A new UK website launched on July 1 leading with tour-only pricing, but allowing customers and agents to check online the live flight price for any departure.

Burrows expects the vast majority of customers will still book flights too. “If you do buy the flight, we will still Atol protect it, and we will still include the overseas airport transfer and private door-to-door UK chauffeur service, whether it’s a £150 easyJet flight or first class with Qantas,” he points out.

And by adopting the booking technology currently used in the States, he claims the booking process will now be more seamless: “Our new system knows if you need to fly into Delhi a day earlier to meet your tour; it can work out open jaw; it can add extensions and extras on – the technology is fantastic.”

This new approach to selling its holidays will, Burrows hopes, throw far greater emphasis on Collette’s product itself.

“The escorted tours market is a bit like cruise,” he suggests.

“There are so many players all vying for business and trying to add value. But what Collette includes is phenomenal: the best hotels in the best locations; limited time on the bus; bespoke experiences; a la carte dining at the best restaurants. For some customers, this is what really matters.”

Price was not the only negative perception about the brand, he discovered.

Collette also operates Thomas Cook Tours, Cook’s in-house escorted touring brand, but even Thomas Cook agents were selling competitors’ products more. “They told me they’d had problems with tours being cancelled and they didn’t trust the brand, but that was from before Collette took over. We were dogged by outdated perceptions,” he explains.

Diverse range

Nor has the trade fully appreciated Collette’s full range of products, he suspects.

Classic tours on large 40-seat coaches remain Collette’s “bread and butter”, but agents are less aware of Collette’s Exploration product: small-group trips for the more adventurous traveller.

“I’ve been to Peru with both Explore and Collette and the product’s very similar; I think we can grow this significantly in the UK.”

So too Collette’s unique Spotlights range: city breaks in 17 cities where customers stay put but have guided tours, shows and excursions every day.

“This idea really appeals to cruisers, and we’re talking to cruise companies about working together,” Burrows reveals.

In January Michelle Laverick joined as head of marketing from Wendy Wu Tours, tasked with reinventing the look and feel of the brand in the UK.

“Our brochures and website made us look stuffy and old-fashioned. Our customers’ average age is late 50s, early 60s. It’s not OAPs on a bus. But there was a disconnect between our marketing and how exciting our products actually are,” he explains.

This January, Collette ran a more playful “taste the world” campaign, which grew sales 15% year-on-year. “That proved to the US that when we come up with something more inspiring, then people will buy from us,” says Burrows.

A new-look 2017-18 Preview brochure hit the racks last week, containing entirely new, UK-specific copy. The 100-page brochure gives the highlights of 65 tours, encouraging readers to go online for departure dates and further details, and has a more modern, informal feel.

The cover also features many different destinations, after research showed some agents thought Collette only did the US and Canada.

The brochure offers Collette’s lowest-ever deposit, at £99, and there is a lead-in price for solo travellers on every tour. Prices for 2017 for the first time include gratuities and tips; customers will be able to tip their guides with vouchers that guides then redeem from Collette.

“Americans are very used to tipping but Brits can find it a bit awkward and embarrassing. Now, whether it’s a tip for the driver, the guide at an attraction, or the main tour guide, it’s all included,” Burrows promises.

It’s not just Collette’s brochure and branding that has had a makeover: its team of five on-the-road account managers also have a fresh new look.

“They had all been trained in the US way, and would turn up to a travel agency in a three-piece suit with a briefcase,” Burrows recalls. “That works in the US but not here.”

Since April, the team have been wearing branded polo shirts instead, and agents have already commented on their new, more relaxed approach. The sales team will hit 1,000 agencies over the next two months and will be much more present at conferences from now on.

“We look after our agent partners well,” Burrows claims. “Our commission is generous compared to many of our competitors, and we have one of the best concession schemes: you don’t even need to book with us to get a 40% discount; make six and you and a friend can tour for free.”

Online booking

The next phase of the new website will enable agents to book online for the first time, as well as storing their customers’ documentation. Feefo customer reviews have recently been added to the UK website, as has a live chat facility.

A customer app has also been devised to be downloaded pre-departure, containing itinerary details, weather and maps, and which functions offline so it can be used in-destination.

There might have been aspects of US-influence that Burrows is glad to have toned down, but the way the US business is run has also inspired him with some new ideas on partnerships and channels – though he is coy about exactly what.

What he will admit to is an ambitious growth target of around 20% within the next two to three years in the UK.

“Although we’re a huge organisation globally, with 600 employees across the world, we haven’t grown as much as I’d expect in the UK.”

“But the potential is huge,” he insists. “We want to be a bigger player here, and we want to be much more influential,” he concludes. “You’re going to start hearing a lot more from Collette in the future.”