On The Deck: Pam Conover & Andrew Magowan
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How many agents do you think could comfortably wax lyrical over the differences between yachting and cruising? How many would be able to correctly profile the ideal passenger seen onboard a megayacht? Probably not many. However the potential is huge, as is the possible income available. One such company, which is actively looking to pursue the UK market, is SeaDream Yacht Club. The firm, which has recently hired a UK managing director in Andy Magowan is preparing to launch an assault on the world’s second biggest cruise market; and that means more opportunities for UK agents. Cruise News met Magowan and the firm’s CEO, Pam Conover to find out more.
Can I get a brief history of the company and a little about your roles?
Pam Conover: The company was founded in 2001 by a Norwegian entrepreneur called Atle Brynestad and I’m the CEO based in Miami. We’ve got a sales and marketing team based out there and an operations team in Oslo. Andy’s sales team is in the UK and we’ve got various sales people in Belgium, Germany, Asia and Brazil. The ships are 112-passengers each, they’re super luxury mega yachts. They’re obviously very small but focus on delivering a very casual, elegant, high-end experience to our guests. We’ve got 95 crew members on board so virtually one to one. It’s a fully inclusive experience that operates on fully global itineraries.
Andrew Magowan: It’s born of the cruise industry but isn’t a cruise in the sense that some of our bigger competitors like Seabourn or Silversea may be. They’re all great ultra-luxury cruise experiences but we carry a different type of guest; someone who is effectively not a typical cruiser. It appeals to a slightly younger, affluent, active person who is looking for something very different. I came into the company six months ago to take stock of the UK, which is effectively the second biggest market in the world, and to turn that market into the second biggest demographic of SeaDream passengers. It’s a very exciting product. While we sell through the trade, we are not looking for a traditional cruise guest and that’s the challenge.
Can you go into more detail about your typical passengers?
Andrew Magowan: We are looking for very high-end people in a market which is very cluttered. Everyone is talking about luxury and price right now and that’s not what we’re about. We’re looking for 50 couples each week that are looking for something different. There isn’t any formality involved; it would be as if you were taking a holiday on someone’s private yacht. With the UK we’ve had a presence but there hasn’t been a particular focus and that’s something we’re looking to change.
How would you define yachting in comparison to cruising?
Pam Conover: For one it’s less structured and certainly more informal. You can do whatever you like and there is definitely a far greater focus on the outdoors. While dining is a central part of cruising, the same is true of yachting however with the latter everything happens outdoors on the deck space. Whether that’s having a drink, eating or just enjoying the weather, everything happens outdoors.
Andrew Magowan: Whereas if you were on a traditional luxury cruise there would be far more of a structure. You would be told where you had to eat and at what time. There would be a dress code and a show at a certain time. That has to be in place because you’re managing a far greater amount of people. With us that’s not the case.
So the size of ship gives you a greater freedom?
Pam Conover: It does because it allows us to go to the places that other ships can’t. We also have the flexibility to suddenly stop and lower the watersports platform for instance if the weather is pleasant and allow people to go for a swim. If everyone is having a good time they can stay longer in a certain area. There is that choice and freedom that the captains have. They can even make an unanticipated stop somewhere because they can.
Andrew Magowan: While there is a set itinerary in the brochure, there is a lot of mileage built into that to allow for those freedoms.
What’s the profile of your typical passenger? Have they cruised before for instance?
Pam Conover: Not necessarily. I’ve been surprised when onboard at how many passengers haven’t cruised before. Some are very much against the bigger ships but do want a luxury, small ship experience. They’re mid-50s, may or may not have cruised before but certainly want a more casual relaxed environment.
Andrew Magowan: We do mostly sevennight voyages and it seems that that flexibility allows SeaDream to form part of our passengers’ vacation. They may spend the rest at their friend’s villa for instance. Or, with the demographic being mid 50s it’s often the case that they’re time poor and can’t afford to be way from their businesses for too long.
You’ve both previously worked for Seabourn, would you place yourself alongside them within the market?
Pam Conover: No, I wouldn’t put myself alongside them because they really are designed as a mini cruise ship experience. They have 206-guests to 160 crew but they’re much more focused on indoors. They have a show lounge and an indoor dining venue but they’re outdoor dining venue cannot seat everybody. Our watersports platform can also be put down in 30 minutes so we put it down a lot – because we can.
Do you offer shore excursions?
Pam Conover: We do in the sense that we have mountain bikes onboard, which again is because of our more active passengers. The crew or captains will take passengers on hiking or biking tours which you wouldn’t pay for. Some, which are arranged by third parties, are paid for.
What else isn’t included in the price of the cruise?
Pam Conover: You pay for the spa, casino and shop. There are certain, very high-end drinks which you will pay for but the quality of the pouring wine, which is free, is very high. If you wanted Johnnie Walker Black Label then that would be included for instance but if you wanted a 50-year old single malt then you would be expected to pay for that.
How will you be targeting the UK travel trade and making the UK a bigger success story going forward?
Andrew Magowan: We’ve now got two sales people on the road – one in the north and other in the south – and we have one person who focuses on charters and incentives. We need to target the key specialist sellers who have a market and an understanding of what we’re about. It’s also important that we have a relationship with those agents and from there we will put a plan together to move forward. We will work with anyone who wants to work with us but it’s about accessing agents’ knowledge and experience. That’s our route to market. We are also looking to increase our private charters so a family booking out a ship for a fiftieth birthday party for example. Travel agents can’t be afraid to offer that because there are some serious amounts of commission available.
Pam Conover: It doesn’t happen everyday but it does happen. People often do take 50 of their closest friends away to celebrate the big events in their life. And for agents who realise that, there is a serious amount of money to be made.
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