The travel industry can fix its sights on growing anew in 2023 following three years of pandemic horror, insists Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer, but it must also prepare for new day-to-day challenges, most notably the sector’s recruitment and talent crisis, its transition to sustainability, war in mainland Europe and the cost of living squeeze.
Tanzer strikes an optimistic tone as he speaks to TTG shortly before the new year, confident the industry will continue its recovery from Covid next year, despite lingering "dark clouds" remaining in the form of geopolitical and economic difficulties.
He tempers his outlook, though, with a timely reminder to travel that it "must be adaptable" to potential headaches in 2023, and ready to come up with solutions to challenges such as the effects of Russia’s war with Ukraine, rising business and living costs, attracting new – and retaining experienced – workers, and achieving the sector’s sustainability targets, particularly those concerning carbon and the climate.
"I’m not pessimistic, but I do think we need to be very adaptable as events unfold," he says, firmly. Recruitment is first on Tanzer’s agenda, an issue he stresses is likely to be "one of the industry’s biggest" in years to come.
Companies, he says, must "make it clear" to potential candidates that there is a wide range of exciting and fulfilling roles available throughout the sector – a message which he believes the industry has been "historically unsuccessful" in relaying to potential recruits.
"There is a whole host of careers in travel," he says. "Digital marketing, IT, sales, aviation, I could go on – it’s a very rich area in which people can build careers."
Businesses, he continues, should look at more modern means of finding and attracting new talent, such as through social media – including TikTok.
"We need to work on how we attract staff and the channels companies use to reach out to people," he continues. "In this new age, you may get a better response through social media. I think opening our own eyes to how recruitment is working more generally is very important."
Key to maintaining new staff lies in further investment in training and management, which Tanzer says will be "critical" as there are "plenty of other places for people to go".
Another challenge for travel over the coming years, starting in earnest next year, will be its ongoing mission to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.
Tanzer’s mantra is that "big problems do not always require big solutions", remarking that if firms can work on their own carbon footprint in the first instance before concerning themselves with their supply chains, the industry will be on the right path.
The elephant in the room is aviation, though. "There are also some very big challenges in the decarbonisation of the aviation sector," Tanzer warns.
He says government "must be a collaborative partner" with the industry to encourage investment in sustainable fuels, adding that without further technological breakthroughs, the aviation sector will struggle to square its growth ambitions with its carbon reduction targets.
"There is progress, but there needs to be a change in technology over the next five or so years to really drive us towards carbon neutrality," he continues.
"We will sort out the regulatory reforms, we will sort out the operational side of travel, because the industry is good at that – but talent management and decarbonisation are our biggest challenges."
Travel regulation
On regulations, Tanzer says there are three main points which must be addressed before any major changes can be made: what the correct level of protection for customers is; what the mechanisms for providing this protection will be; and how long the industry will have to implement these new mechanisms.
"Having Atol regulations and other protections has really helped the industry maintain consumer confidence in the past," he says.
"If we just take them away, we might find we have thrown the baby out with the bath water. There are lots of different models we can use – escrow accounts, bonds, trust accounts – and different businesses will prefer different ways.
"If there are going to be changes, how long are we going to have to transition to the new status quo? Because you can’t flick a switch overnight and change the way people operate."
Tanzer says Abta supports stronger powers for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), as having a "strong regulator in the middle of the aviation sector will be very useful".
Its lack of teeth was brought into sharp focus late last year after it was left powerless to do much more than write to Wizz Air to tell it to get on with addressing a huge backlog of outstanding complaints, unpaid compensation claims and county court judgements.
"Aviation is one of our strategic assets as an economy," he explains. "We want to be connected; we want to be strategic. We work very closely with the CAA, and I support extra powers for them.”
Casting back, Tanzer believes 2022 has gone "better than we could’ve hoped” given Covid-era travel restrictions weren’t fully lifted until March.
"Throughout the pandemic, we saw a lot of pent-up demand, so when customers were able to travel again we wanted to make the most of that opportunity – and that has proved true," he recalls.
"When you take an industry that’s been mothballed for two years and then try to ramp up operations very quickly, you’re going to have disruptions, which we saw in the summer.
"However, members aren’t out of the woods yet. It’s not as though everything is hunky-dory. But, as a positive, people are travelling and booking for next year."
Looking ahead
Despite a positive end to what started as a challenging year, Tanzer believes pressure on energy prices will not only continue to impact businesses and airlines in 2023, but also consumer spending.
"Even if the demand is there – and people do value their holidays very highly – they are not completely insulated from those financial pressures," he warns.
"Consumers may opt for fewer, longer holidays rather than short breaks in a bid to reduce transport costs, or they may go for an all-inclusive option to lock in that certainty."
In 2023, Tanzer says Abta will continue to offer members the support and services it is known for, such as financial protection options and legal advice, as well as government lobbying to stress the importance of the travel and tourism sector to the UK economy.
"We offer a very broad menu for all our members, but for the travel agents in particular, we are very focused on ensuring they get value from their subscription," he says, playing down some of the dissent the association has faced since March 2020.
This year, Abta’s focus – Tanzer adds – will not necessarily be adding new products and services but "making sure we are there for members whenever they need us".
"My focus is on making sure the team is trained up, available – and ready to help members whenever they need us," Tanzer vows.
