After the tragedy of September 11th ,which left the travel industry in shambles, many airlines have taken strict cost-cutting measures which have affected the bottom line of travel operators.
The growing popularity of online ticket agencies with deep discounts, has also added to the woes of many Bahamian travel agencies leaving them little recourse but to find new ways of making money or go under.
Godfrey Huyler, president of Aarow Travel has been in the travel agency business for sixteen years and says that in todayﾴs economy he has to improve his income stream if he is to stay in business.
ﾓWe at Aarow Travel want to get into a better market to increase our market share,ﾔ Mr. Huyler said. With commissions now as low as five percent from airlines, we have to diversify into other areas to stay in business and be competitive. If you notice the gas stations are now selling food and convenience goods. Whatever you need is there because they recognize that doing business the same old fashion way will not cut it anymore. Travel agencies have to do the same if we are to compete.ﾔ
Ironically Mr. Huyler sees the Malls as his direct competition. ﾓI believe that persons are going to travel anyway. [But] every time a new Mall opens that means a person shopping at the Mall may not buy a ticket to Miami to shop. That means I donﾴt sell a ticket.ﾔ
ﾓTravel to Miami is the bread and butter of my business,ﾔ Mr. Huyler said, ﾓbut to stay competitive I must put packages together that are not normally offered. Instead of trips where you shop till you drop, I find other pleasure destinations. Itﾴs all about convenience for the client and service. Because Aarow travel is a small company we have to offer good service at a good price and be more personable.ﾔ
September 11th also took its toll on the company. According to Mr. Huyler the company took a twenty-five percent dip in sales. There have been improvements since then but he states “We will be back to where we were in another year or two, but we are not their yet.ﾔ
Marion Carter and Debbie Nixon of Premier Travel have been in the business for seven years and share similar sentiments on the need to diversify their business because of commission cuts by airlines.
ﾓI donﾴt know how the airlines expect us to make itﾔ exclaimed Marion Carter. ﾓWith cutbacks on commission from airlines to now six percent it is very difficult to make ends meet with paying staff, rent, National Insurance and other fees that come along with running a business.ﾔ
Debbie Nixon added: ﾓWe donﾴt control prices. The airlines control the prices, rules and regulations. As they have gone done in their commissions and with the Internet we are finding it more difficult to survive. We work for the airline, so whatever they decide, like taking our commission down from nine to six percent we had to add a service charge which helped a bit but it still doesnﾴt add up to what we were making before.ﾔ
ﾓWe do need to expand and find other ways of making money.ﾔ Ms Carter added. ﾓBut that is not the only hindrance, having to add a service charge, you now have to follow so many rules that the airlines come up with. It started with September 11th, but it has now really gotten worse since nine eleven.ﾔ
Personal service is the way to combat the Internet said the two partners. ﾓThere is nothing like a personal touch or actual travel experience when you deal with your clients. If I have been to a hotel, I can tell you what that hotel is like as opposed to seeing pictures on the web,ﾔ said Ms Carter.
The economy is key to the travel business. According to Ms Nixon, ﾓeverything triggers from the economy. The economy hasnﾴt been that good in the past two years, so of course people didnﾴt want to spend money on travel. They were too busy trying to pay other bills as persons were laid off from jobs. But now it is picking up.ﾔ
ﾓYou must remember first it was the economy, then it was the war,ﾔ said Ms Carter. ﾓLast year this time you couldnﾴt get people to travel as many of our clients are from the corporate community. As well as SARS they just were afraid to travel.ﾔ
ﾓOur main concern right now as a small business is that the airlines do not reduce their commissions again.ﾔ
Direct competition to the Bahamian travel agency is the growing trend of making your own travel bookings on-line. All major aircraft carriers as well as major hotels now have on-line sites for convenient hotel and flight reservations.
At www.bahamasair.com Bahamians can now purchase Bahamasair tickets on-line. Tyrone Sawyer, Director of Marketing, says that their on-line booking service is picking up as Bahamian consumers are now becoming more aware of the service. ﾓWe expect it to grow even more over time.ﾔ
On-line booking services make it very convenient for anyone day or night to make their own travel arrangements complete with car rental and hotel accommodation. Travel agencies are almost obsolete to this type of traveller who relishes the convenience of researching their own travel plans.
Many travel agencies are well aware of this growing trend and state that what sets them apart from on-line booking services is the direct contact you receive from your travel agent who wants to make your trip a memorable one.
The Bahama Journal
