Agency chain Barrhead Travel and bed bank Stuba have both reported record sales last weekend.
Barrhead Travel reported its ‘best ever sales day’ on Saturday and said the weekend as a whole was one of its busiest.
Anticipating high footfall in stores due to payday weekend, Barrhead Travel organised a Back to the Floor Day with directors, heads of department and head office employees joining their retail colleagues to provide additional support on the sales floor.
Barrhead President Jacqueline Dobson said: “I spent Saturday meeting and greeting our customers in Livingston, which is one of our largest shopping centre stores.
“The atmosphere in the branch was phenomenal and I know this was echoed in our stores across the country.
“What struck me most was how committed people are to booking holidays right now; they are determined to get trips locked in as quickly as possible.
“We had queues of people almost all day with a mix of loyal and new-to-brand customers.”
Meanwhile, accommodation specialist Stuba has announced a record-breaking sales day and week for both revenue and room nights booked, outperforming pre-pandemic levels in the week commencing 23 January.
Compared to the same week in 2020, the bed bank has seen a 47% increase growth in revenue and is seeing solid growth for all key leisure destinations.
Half of sales are for travel from May 2023 and beyond, suggesting that the early booking behaviour pattern has reverted to pre-pandemic trends.
In addition, 88% of sales are for 4- and 5-star properties.
Longhaul destinations are seeing strong growth, such as Cancun/Riviera Maya, up 142%; Hawaii up 113%; Bali up 62% and Barbados up 53%.
Shorthaul destinations are also seeing strong sales with Amalfi Coast up 88%; Santorini up 116% and Costa del Sol up 53%.
Chief Commerical Officer Matt Stuart said: “We’re absolutely delighted with how the year has started.
“To see such a strong start to sales in terms of room nights booked and revenue is really encouraging.
“We are always very grateful for all the support from our partners and agents, and we are thrilled that our industry finally seems to be returning to where it deserves to be.”
