My Travel Career: Stacey Hurcombe, regional sales manager, Tui

CRISIS MANAGEMENT

There have been challenges too. “As a retail manager, it was tough leading a team through 9/11. It was emotional, we had customers in New York at the time.”

Then as a regional sales manager, she dealt with the fallout from the Iceland ash cloud, the Tunisia shooting and the collapse of Thomas Cook, when Tui provided a lifeline to stranded customers. 

“But nothing could have prepared me for leading a team through Covid,” she says. “I’ll never forget the phone call to say, everyone has to go home, the country is locking down. All I’ve ever known is being in retail and being customer-facing and suddenly all our staff were working from home and we were sending laptops out to everyone so they could continue to support customers remotely. We did an incredible job, given the circumstances, but there’s no doubt it was challenging.”

She credits much of her success to the mentoring she received from her very first manager, Sonia Wilkinson, who still works for Tui part-time. “I’ve been really fortunate to have been surrounded by great leaders,” she says.

“Sonia put me in great shape for the future, she had high expectations, constantly gave feedback and had a natural ability for developing people. Then there was Jill Carter, who as my RSM gave me extra responsibilities as a manager. And now, I’m inspired by Stephen Bracegirdle, head of retail, and Kirsty Frith, my current line manager. They’ve all been instrumental in my progress.”

SOUND ADVICE

Technology clearly has been a big change over the years, but she doesn’t see it as a threat. “It’s an enabler because it drives footfall into our stores. Customers still want that human interaction and that’s retail’s biggest strength. Technology harnessed with the human touch is a lethal combination.”

Stacey meets lots of apprentices, similar to how she started out all those years ago, and her advice is always the same. “The travel adviser role can be underestimated,” she says. “I say, ‘take your time, be patient, don’t put too much pressure on yourself and don’t compare yourself to anyone else. In six months’ time you’ll look back and be proud of what you’ve achieved so it’s important to take time to reflect on progress made.’”

“Thirty years on, I’m still learning every day,” she adds. “I’m happy with what I do, I love my staff and the customers, the company is always evolving and I can work on side projects that stretch me.”

Living in a little town in the Welsh Valleys helps Stacey’s work-life balance. “I can see sheep from my windows and I walk my dogs Roxy and Alfie in the mountains. How can I be stressed with that on my doorstep?” she says.