Thomas Cook promises 'differentiated' product

Ian Ailles, chief executive of the mainstream business, said that holidays had "moved back to being the key money spending priority" for consumers, but that people were budgeting for holidays more carefully.

Ailles said that it was "more important than ever" that Thomas Cook delivered choice, value and reassurance to its consumers at each stage of the holiday purchase, whether online, on the high street or in a call centre.

Thomas Cook intends to deliver an "exclusive, differentiated product" to consumers, following the continued growth in all-inclusive holidays over the past three years, although it would not elaborate on how it would go about this.

The tour operator did not outline any plans to reassure consumers following its financial troubles in the latter half of 2011, when it was forced to solicit an extra £100m from its banks.

Ailles said: "Customers are not interested in our debt-equity ratio."

In December, Thomas Cook revealed it had dropped celebrities Louise and Jamie Redknapp from its advertising, instead focusing on destination-based marketing, which highlighted its specific holiday products for the first time in a series of ads. 

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This article was first published on marketingmagazine.co.uk