Homeworking agency to open first high street store next month
A homeworking agency specialising in luxury cruise holidays is set to open its first high street retail outlet in Leicester next month
Club Voyages, a venture spearheaded by former travel journalist Samuel Ballard, will welcome its first customers to its shop in Clarendon Park on 2 September.
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet to be honest,” Ballard told Cruise Trade News. “I got the keys Wednesday morning (14 August) and I just stood there. I was almost in disbelief.”
The store will offer a range of holiday options, including luxury cruise breaks, while also support the company’s 17 homeworkers with administrative tasks.
Ballard will initially employ a team of two – one full-time staff member and one part-time – before carrying out a review in January to decide whether to take on more.
“Originally I was looking at getting an office to just support the admin side of things,” Ballard continued. “Then I thought, ‘why not get a shop?’ and everything has since fallen into place nicely.”
Ballard hopes the expansion onto the high street will lead to a number of other stores in different locations across the UK. “I would love to expand,” he adds.
“If we can offer more shops in different areas that would be amazing, but right now it is about getting this venture right – that is critical.”
Despite a number of high streets struggling in recent years amid the cost of living crisis and rising rents and taxes, Ballard is confident the store will bolster the local area’s economic standing.
‘I’m really confident in the high street’
“I’m really confident in the high street and that we will get people through the door,” he declared. “I have always been a fan of retail and I do think there is something quite special about seeing a physical representation of your own brand.
“There is something great about going in and talking to people about travel in a relaxed environment. It is all about helping the people of Clarendon Park find their perfect getaway.”
It comes after the cruise experts behind a new travel agency set their sights on “significant growth” across the UK ahead of the launch of their first high street retail outlet in Swindon last month.
