DIY agents have been warned to beware of bed banks which are funding their aggressive B2B pricing and overrides, by discounting and selling against them through their B2C platforms.
Youtravel seeks trade support over direct sell rivals
DIY agents have been warned to beware of bed banks which are funding their aggressive B2B pricing and overrides, by discounting and selling against them through their B2C platforms.
Paul Riches, sales and marketing director at trade-only accommodation only supplier youtravel.com, told agent partners at a VIP lunch yesterday:
“You are free to sell who you wish, but unlike some of our competitors, we do not have a strategy to compete with you in the B2C arena. We value our partnerships with you and trust you will continue to support us through what will be a crucial high season sales period.”
Riches claimed the whole industry had been “pushed” into a late sales arena, but claimed this presented the trade with a great opportunity.
The glut of flights available in the market means we’re able to offer agents great value, good quality hotel beds to be matched with these flights,” he said, adding that youtravel.com was more “nimble” to put it “streets ahead of larger, less speedy rivals”.
He added: “It’s been a tough few weeks for us all, but on a positive note, we are now seeing trading patterns similar to last year and are still cumulatively up 16% on last year, with June currently flat, which, in a World Cup year, is not a bad achievement at present.”
He said booking levels over the last few days especially had shown significant improvement.
