gmc40
Head Pro
How’s it incorrect?
Thomas Cook
- Thread starter chrisd
- Start date
How’s it incorrect?
Leftie
Tour Winner
Oof. Well bully for you. I'm sure that we are all so pleased for you. Thank you for sharing that with us.
Knob
robinthehood
Hacker
Thanks, would you like some investment tips?Oof. Well bully for you. I'm sure that we are all so pleased for you. Thank you for sharing that with us.
Knob
FCOJ or pork bellies are sure fire winners.
Captainron
Big Hitting, South African Sweary Person
That may be the case but not the point I was trying (badly) to make.
The internet has vastly diminished the need for those highly street stores which employ so many people who would normally do all this for you. I love doing my own holiday research. Also package holidays have a touch of stigma about them for me. I try and avoid the “brits abroad†as I want a holiday from “Britain†and that includes the people to a large degree.
IanMcC
Well-known member
We are off to Turkey (golfing) in December, and we booked items separately, but the flight is booked with Thomas Cook Airlines!
Also, we have a package deal booked for March 2020 in Mexico (a bit of golfing) which is solely booked with Thomas Cook.
Its not great seeing any company struggle, but as long as you and the other 'millions' are OK then everything is just rosy, I suppose.
gmc40
Head Pro
Don’t disagree, do the same myself and have done for a few years.
Captainron
Big Hitting, South African Sweary Person
I’m sure your travel insurance will cover the cost of the flights should the company go pop.
Never nice to see a company fold when it affects so many people but that is the reality of the world today.
Tashyboy
Please don’t ask to see my tatts 👍
Which is what I do, but if you do book to yourself, you A, need to pay by Credit card so if the company goes bust, financially you are covered. And B, you need to have travel insurance as well. So once more you are covered. So in essence you won't miss out.
GreiginFife
Money List Winner
Thomas Cook can't be compared to the likes of Jet2 as their operating model is completely different. Stores being the obvious differentiator and all the costs that go with that.
Like many bricks and mortar retailers, Thomas Cook have failed to diversify their operating model and ability to pivot on market and consumer changes quickly enough and are suffering.
The likes of Jet2, Ryanair and Easyjet etc live a pretty much online sales existence so probably have 10-15% operating costs compared to Thomas Cook.
Let's not forget Thomson were also largely doomed until TUI bought them out.
Higher operating costs, not in small part hindered by weak pound rates, are to blame for the issues.
Like many bricks and mortar retailers, Thomas Cook have failed to diversify their operating model and ability to pivot on market and consumer changes quickly enough and are suffering.
The likes of Jet2, Ryanair and Easyjet etc live a pretty much online sales existence so probably have 10-15% operating costs compared to Thomas Cook.
Let's not forget Thomson were also largely doomed until TUI bought them out.
Higher operating costs, not in small part hindered by weak pound rates, are to blame for the issues.
Tashyboy
Please don’t ask to see my tatts 👍
Thomas Cook can't be compared to the likes of Jet2 as their operating model is completely different.
Greg that couldn't be further from the truth. Daughter has a holiday booked with Thomas Cook for a week in October in Pathos. Thomas Cook shop booked the holiday to be supplied by none other than Jet2. They work alongside one another.
drdel
Tour Rookie
Miss management - most assets are leased, bills from summer suppliers now due. The additional £200m will just flow through with little net profit left to cover interest etc. Who'd invest at the moment - its a dead duck.
GreiginFife
Money List Winner
The fact that Thomas Cook offer holidays packaged by another firm does nothing to alter my point. Jet2 do not sell through stores that they, now this is important, pay for or own. Their operating model is that they offer their product via a vassal, in this case Thomas cook.
Tomas Cook has shop front staff as well as airport staff and flight crews etc to pay for. This probably adds 30-40% of their nett operating costs compared to other firms.
Again, the operating model cannot be compared to Jet2.
