OAK BROOK, Ill. -- Abercrombie & Kent (A&K) and Virtuoso
mutually agreed to let their preferred-supplier relationship lapse
for six months when the contract expired Aug. 1.
The relationship will be reviewed in February.
A&K president George Morgan-Grenville told Travel Weekly,
"We would like to find a forum in which we can work together. The
purpose of the six months is to give both parties some time to
structure a relationship that is mutually beneficial. There is no
acrimony between Virtuoso and A&K."
The change applies only to A&K's marketing office in Oak
Brook, Ill. A&K's destination management companies (referred to
as "on-sites" by Virtuoso agents) retain their preferred supplier
status. Many Virtuoso agencies work with the on-site ground
operators on a direct, net-pricing basis.
"Many of [Virtuoso's] agencies are so knowledgeable about
A&K that they feel comfortable working directly with the
on-sites," said Karen Pickrum, office manager of Betty Maclean
Travel, a Virtuoso agency in Naples, Fla.
Having used technology to enhance relationships between agents
and its on-sites, A&K is reconsidering its marketing
allocations.
"Virtuoso is a marketing organization, selling advertising in
its publications and direct-mailing clients," an A&K
spokeswoman said. "The question is whether it makes more sense to
put our marketing dollars there or in other places."
Virtuoso agencies will continue to earn a base 12% commission,
Morgan-Grenville said. Some of the agencies qualify for higher
commission by virtue of their individual performance.
To contact reporter David Cogswell, send e-mail to [email protected].