Flight Centre relaunches Escape Travel franchises.
Flight Centre has just announced plans to expand its Escape Travel franchise model, with the company saying it is already “being approached by agents who are affiliated to other franchise groups”.
Chief operating officer Melanie Waters-Ryan said the move would help bolster the brand’s organic growth, by offering agents from the broader travel industry the opportunity to join the group.
“Escape Travel is a growing brand with an expanding nation-wide presence of almost 140 shops and a track record of success,” she said.
“Through franchising we can work with experienced external travel professionals to grow this network more rapidlly and, at the same time, build on the platforms that are already in place,” Waters-Ryan added, saying that prospective franchisees are being offered an “exciting and attractive business opportunity to become part of the Flight Centre success story in Australia”.
Escape Travel franchisees will have access to the group’s global product range and the advertising, branding and marketing structures that have underpinned the company’s growth, she said.
Waters-Ryan said other potential benefits could include IT systems and related support services, centralised air ticketing, training and development programs, staff conferences, group buying for ancillary business products and more.
Although it originally launched as a franchise brand in 2005, Escape Travel’s franchising system was later put on hold, with just eight of the existing stores currently franchised.
“The franchise model that is in place is working well, delivering benefits to existing franchisees and the company as a whole at a time when significant change is underway in the Australian travel industry’s franchise sector,” Waters-Ryan said.
“We believe now is the ideal time to build on these foundations by expanding our offering.”