AAT goes "back to the future" with relaunch

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AAT Kings has pledged to rediscover its roots as it looks to emerge from an “awful” couple of years and reignite the domestic short break market.

The coach operator yesterday mapped out its future vision, with a promise to go “back to the future” and rekindle the days of its previous owner, Bill King.

Managing director Anthony Hayes said it would focus on the characters, people and service that were synonymous with the company in the 1970s and 1980s.

A new-look AAT Kings was unveiled in Bondi yesterday in a move described by The Travel Corporation global president Brett Tollman last month as a “massive transformation”.

The relaunch will be backed by a major advertising campaign, with radio a focus, as it aims to “reintroduce AAT Kings to the Australian public”.

“We have made a promise to go back to the future, to the days when Bill King was running his company which we subsequently bought,” Hayes told industry partners. “Bill King believed in representing the very best of Australia and New Zealand, the great characters, the great people and the great service ethic that he had back then. That’s what I believe we should be focusing on as well.”

Hayes insisted the approach will enable AAT Kings to stimulate the domestic short break market.

“It has been an awful couple of years…but we have a great opportunity to look to the future. We know where we are heading,” he said.

Under a new-look ‘smile’ logo and fresh tagline, Bringing Australia and New Zealand to life, Hayes said product would be as much about the experience as the destination.

Food and wine, luxury lodges and the Great Walks of Australia will all be a focus as it looks to appeal to both the domestic and international market.

“We want to do just that – bring Australia and New Zealand to life,” Hayes said. “We want to get behind the scenes, to show the characters and personalities of the Australian people and of our staff.”

He said AAT Kings would become a “creative and aggressive” industry partner as he vowed to demonstrate a commitment to the trade that he admitted has been lacking.

“Maybe it has not been all it should have over the past couple of years. This is a great opportunity to refocus with our partners,” he said.

The relaunch also includes an investment of $21 million on new vehicles and a fresh drive to improve service levels. All staff have been on service training courses and will be “part of what we do”, Hayes said.

"We are starting from a high base but this is a great opportunity to take ourselves to a whole new level”.

While the brand remains well known in the trade, Hayes said it needs to reconnect with the public which it hopes to achieve through a radio campaign targeting the 40+ market. AAT Kings staff will feature in the ads.

Hayes admitted it had been an “awful” couple of years of flagging sales, although bookings this year have risen 6% to 8%.

“Over the last three years we have relied on the international market and that has been doing it tough,” he told Travel Today.

A new range of tours between two and seven days will appeal to the domestic market, with Hayes adamant it can grow the short break market in collaboration with the trade.

AAT Kings will also step up its partnership with international wholesalers, with Asia – and China in particular – a key focus.

Product will be tailored to meet the needs of Asian travellers although Hayes rejected the belief that the same tour could not cater for both eastern and western markets.  

Meanwhile, Hayes took a swipe at rivals by stressing Australia and NZ was the sole focus for AAT Kings.

"It is not a part time job for us where we spend the rest of the time selling Europe or North America which is what a number of our competitors do," he said. "Australia is home and Australia and NZ is all we do."

Click here to view AAT Kings video

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