| Concorde relaunches with JTG

Concorde Agency Network’s
Smart Cruises has been revamped
to push a stronger focus on
international cruise packaging.
AUSTRALIA’S largest independent
professional travel buying group, CAN, has
released its first-ever cruise catalogue and a
new Smart Cruises website that creates a
“one-stop shop” for its 410 agents.
For the first time, the program will allow
agents to book international cruises, flights,
accommodation and tours through the one
supplier.
“We previously had an older version of Smart
Cruises which was just a re-batch of Seven
Oceans’ product but we saw greater opportunities
with our in-house supplier so we will now
package it all out through JTG Cruise Holidays,”
CAN spokesman Nick Pearson told CW.
“We’re pushing international cruise
packaging, making it easier for our agents to
add on pre- and post-cruise product, with all
the information at their fingertips.”
Pearson said the group had been “slow to
jump on the cruising boom” and this initiative
would bring it in line with the market.
“We didn’t have enough focus on cruising in
the past, and although all the information was
on the website, the packaging component
wasn’t there so we needed to help our
network of agents to access all the ship and
cabin information, to be able to sell cruises
more easily, and to put the right clients on the
right ship,” he said.
The updated Smart Cruises site contains
additional product and is launching with
earlybird savings of 40% on select Asia Pacific
cruises and up to $1500pp off some European
and Asian river cruises.
The CAN cruise catalogue, the first in the
company’s 20-year history, also lists cruise
packages exclusive to Concorde agents.
Pearson said he hoped that the greater range
of product and backing by a new supplier
would drive cruise sales.
“Without a doubt, cruising has grown as a
percentage of our business, and in the past
three years it’s been in line with the market,
but I’d like to see it get more traction and keep
growing over the next year,” he said.