Hays Travel celebrates grand opening after moving to new Wellingborough shopping centre location

Hays Travel opened its new branch in Wellingborough’s Swansgate Shopping Centre on Friday (March 15) after moving from its existing site just a few yards away.

Thomas Cook was acquired by Hays Travel, the largest independent travel agent in the UK, and so the former’s branch in Swansgate shopping centre’s Swans Lane (which was a Thomas Cook site for more than 40 years) was renovated and rebranded in 2019.

Four years later, the decision to move into a new, more central unit opposite Costa Coffee has come to fruition.

Angela Miller, manager of Hays Travel in Wellingborough, said: “We were very lucky to be taken over from Thomas Cook by Hays Travel, and when the divisional manager came in he decided straight away he didn’t like the location where we were for footfall.”

Stacey Holyomes, assistant manager, said: “It was also more cost effective to move us rather than try and redo the existing shop as that was far too big.”

Bosses insist that business is running smoothly and the decision to remain in the town centre was one made because the company is ‘still very busy and achieving all our goals’, with a loyal customer base still valuing the face-to-face bookings.

Ms Holyomes added: “Dame Irene [chair and owner of Hays Travel] is a big advocate for the High Street, and keeping the High Street going. During the pandemic a lot of people booked online, and they didn’t get the service they would at Hays Travel because we were still at the end of the phone when some companies weren’t.

"The face-to-face is just so much more personal I think, I find that you can get to know the customer more and what they like.”

Plans to move premises were in the pipeline for over two years and once the papers were made official the move took place over two weeks, with eight members of staff tranferring, many of which took part in an in-house apprenticeship and training scheme, coming from different areas of the travel sector.

The ribbon was cut by Daniel Packwood and Kathryn Hobbs, who were the first customers in the old store when it reopened as Hays Travel on November 2, 2019. The day also featured a singer, refreshments and a handful of regular customers to help celebrate the opening.

Callum Abraham, the store’s branch manager said: “Being on the High Street, it’s a very well known brand, and the company’s done a lot in regards to keeping people in jobs when Thomas Cook went under, helping on the lines when Covid was around, and with apprenticeship schemes.

“There’s a lot that Hays has that really generates a lot of new business and repeat business, it’s just having that well-known name and good customer base that keeps us going.

"When customers come in it’s like the holiday starts as soon as they walk in because they haven’t got to do anything apart from pay, everything else is done by us.”

Hays Travel’s relocation occupies a vacant unit in the centre, but leaves one behind, with currently no news as to what the now-departed unit will become.