Shearings reveals plans for expansion
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Shearings has revealed new plans for expansion and set a target for completing the upgrade of its hotel portfolio.
The plans include continued upgrading of its hotels, having already invested almost £8m in refurbishment over the past two years. By the end of 2017, over half of the operator’s 4,000 hotel rooms across the UK will have been fully refurbished. The investment follows another strong summer, in which UK passenger volumes increased by 5%, hitting a record high, and hotel occupancy rates averaged 98% over the period, the company said.
Shearings has also announced plans to launch a ‘Shearings Educational Experience programme’, a trade initiative created to raise awareness and increase visibility of the tour operator’s differentiated product portfolio, and educate travel agents about the host of destinations and experiences that are available to their customers across the UK and Europe.
The programme will launch early next year and will see Shearings work closely with relevant partners and tourist boards to offer several bespoke experience breaks for agents and their partners, which showcases the company’s range of exclusive UK hotels, river cruise ships and escorted tours.
Caroline Brown, commercial director at Shearings Holidays, said: “Consumer confidence appears to be on the up, and in response to this we’re constantly investing in developing and refreshing our portfolio of products to remain relevant to the over 50’s market. We’re introducing a raft of enhanced added-value services to further strengthen our market position. We believe that the ability to adapt in an ever-changing market place, is integral to further growth.
“Other new developments include the launch of a new mobile-optimised agent website featuring improved functionality and helpful new tools, such as the single room finder. We’re also growing our presence on social media platforms such as Facebook, to drive two-way engagement with our key partners. We understand that there’s an increasing tendency to use these media channels to connect with the brand and that we need to be responding in real time”.
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