News & Analysis

Cardiff-based Gill's Cruise Centre is to open a telesales division in central London to attract new cruise customers.

The cruise specialist agency will open its Baker Street Cruise Club next week as a separate brand from the main agency in Wales. An advertising campaign promoting the new brand will start on June 14.

Chairman Alistair Gill said: "We wanted to establish an individual business for Gill's under a new brand name."

Currently around 50% of Gill's business is new-to-cruise customers and the site aims to grow a new customer base of first-time cruise holidaymakers.

The Baker Street Cruise Club will take business over the phone rather than operating as a traditional walk-in high street travel agency. But he admitted: "It might become a retail operation in future."

The division will have its own website www.bakerstreetcruise.com and will be headed up by Tom Macklin, who will have a team of specialist cruise sales staff.