Ponant creates Facebook group for UK and Ireland trade

The French luxury line will use its Ponant Experts UK & Ireland platform to share news on products incentives, ship visits and events, as well as to collect agent feedback and run monthly competitions.

It is the first time Ponant has used such as group to engage with trade partners in any of its source markets.

Stephen Winter, international sales director, said its creation of the group “shows our continued involvement and dedication to the UK and Irish markets, and our ambition to significantly grow our share of the market in the UK and Ireland.”

Speaking last month to TTG, Herve Bellaiche, chief marketing and sales officer, revealed plans for Ponant to “substantially grow” its share of the UK luxury cruise sector.

He said the line – which will add seven ships to its fleet by 2021 – would triple its UK marketing spend and scale up its sales team as it looked to take “up to a 10% share” of the market within the next three years.

To aid its UK growth, Ponant also recently launched a range of sailings only for English speakers and began pricing in sterling.

To join the Facebook group, agents must give the group administrator their agency number. Those who do not have one can contact the administrator directly to ask to join the group.

Ponant said the initiative was designed to strengthen its links with the trade industry and to get to know agents better, allowing the line to “be more reactive to the needs of the agents” and “ensure the sharing of fast, direct and continued information”.

Photo by Philip Plisson