On The Deck: Stephen Winter

TD Guest Writer

Guest Writers are not employed, compensated or governed by TD, opinions and statements are from the specific writer directly

Stephen Winter

The rise of luxury cruising has led to a revolution within the industry. The market offering is now broader than it has ever been – and niche sectors that have never had an association with luxury– like polar cruises for instance – are now being taken on some of the most elegant vessels imaginable. This market democratisation has also allowed companies like Compagnie du Ponant – traditionally a French firm – to bring its offering to British shores. With the line’s new vessel – Le Soleal – due to launch this summer, Cruise News sat down with Stephen Winter, International Sales Director, to talk about the company and its plans for breaking the UK.

 

Can you give me a brief history of the company?

In 2013 we celebrate 25 years in business so we’ve been around for quite some time. However up until 2010 we’ve always been small – the original owners wanted to build yachts and so asked a whole host of people to be co-owners of the ship in order to raise the necessary capital. So when The Ponant, was launched, it had 200 owners. It started sailing in the Caribbean in the winter and the Mediterranean in the summer. After the success of that ship they built the first ship within our yacht category, which was the Le Levant.

 

Then the firm bought Le Diamant?

Yes, well the Ponant and Levant are for warm weather cruising. They aren’t made for going down into the Polar Regions so we acquired the Diament and took it down there for many years. In 2004 we were purchased by CGM which is the third largest shipping firm in the world based out of Marseille. They sail the company needed to expand and this led us to our first super yacht, Le Boreal. We maintained an intimacy where people can get to know the other passengers and crew but looked to increase our capacity – although not by great numbers.

 

So the investment led to the new vessels?

The company kicked in EUR300 million to build two ships. Originally we were going to launch them at the same time but it happened right in the middle of the 2009 financial crisis. So we delayed one and built the Le Boreal in April 2010. It took us to where we wanted to be and that was a five star product. The second vessel was the L’Austral and that was launched in 2011. Both ships are very elegant but also officially classified as Green so they can go to the Polar Regions without leaving a footprint.

 

And what does your role entail?

The launch of the two new ships led to a huge interest in far-flung markets. We were seeing Brazilians, Australians – everyone starting to enquire about our product. I was hired in 2008 to represent Compagnie to that non-French speaking market. I was asked what we needed to succeed in the States and I told them that we needed dollar rates, an office and online booking – all of which we have subsequently done. In the UK we haven’t’ had huge success in getting a foothold in the market and are now working with eWaterways as a means of rectifying that.

 

And where is the company now?

Within six months of launching L’Austral the company decided to launch a third ship – Le Soleal. We saw that the niche was highly in demand so we wanted to make our mark within the sector. We debated whether to raise the capacity to around 450 but finally decided to stay at the 260 mark.

 

What will the Le Soleal offer that’s different?

We’ll be launching Le Soleal in July of this year and it maintains the intimate atmosphere of its sister-ships but we’ve given our designer more freedom with this vessel and it is very elegant. However, after its inaugural voyage, which departs from Venice, it’ll head to Iceland and Greenland and then cruise the North West Passage. This will be the first time that a ship of this category makes the famous journey.

 

How are your cruises split between nationalities?

The breakdown is about 60% French speaking and the other 40% is mostly English speaking – whether that’s Canada, US, UK or Australia. But that is by no means a set ratio. I’ve been on cruises where there have been 17 nationalities onboard. The mix is becoming more and more evident.

 

Who are you current competitors?

Mostly the guys that have been doing it a lot longer than us! You’re looking at Silversea, Seabourn, Orion and even some of the more high-end bigger ships too like Crystal Cruises.

 

What’s the message you’d like to get across to UK travel agents?

We want them to give us a shot. We want them to take advantage of our travel agent rates – that includes 75% off for any cruise a travel agent wants to take – we can only confirm that one-month before hand but we think that’s pretty reasonable. They will be eating incredible food, relaxing and having fun. We have a UK-based call centre with eWaterways who can sort out quotes, flights and pre and posts. We’re also putting our sale guide online which is a resource they will find very useful.

 

So the trade is important to Compagnie?

We value the travel agent hugely. Around the world about 80% of our business comes from the trade. We need the trade and while some companies are cutting commissions and fam trips, we’re not planning on doing either. I also want them to know that we’re not just about polar cruises too – we also sail closer to home. We’re even doing a British Isles cruise for instance. Everyone wants to go to the end of the world but we’ve got opportunities to sail everywhere. We also want to increase our incentive business.

 

What are your plans for increasing incentives?

In the US we’ll get companies that will charter the ships and send their best staff on a cruise as a reward. That happens in France, it happens in Australia but there isn’t any business like that in the UK right now. There is definitely an incentive market here that is untapped. It’s the same for associations and alumni groups.

 

What are your biggest challenges within the UK?

Our biggest challenge within the UK is going against competitors that have far bigger budget and presence than us. It’s a very price driven market in the UK too and we try and stay out of that. Where we’ve had success is offering our best price months before and then raising it as you approach departure date – the same model as airlines use.

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