Travel giant Flight Centre is building back business as coronavirus enters an endemic phase globally, but the recovery is undershooting some market expectations.also warned cuts to airline commissions would likely slice 1 per cent off margins in a key division while some customers were running out of time to use outstanding travel credits received due to COVID-19 cancellations.
One unusual aspect for such a large company was a lack of hybrid-meeting technology – nothing was streamed online. “At this stage of our recovery, we were not making any profit, and we felt we were better to conserve our money,” Flight Centre chairman Gary Smith said. The decision would be reassessed next year.
Flight Centre has also found itself targeted by some customers frustrated about travel refunds or credits, with some describing having had conflicting answers from carriers and agents. Asked about the impact of a new wave of COVID-19 cases, which hurt travel including in North America between last November and February, Mr Turner was cautious but not fretting.