The venture was partially funded by Jet2holidays’ “Scale Up Your Street” initiative, which saw 11 travel agencies successfully pitch for a share of a more than £100,000 pot to drive retail expansion.

“There was an initial application and then a vetting process where I had to present my business plan to [director of travel agent relationships] Alan Cross and the rest of the Jet2 team,” director Andy Nelson told TTG. “They told me Craig Travel had been successful, and that they would happily contribute towards us opening another branch."

The brand, which was founded more than 40 years ago by Shirley Craig, has used the cash to expand its presence in Cumbria where it already has branches in Workington and Cockermouth. Craig Travel is part of Admiral Travel Group, which has a further three agencies operating under its Admiral Travel brand in Altrincham, Cheadle and Wilmslow, the latter of which opened in January this year.

“We looked at pretty much every town, city and village in the area,” Nelson explained. “We ruled out places like Keswick, because it was too tourist-oriented, while Penrith didn’t have the right location for us. Finally, I visited Kendal, and immediately liked it. There’s low unemployment, the town centre is busy every day of the week, and it isn’t overrun with big-name chains.”

Nelson said the premises was an "empty shell" when he got the keys, and was split into two separate units with a connecting walkway. "We had to brick one unit up, and did a lot of work refurbishing the place," he continued. "Now, it has our corporate colours, hundreds of brochures on the shelves, and lots of space, which we hope is warm and inviting."

(Credit: Andy Nelson)

Craig Travel quietly opened its doors in Kendal on 8 December, with an official ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for 9 January next year. The shop has five staff, including two part-timers and shop manager Jane Kay, who has previous experience at Hays Travel and at another independent in Leyland.

With only one other agency in town, competitors are less of a concern for Nelson. "Gates Travel isn't on the high street, but it has a great reputation, as it's been around since the 1930s," he said. "There's enough room for the two of us, though, considering Kendal's population is close to 30,000."

Nelson told TTG he'd "written off" the branch's first month for staff training and to smooth out any operational challenges. "Some people haven't worked on our systems before, or haven't been able to travel for a little while," he explained. "So, we've spent December ironing out those wrinkles before the public launch."

Business at the new shop has nevertheless got off to a strong start. "We already had clients by our second day, without any real announcements from us," Nelson said. "The fact we've done as many bookings as we have has blown my mind."

(Credit: Andy Nelson)

Escorted tours have been the most popular bookings so far, with Nelson also anticipating interest in cruise and city breaks. "There's going to be a real spread of luxury bookings, alongside interest from the family market," he added.

The agency has no fixed plans for further expansion, though Nelson is happy to continue populating Craig Travel if the sites continue to perform well.

"We believe in the high street," he insisted. "This is our [Admiral Travel Group's] sixth shop – we’ve opened three in just over two years, which have all done very well."

Nelson added he believed people's fears about "online fraud" in the years following the Covid pandemic have driven a greater need for face-to-face interactions when booking travel.

"People are growing wary of the internet," he said. "If you could get that personal service, where someone takes care of everything from visas to luggage labels, why wouldn't you?"