The brand, which is part of the same dnata Travel Group stable as Gold Medal, has grown its sales team from 15 to 20 over the past few years, and now plans to go up to 25 – an increase of two-thirds (66%) in just three years.
Cruise Plus cited "continued demand and business growth" for the recruitment push. Simon Applebaum, managing director of dnata Travel Group UK, revealed Cruise Plus sales had increased by 48% year-on-year, and bookings by 43%.
"We have also found the number of agents booking with us has grown by 14% in the past 365 days, demonstrating agents are seeing the value in working with Cruise Plus," he added.
Despite identifying the need for additional resource, recruitment for which is already under way, Cruise Plus claims its answer rate "remains high" at 90%.
It is continuing to focus on internal education and training with 45 colleagues registered on Clia’s Masters programme, eight of whom have achieved master status – the highest level – while another 12 hold ambassador status, the next highest.
Cruise Plus said it was focused on "continued development" across its sales and product teams following the growth in popularity of cruise in recent years.
Applebaum added Cruise Plus has seen "dramatic growth" across all cruise products over the past year, with Luxury by Cruise Plus sales up 70% year-on-year, river cruising sales up 66% and expedition cruising sales up 53%.
"Cruise Plus covers all sectors of the cruise market and is constantly seeking new products, [so] it is only correct we support our experts’ education to remain a market-leading operator and expand our team accordingly, in line with this demand."
