Domestic hotel suppliers and theatre-break specialists are increasing their trade offerings to fill the gap left by Super Break’s collapse.
Hotel Direct and Great Little Breaks are all boosting their B2B short-break ranges.
Hotel Direct, which was a B2C competitor to Super Break, is developing a travel agent portal to begin working with the trade for the first time since it set up in 1997.
The portal will offer dynamic packaging of UK rail breaks, theatre breaks and hotel bookings, and is due to launch on November 1.
Director and co-founder Mark Wilson said: “We’ve been exploring the possibility of selling dynamic packages through agents. The collapse of the Malvern Group [Super Break’s parent company] hastened our development of a trade platform and we are pleased to be able to announce its launch.”
Wilson said all hotel-only bookings, as well as packages, would be financially protected – something Super Break did not offer and which became clear to some agents only after its collapse on July 31.
“This will mean agents will know that whatever they book with us will be fully protected,” said Wilson.
Great Little Breaks plans to launch a trade platform before the end of the year and is recruiting a head of travel trade as it seeks to “move further into the domestic market”.
Diana Evans, sales and marketing director at parent HotelshopUK, said: “It was always part of our business plan. Super Break was one of the companies we always aspired to and the collapse, while sad, has expedited plans to move in that direction.”
Administrator KPMG has accepted an offer for Super Break’s assets, which had previously been valued at £2.1 million. The buyer has not been named as the sale has not yet been completed.