TRAVEL firm Thomas Cook said its turnaround plan was on track after sun-seekers boosted summer bookings.
Holidaymakers snapped up deals to Turkey, Spain and Greece as they went in search of warmer weather, while the group was also able to raise prices by 8% on average in recent weeks.
Thomas Cook confirmed the Olympics gave a marginal lift to profit margins, but was not as successful as initially hoped due to challenging sales of its Olympic and Paralympic packages to corporate customers.
With demand lower than expected, Thomas Cook said it had instead targeted many of the packages to the consumer market, which meant there were no tickets or deals left over. It said 85,000 fans went to the Olympics and Paralympics through Thomas Cook.
The group said total cumulative UK bookings remained 1% down year-on-year, with a 10% rise in specialist and independent holidays offsetting a 9% fall in the mainstream market.
Despite the decline, the group said there were signs of a financial improvement as chief executive Harriet Green leads a top-down review of operations to revive business.
She said: “Working together with the management team, my priority has been to ensure a renewed focus on delivering to our plans for the current financial year, reviewing our approach for the forthcoming year and developing our objectives to grow and strengthen the business for the future.”
Thomson parent company TUI Travel this week confirmed an improvement in UK bookings, with its sales 10% ahead for next summer. Fed up after this year’s wash-out weather from April to July, Britons have been looking to escape to the sun, while also taking advantage of the weakened euro.
Thomas Cook did not provide any details for upcoming bookings, but said the Canary Islands, Tunisia and Egypt were the top picks for winter sun.
Signs of a revival will be welcome for Thomas Cook, which was plunged into crisis in November after it turned to its lenders for help, sparking fears of a collapse.
But it was helped on to a more stable financial footing after securing £200m of loans from its banks, while its new boss has been taken on to revive the business.
