Discover what Switzerland has to offer on a short or long city break with The Swiss Holidays

ROMI TREHAN, DIRECTOR, THE SWISS HOLIDAYS

An initiative that promotes holidays in Switzerland and Europe, The Swiss Holidays, a Switzerlandbased destination management company has been serving the Indian travellers for almost nine years. Switzerland is its core business and Romi Trehan is looking to expand this segment by capturing market share in destinations such as Scandinavian and Eastern Europe and introducing exclusive experiential holidays like Limo transfers, luxury Villas, Ski-lessons (certification), etc.

How exactly has travel business been this holiday season for outbound travel? How much does outbound travel form a part of your total revenue?

Outbound travel has grown more than anticipated this holiday season. We are expecting a growth of around 25 per cent. Outbound travel accounts for approximately 45 per cent of our company’s total revenue.

What kind of growth do you anticipate in travel and hospitality industry? What have been the growth rates so far?

We expect the travel and hospitality industry to experience fractured and staggered growth. Optimistic indicators peg the growth to be at a steady 18 per cent. With rising disposable incomes, awareness, attractive and creative travel solutions this is a good business. Certain destinations still consider India as an emerging market but with one of the largest middle income groups in the world and a large section of mature travellers–the key lies in innovation and unique holiday options.
Customers are becoming more aware and educated with every trip they make. This will drive Destination Management Companies (DMCs) to offer specialised travel and experiential holidays to existing and newer holiday destinations. To stay ahead of the competition one must target a growth percentage higher than the anticipated market average of 18 percent.

How would The Swiss Holidays be different from existing players in the market? What is the kind of competition that you are facing?

We are different from existing players in the market in a number of ways. Since our headquarters are in Switzerland, we leverage this advantage with our highly experienced staff in the Indian subsidiaries. We are available 24×7 for our customers from around the world and our staff is multilingual. One of our key competencies is offering Meet and Greet facilities to customers in all major European cities as well as offering MOTS – ‘Man on the spot’- services in real time, locally. This builds immense trust with clients and is a major contributor to our brand.

The main competition that we are facing is through online portals and hotels, who are tapping the Business to Consumer (B2C) segment directly with low rates. This is a key metric in a highly competitive and price sensitive market.

What is your core business at present? What are the plans for expanding this core segment? What are the innovative measures that one can expect to see in this space in the times to come?

Our core business is focussed on providing travel solutions in Switzerland and neighbouring European countries. This market is highly saturated and matured, so the plans for expansion in this core segment have to come from out of the box ideas.

Indian clientele usually visits Switzerland and mainland Europe in summers. We are looking to expand our reach in the Swiss market by marketing and selling the winter vacations and packages in these countries better.

We are also looking to expand this core segment by capturing market share in upcoming travel destinations such as Scandinavian and East European countries. The hi-end–mature traveller needs hi-end exclusive experiential holidays starting from Limo transfers, luxury villas, ski-lessons (certification) etc., that distinguish them from fresh travellers.

Wellness holidays with special exclusive treatments at top Swiss wellness resorts along with senior citizen friendly holiday options should be an upcoming segment as well. Long stays at villas and chalets is also a fast growing segment with more and more families deciding to hire quaint chalets in picturesque hamlets, spending quality time and enjoying ‘home-stay’ atmospheres; very often opting for selfdrive.

For how long has The Swiss Holidays been promoting outbound tourism, particularly in Europe?

The Swiss Holidays has been promoting outbound tourism since around nine years now. We first promoted Europe and Switzerland in particular in 2005.

What kind of volumes you do currently?

In 2013, we facilitated travel plans for almost 6,000 guests accounting for nearly 33,000 room nights. These include all segments from FITs, GITs, andMICE as well.

Which were the initial destinations and circuits that you launched?

The initial destinations and circuits that we launched were the popular and now staple Lucerne-Interlaken-Zurich circuit in Switzerland and Paris and French Riviera circuit in France. Travellers visiting Europe for the first time mostly opt for these destinations and packages.

How have these evolved?

These circuits have evolved in various ways. We have expanded core itineraries to include other lesser-known but beautiful destinations in Switzerland such as Zermatt, Montreux, St. Moritz, Arosa, etc. Premium trains such as the Golden Pass Line and the Glacier Express have also benefitted from this evolution as a lot of repeat travellers choose to include these services in their travel plans and itineraries.

The Swiss Holidays is working towards offering more variety in its Switzerland itineraries

What is the difference between the earlier Indian tourists and those of today?

The main differences between the earlier Indian tourists and those of today are their keenness to be educated about the destinations and the propensity to spend. Earlier, tourists tended to book destinations on face value and popularity (sticking to the core itineraries) and travelled majorly on a tight budget. Tourists today want to be much more aware about the destinations and ‘offbeat’ excursions before they confirm their holidays. Due to emerging middle and upper class, the budget travelling category has diminished since clients are willing to pay for luxury and premium services (such as transfers, cars, hotels, etc.).

What are the principal factors behind this evolution from your experience?

Awareness; economic prosperity; multiple options from cities, hotels, flights, travel companies to choose from and the growing segment of repeat travellers have all resulted in this change in recent years.

How proactive is the organisation in promoting novelties in itineraries?

Most of our travel consultants have travelled to Switzerland and Europe– some have also been there several times to research and experience the future best seller options for our guests. This year, our new budget packages customised according to apartments in Swiss villages and unlimited train travel have found popularity amongst tourists travelling to Europe for the first time. We have been able to leverage our decade-old networks in Switzerland and Europe to provide fresh packages every year suited to different consumer tastes and insights. Be it wine festivals, beer camps, Segway Tours of Zurich or even Paragliding in Interlaken–they have always been the cusp of unique life changing experiences for our guests (for instance the largest private collection of Moon Rock can be visited at the Mystery Park near Interlaken along with many other unique and lesser known attractions).

Which destinations/players are most dynamic and proactive and where is the potential to grow?

I think, Eastern Europe is a proactive region in the Indian travel market over the last two years. Countries such as Slovenia, Romania, Hungary, Poland etc., have the most potential to pick up due to lower conversion rates and saturation of the core markets. They will presently be an add-on but as agents and guests become aware, they have the potential to be standalone holiday destinations in Eastern Europe.

How do you see the expansion and evolution of The Swiss Holidays in outbound tourism in the next five years?

Our core strengths of local expertise and presence in Switzerland and Europe with unique and constant quest for newer things to share with and a huge repeat and referral client base to tap into, we need to constantly come up with experience based holidays and variety in our offering. We will continue to cater to the direct market but also look at a franchisee based model for selective Tier 2 and 3 cities in India where we know that local agency expertise and contacts can be beneficial to us and the local agents in those stronghold regions as well. We must, at a macro level, also get a first mover advantage into Eastern Europe– by way of local presence and expertise, the way we have for Central Europe andSwitzerland.