hoseasons chief executive Richard Carrick warned Triton to steer clear of chartering aircraft and instead to remain a virtual tour operator without committed stock.
The idea had been muted in Saturday´s conference session by Triton advisor and Global founder George Begg, when he painted a vision of a merged consortium.
But Carrick, in a light-hearted reference to his grey hair, said: “The colour of my hair is because of the aviation commitment I have taken in previous jobs and I wouldn´t want to do it again.
“That´s the one point I disagree with about the Triton philosophy.”
Speaking in a open panel debate, he added: “You have Cosmos which offers access to aviation supply.
“The way the big companies structure their business means they will always discount through their agencies to get in a contribution to their costs. I don´t envisage a time when they won´t. It´s up to you to avoid their model (of taking commitments on airlines and hotels) and make sure that you don´t have to discount.”
David Wootton of Knighton Travel said he was concerned that agents faced the problem of having to satisfy a large number of suppliers as well as sell it´s own tour operation.
Worldchoice and Triton director Barbara Collins retorted by saying: “It´s very clear that Triton will only account for 30% of what we sell, so 70% can come from preferred suppliers.”
Cosmos sales and marketing director Andy Washington added: “The big four have all restricted supply and are now selling 90% in house, so there is an opportunity for you to make that up by selling Triton and supporting preferred suppliers.”
by Jeremy Skidmore (www.jeremyskidmore.com)
