Wars, recessions, volcanic ash clouds and a pandemic – Tickets Travel has survived everything that's been thrown its way over the past 45 years, and some.
So what's the secret formula that's kept this venerable business trading on the high street in quaint Bexley Village all these years? "Good service can't be replicated," says Owner and Director Diane Coleman. "And you definitely don't get that with AI."
The Kent-based independent recently celebrated its milestone anniversary by inviting clients to a garden party in a neighbouring bakery where, coincidentally but fittingly, 45 guests – one for each year in business – joined the team to mark the occasion.
For Coleman, who joined Tickets Travel in 1985 and later became its owner, the anniversary is about nurturing the relationships that have sustained the business through the myriad challenges she and her team have faced.
"We've been through so much, and we've been lucky to have had such loyal customers throughout," she reflects. "If you can survive Covid, you can survive anything!"
Coleman's career on the high street began almost by accident while she was studying for a business degree in the early 1980s. Looking for help with a dissertation on the travel industry, she phoned every travel agency in the local area – "there were hundreds back then," she says – until Tickets Travel founder Norman Bingham invited her in for a chat.
Agency founder Norman Bingham was a huge source of inspiration for Coleman
Instead of conducting research, she found herself answering the phones while Bingham typed up her dissertation in the back office. "When I graduated, he said, 'Well, you might as well come and work here now'," she says.
After several "happy years" at the agency, Coleman left to open her own business before returning to Tickets Travel in 1995 – this time in partnership with Bingham. However, just nine months after Coleman rejoined the agency, Bingham died suddenly from a heart attack. He wasn't yet 50.
"It knocked me for six," she recalls. "That was the first time I had ever lost someone really close to me."
Overwhelmed, Coleman hired an interim manager and left to complete a teaching qualification. However, she soon found herself gravitating back to the industry, with a Gold Medal fam trip onboard the QE2 to New York reminding her where she belonged.
"I took that offer immediately, and I was glad I did – it made me realised I really, really missed travel," Coleman says.
'I used to cringe, but customer service is so important'
Coleman credits Bingham for shaping the service-led approach that continues to define the agency today. "People would come in with the holiday they'd chosen off a brochure and he'd say, 'I'm not booking that, I think you'd like this hotel instead'," she explains.
"At the time, I would cringe at how forward he was, but he knew every client – he remembered where they'd travelled, their families, everything. I learned so much from him about service."
Tickets Travel doesn't advertise or use social media; instead, Coleman says almost all new business comes through repeat customers and word-of-mouth referrals. "People don't want to book a £20,000 holiday online," she said. "They want reassurance, and they know with us, they can pick up the phone or send an email and they'll get an answer."
That reassurance proved critical during Covid, when staff spent months processing cancellations and refunds. One of Coleman's most memorable bookings was during this period – a honeymooning couple, Candice and Daniel, who twice had their plans disrupted by the pandemic.
"They got their honeymoon a year later, and sent me the most heartfelt card – it reminded me what this business is all about," Coleman says. "I'm proud to say not one client lost a penny during that period."
Coleman's most memorable booking happened during the Covid pandemic and resulted in this heartfelt thank-you card
Today, the team remains intentionally small, comprising Coleman, long-serving colleague David Celino-Stock, who has been with the agency for 18 years, Jo Hoyle and Coleman's daughter Lauren Kent, who is expected to return from maternity leave later this year.
Expansion is definitely not on the agenda, Coleman tells TTG. "We're happy as we are," she says – and she is equally confident when asked about the situation in the Middle East.
"Business is quieter than last year, but we've seen much worse," she says. "Come the autumn or early next year, it'll probably be back to normal. It always turns back around."
Asked what advice she would offer newer agencies facing difficult conditions, her answer returns to Norman and the importance of customer service.
"It takes time to build loyal clients, but good service can't be replicated," she added. "That's what I've learnt, and that's why people come back."
