After launching its Explore brand with a local office Down Under just over a year ago, HotelPlan UK says it will soon start mulling over which of its other brands it will bring to the Australian market.
In an interview with Karryon, HotelPlan UK CEO Joe Ponte says that although Explore has had a presence in Australia “for years” (“I think when I started in the travel industry in Australia as a travel consultant in 1999, believe it or not, you could book Explore back then!”, he says), it’s only been 12 months since the group dove “boots in” into the Australian and New Zealand markets.
And Ponte says the success of the brand, which is led Down Under by Regional Director Ben Ittensohn, will encourage it to think about other ways it can tap into the Aussie and Kiwi markets.
“In the last 12 months, where we are today compared to a year ago – and this is not off a small base, because we had a really strong presence through our partners here – revenue is up 129 per cent and passengers are up 101 per cent,” he says.
“And that’s just in our foundation year. So what that tells me is that there really is a growing market and a huge market for our style – the Explore style of travel.”
Although the HotelPlan UK boss says some of the group’s brands mightn’t necessarily work in the Australian market, “some definitely would”.
“So I would hope that once we’ve got Explore continuing to be established – and Ben is building a great team of sales and marketing professionals around him – I think later in the year we’ll definitely, on the strength of these numbers, look to some of the other brands and say, what’s next?”
Inntravel in Oz?
One of HotelPlan UK’s five specialist brands is Inntravel, which like Explore has a focus on walking and cycling holidays.
“I think it’s definitely one that we will look at,” Ponte says.
“We haven’t made any firm decisions yet, but in terms of their NPS [Net Promoter Score – a customer loyalty metric], they’re arguably the number one European walking brand.
“They have 385 self-guided trips around Europe. And they have an NPS of 78. So I think certainly over time – and we’ve got a lot of work to do with getting Explore established – we’ll definitely have a look at Inntravel.
“And it’s interesting… Inntravel currently gets a significant percentage of its bookings from international markets. And that’s without a presence. So I think that talks to its international relevance as a product. So it’s certainly got the potential.”
Elsewhere, HotelPlan UK’s Esprit and Inghams brands focus on snow holidays, a space the group has been operating in since 1935.
After an up-and-down snow season in 2022/2023, Ponte says this winter has been stronger.
“We have seasonal staff at 800 resorts; we’ll take about 65,000 people skiing this season,” he adds.
Last month, Explore Worldwide grew its local team by appointing Stephanie Meehan as Marketing Manager for Australia and New Zealand. So watch this space.
