Luxury trends: Pandemic savings fuel bounce back of high-end sector

Pandemic savings and an inability to explore are likely to fuel the bounce?back of the luxury travel sector, according to experts.

Consumers are more inclined to act on any “long-standing travel dreams”, according to Mintel’s latest Executive Summary of Luxury Travel. It suggests 38% of luxury travellers, including 42% of those aged 55-plus, are now eager to explore a destination they’ve long wanted to visit.

The report also found 65% of affluent travellers had been able to increase their savings since the start of the pandemic.

Marloes de Vries, associate director for travel at Mintel, said: “Although relaxation remains a key motivation for luxury travellers, many are looking to get more out of their most expensive upcoming holiday, with adventure, a special celebration or personal growth/development being strong motivations to travel. As such, brands play an important role in connecting travellers with enriching or transformative holiday experiences that offer something more than just relaxation.”

Flexible bookings

Commenting on the report, Jasman Ahmad, strategy director at Accord Marketing, said: “Covid has been a bit of a wake-up call for all of us to start ticking off the things we’ve always wanted to do.”

He said the marketing messages that had continued to resonate strongly among consumers centred around flexible cancellations, holidays promoted as “the big treat you deserve” and travel with a focus on localism and community.

“Flexibility might not be the sexiest thing, but it’s the one thing we can hang our hat on,” said Ahmad. “We think it’s important because a lot of brands have it, but they need to make more of it. It’s been a key marketing message for Kuoni and Black Tomato and they’ve done it really well.”

The report claims high-end consumers are more likely to book through travel agents as opposed to direct (66% compared with 39% of all travellers).

Ahmad said brands that had kept channels of communication open through the pandemic would benefit in the long run. He likened brands that advertised and kept in contact with consumers to “the friend that checks up on you when you’re going through a bad time and you remember them when things start to get better”. He cited a cruise agency client that had boosted its market share after continuing to market during the pandemic.

Environmental focus

The Mintel report also suggests the environment has become a bigger consumer priority. In November 2021, 32% of UK adults said the environment had become a higher priority since the pandemic, up from 22% in April 2020.

In addition, the findings suggest 67% of luxury travellers would like to do more to minimise their impact on the environment while travelling, compared with 61% of non-luxury travellers.

Ahmad said sustainability was a big topic to cover, but advised marketers to start integrating environmental messaging into their communications. He said a challenge for travel brands was to “talk about the environment without sounding like they’re greenwashing”.