Skift Take
Flight Centre Travel Group's global scale and multitude of brands have made it easier to experiment on the longevity of its Liberty Travel leisure agency locations in big cities.
In many places in the U.S., the traditional travel agency storefront has disappeared as travelers book online and agents have begun working from home or as independent contractors.
But Flight Centre USA president Dean Smith says that visible storefronts in major U.S. cities will continue to be a priority for the company's Liberty Travel brand.
From the new Liberty Travel storefront steps away from Manhattan's bustling Union Square, Smith told Skift that Flight Centre Travel Group's best-performing brands essentially foot the bill for Liberty Travel's visibility; Flight Centre's long-haul flight and corporate travel businesses, for instance, also work out of the same Liberty Travel location.
Smith talked about how Flight Centre's recent acquisition of StudentUniverse fits into the company's brand portfolio, why visibility is vital for travel agencies and the importance of introducing millennials to travel agents.
Skift: Most travel agencies are moving away from the storefront model, but Liberty Travel is embracing its large, visible agency presence in big U.S. cities. How has the model been working out for you?
Dean Smith: The model really does work for us because we believe very strongly in the physical and visual nature of our brands, particularly our retail brands. While there is obviously a very big trend in the market to go home and to cut your costs by being virtual, it undermines the industry to a degree because the customers just don’t know that the brands exist, although the service exists.
We want a billboard for our brand. Most of our inquiries still come either by email or over the phone. It’s not live people walking thro
