The store, which will be known as North Bar Travel, is the agency's fifth and is situated in "the heart of Beverley's old town", co-owner Beverley Cheesman told TTG.
The name, North Bar Travel, retains Beverley's tradition of naming its stores to reflect the local area or relevant local history.
Beverley's network also includes Hedon Travel, Market Weighton-based Wicstun Travel, which is the old English name for the town, and franchise store Swanland Travel, all in east Yorkshire.
Cheesman said she and business partner Karl Douglas "jumped" at the opportunity to take on the premises, which the believe will serve a different clientele and capture more business in the town itself.
“The other store [in Beverley] is in a shopping centre, which is a drive-to destination with shops, an independent cinema and a trampoline park,” Cheesman explained. “Surprisingly few clients actually lived in the Beverley area.”
North Bar Travel opened on Wednesday 4 February and Cheesman said the soft launch had been "really successful".
“People were buzzing in and out all day,” Cheesman continued. “We received some nice enquiries and lots of well wishes, including cards, chocolates and prosecco. Some lovely suppliers and BDMs came round to see us, too.”
The shop opened on 4 February and enjoyed a 'really successful' soft launch (Credit: Beverley Travel)
Cheesman said the new branch is situated in a “fairly affluent area” of the town, which she and Douglas believe will help convert demand for tailor-made and luxury enquiries.
“It’s an aspirational place to live,” she continued. “There's lots of very old townhouses and masses of green space, with cows and horses.”
There are four agencies in Beverley's old town, including Tui and Barrhead Travel, but Cheesman believes North Bar Travel is ideally placed in an area of high footfall, fuelling "high hopes and goals" for the month ahead.
“We’re a growing business so we always strive and expect success,” she added.
Agent Ella Austin has moved to North Bar Travel from the original site, with co-owner Karl Douglas, store manager Hayley Bolton and Cheesman “working the rest out” on a part-time basis. From there, they’ll “recruit accordingly", Cheeseman confirmed.
The pair have made ”no secret” of their plans for expansion, with Douglas expressing their ambition to open a fifth shop last May. However, Cheesman told TTG retail growth was dependent on their ability to be ”hands-on”.
“We’d never want to be in a position where we don’t know the people that work for us,” she said. “Being there to train and mentor our staff is very important to us.”
Beverley Travel is a two-time TTG Top 50 Top Agency in Yorkshire (2023 and 2024), and was named TTG Top 50's UK and Ireland No.1 Agency in 2023. It retained its place in the Top 50 for a third consecutive year last year.
