Acomb Travel, York
This friendly, five-strong team is headed by husband-and-wife duo Eric and Sam Walton, who are known and loved in their local community.
Sponsored by Wendy Wu Tours
The store has been here for 42 years and, while Eric has now taken a backseat role, his strong relationships with clients means he’s still happy to arrange home visits or one-to-one telephone consultations.
Marketing whizz Sam loves getting creative with the shop window – a recent Chinese New Year-themed display comprised flying pigs and “Jetset Jody”, the agency’s famous mannequin, kitted out in a traditional kimono. Past ideas include a climbing-themed window to promote adventure specialist G Adventures and a display featuring a giant model airplane to support Jet2holidays.
The team is also thinking digitally, using Twitter, Instagram and – more recently – Facebook Live, to promote offers or when travelling on trips. They’ve also signed up for upcoming social media training.
Acomb Travel’s Sam is also a regular on the events scene, attending countless networking evenings to forge strong relationships with community members, and bringing in plenty of new business along the way.
Events are also run by the store, from cruise nights at local hotels to days out at their local boules club.
The team’s cheery, bright yellow cardigans are a new addition since last October, while a new sign hangs outside the store to entice passers-by.
Community-oriented initiatives are a focus for the agency: Eric conducts talks at local schools; the store donated money to their local football club to help build a new cafe and changing room; and Sam and Eric cycled the RSPCA Yorkshire bike ride.
Now, after recovering from a major operation, Sam is saddling up again to cycle from Milan to Venice for a 220-mile charity bike ride for Women V Cancer, and has raised almost £2,000 so far.
Acomb Travel’s caring outlook extends to how they treat their clients, who often send them cards and bunches of flowers to thank them for their attention to detail and strong customer service.
The team is no stranger to hand-delivering tickets, and they personally deliver more than 250 Christmas cards each year, as well as branded diaries.
Place of registration: England and Wales.
Company number 08723341.
Registered address: 6th Floor, 2 London Wall Place, London EC2Y 5AU
