Hurtigruten to expand away from Vic

HURTIGRUTEN has announced its intention to boost its presence in New South Wales, with regional MD Damian Perry saying “there are now too many challenges and uncertainty in trying to expand in Victoria”.

Perry said the ongoing draconian lockdown measures and the fact that a state of emergency declaration remains in the hands of Premier Daniel Andrew “without him showing any willingness to compromise and offer real transparency” is a heavy burden on the people of Victoria and businesses trying to recover from the pandemic.

“I am very concerned for the wellbeing of our team in Melbourne and what they need to endure under this extraordinary lockdown,” he said.

“The uncertainty is a huge stress for so many... we will offer full support to give them confidence, purpose and structure in their daily lives,” Perry added.

However the situation has also necessitated the development of a contingency plan which will see Hurtigruten establish a broader national presence.

“It is difficult to foresee how we can expand our business model in Victoria, and I have therefore instructed our landlord with their national footprint to re-engineer our agreement and make space available in Sydney,” Perry said.

Hurtigruten’s local boss enthused that the cruise line’s global business across multiple source markets already had clients planning ahead and booking into all of 2021 and 2022.

“This positive sentiment is happening to some degree in other states with the exception of Victoria where confidence is shot.”

Most agents and retailers in the state are forced into a “wait and see” approach which will cripple many, he said, adding “we need some certainty at the most senior level that is fact-based so the market can become more active, deliver consumer confidence to travellers and rebuild before the industry collapses”.

Perry said Hurtigruten expected that significant job losses, mortgage stress and potential travellers diverting funds to help family members in need will soften the Victorian market over the coming year, while the lack of clarity and ongoing doubt is making it difficult for individuals to bounce back.

“Hurtigruten has a strong business model with a solid financial runway and we remain agile and we will offer our support to any agency and agency group that wishes to be proactive in building consumer confidence,” he added.