Tailormade Andalucia in the press!
"We attempt to show the essence and enchantment of the authentic and traditional"
During the Madrid travel fair, Sam enjoyed a 40 minute interview with Andres Latorre from La Voz de Cadiz. Below you can read the full interview translated into English.
Samuel Lister, founder of Tailormade Andalucia
<<In recession, travel companies with low overheads will survive the squeeze!>>
This businessman, is looking to offer visitors to the province, particularly English-speaking travellers, holiday packages moulded to their interests, without losing <<the charm of tradition>>.
Just a week ago his company launched it´s new campaign. He recognises that creating a company in this economic climate is almost crazy, but he won´t give up. Samuel Lister has created the first receptive travel agent´s in Conil, an agent that functions solely through the internet. The company´s name – Tailormade Andalucia speaks for itself: offering travel packages tailored to foreign holidaymakers, from Anglo-saxon countries.
A week ago you commenced your new campaign specialising in receptive tourism. How do you explain this concept?
- It is being able to offer a traveller just what they want. It consists of tailoring their holidays to their specific desires and from arrival to departure, recommend their hotel, activities, gastronomic routes, visits etc.
But isn´t this already being offered by big tour operators?
- Not exactly. Large tour operators design packages for big groups and in a set format. We can offer personal attention to our clients, looking to take them off the main tourist routes. The big difference is that we attempt to show the essence and enchantment of the authentic and traditional.
Is it not madness to open a travel company in our current economic crisis?
- (laughter) If truth be told, yes! However I have the personal advantage of having minimal overheads, no mortgage, no family expenses. What´s more, Tailormade Andalucia functions exclusively through the internet (www.tailormadeandalucia.com) which means our costs are minimal. I am convinced that to weather this economic crisis, travel companies with the least overheads are the most likely to survive.
You tailor the destination to your clients tastes. Do you consider that your target audience know the province well?
- Yes and No. In Great Britain, where a large percentage of my clients come from, everybody knows of Andalucia due to their very effective advertising and marketing. However, the identity of each zone/province is not portrayed, which adversely affects the Cadiz region. Everyone knows that there is sun and beach, but we need to show them that there is also hiking, sport, wine etc. But do remember that many British tourists coming to Cadiz are looking for a little bit more than beaches and bars. Otherwise they would head to the Costa del Sol!
Imagine that I am a British tourist wishing to play golf – What would your company propose for me?
- Well, if I were a large tour operator I would surely send you to a large and expensive resort near one of the fantastic courses that we have in the area. We, however, would arrange for you (only an example as each client is unique) a charming villa near some courses but also near the beach. We would arrange a private visit to a sherry winery to enjoy a tasting and some local tapas washed down with wine. As I say, we try to surprise with the unique and with imagination.
Having English speaking clients – is the language barrier a problem?
- For two reasons, no! The first being that in recent years the number of people who speak good English in the region has improved greatly. In nearly all establishments you will find a waiter who speaks good English. And, from our point of view, considering that we look to offer the authentic and traditional, its certainly not a negative thing to have a traditional waiter who doesn´t speak English. It adds to the charm.
But it can´t all be good – what do you have to say about the Levante wind?
- Oh, we owe a lot to the Levante wind... thanks to it the Costa de la Luz has not been transformed into the Costa del Sol. But if I had to search for something negative about the province it would be the limited amount of flights. If travellers often have to fly into Malaga or Seville they will sometimes spend part of their holidays there as well.