The fact that Jet2 supplied your daughters holiday that was booked via a Thomas Cook storefront doesn't alter the fact that Thomas Cook still has to pay for the staff that booked it.
D
Deleted member 18588
Guest
Agree with this.
The collapse (if it happens) will be yet another reflection upon our changing shopping habits and the resultant effect on the High Street.
There will obviously be other factors but the main problem seems to be failure to recognise the increase in their operating costs due to maintaining outdated practices.
Slab
Occasional Tour Caddy
I have to ask how can so many 'successful' business all 'fail to recognise'
Why do so many companies have very successful people running them... but none can see the market change
I think that its pure greed
So many companies don't know when to stop expanding and greed makes them grow beyond what's sustainable thru a bad period
stefanovic
Medal Winner
This is good news because we need to stop flying to help save the planet.
What's bad news for David Attenborough and other frequent fliers is good news for climate change protestors.
What's bad news for David Attenborough and other frequent fliers is good news for climate change protestors.
I don't know that they don't see the change is needed, it is the scale of the change required that is tough to fully absorb and enforce. If the MD said we are going to close 80% of their shops, 50% of resort staff, 30% of holiday options that would be massive. If they said we are going to sell 1/3 fewer holidays, turnover will massively be down but we may make more profit, it's a huge gamble. (These numbers are all made up by the way. I'm just trying to make a point)
You are asking certain companies to entirely change their way of work, their whole thought process. Very hard to get that through. Much easier to enter a market as a new company with no baggage.
gmc40
Head Pro
Unless
a) people booked using a debit card or
b) their insurance didn’t cover it (apparently a lot of policies exclude this scenario)
So whilst a number will be covered those likely to lose out will be those who’ve booked flight only. Package holidays are all covered by ATOL.
GreiginFife
Money List Winner
Then you would be hugely surprised by many 'large' organisations in that case.
I have spent the last 8 years, since leaving Sky, as a Business Consultant specialising in technology and operating model/customer model improvements and I am regularly having discussions that most people would deem logical or sensible but don't factor on senior people's radar.
In many cases, as Tyrion, points out and I alluded to in my post, its not that they simply don't see it, its that the organisation has become too large and singularly directed to "turn the ship around" without vast time and money expenditure, something not often palatable for many business leaders.
What kills many of these organisations is the belief 10 years ago that they would be ok and didn't need to invest in making them more agile, the "we've been around for years and weathered loads of storms" approach. The storm they face in to now is not big businesses driving the market shape but the consumer power of instant availability demands driving the shape, there has never been a storm like it IMO.
I think you only have to look at big orgs like Frasers and Debenhams hitting the buffers and both being guilty of not becoming digitally agile and competitive sooner, losing them massive ground thag became almost impossible to claw back.
Look at so many purely web based success stories like Amazon and clothing companies like Boohoo and Jacamo that saw the market change and made themselves the shape to fit the gap, not the other way round which is what big orgs have tried to do for years.
Tashyboy
Please don’t ask to see my tatts 👍
So this time next year we should expect to see Kuoni and TUI go under then. 🤔 I don't think so. I think the problems lies, as has been mentioned at a management level. Which as it happens seems to be the mainstay of your last post.
GreiginFife
Money List Winner
TUI went through a restructure and reduced their high street presence and Kuoni have only a small number of outlets. Again, these are different operating models. This is not hard to understand. Thomas Cook have relied too heavily on shop front bookings when the market place has changed.
Bear in mind that TUI were, by and large, an acquisitions driven organisation that is, essentially, a conglomerate (they acquired Thomsons in the UK) and as such has different operating capital at it's disposal to that of the more traditional Thomas Cook, which until recently was hoping to be bought out Fosun so that they could follow a similar model.
Kuoni operate as core shops, partner shops and preferred agent shops. That, again, is a totally different model. What you propose is like saying Man City will go out of business because Bury did and they were a football club too.
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