#Covid19Update: Flight Centre to close down stores due to financial struggles
Flight Centre South Africa has announced that it has made the difficult decision to close 40% of its network due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting financial struggles.
The company stated that it will right-size its physical retail footprint to better reflect the current trading climate.
Andrew Stark, the Managing Director said in a statement: "In the retail sector, we will maintain a network of 60 world-class Flight Centre outlets across the country, remaining the largest travel retailer in South Africa. We will grow our independent model known as Flight Centre Associates to 200 Independent Travel Owners and will grow our online presence and functionality through our well-renowned Flight Centre website, exponentially over the coming years."
"It is indisputable that the global spread of COVID-19 has had a significant impact on many industries. Few have been as profoundly impacted as the tourism and travel sector, with government travel bans, grounded aircraft and non-essential business lockdowns preventing the free movement of our customers, whether travelling for business or leisure."
It notes that the decisions are geared towards guiding the company through this period of hibernation for the travel industry while preserving as many jobs as possible for the long-term and ensuring we are well placed to service your needs when the inevitable recovery begins.
The closure of 40% of our network will also include the specialized Cruiseabout brand in South Africa which will be fully absorbed into the highly successful and well-known Flight Centre brand. All Cruiseabout stores customers and bookings will be fully managed and transferred across to a Flight Centre Travel Expert and team.
"Customers can rest assured that their travel arrangements and bookings will be well catered for by the rest of the Flight Centre team nationally. If you are holding a booking or have credit due, you will receive a personal email or SMS with confirmation of this in the coming week. However, should you need to contact us at any time, you can contact us at fcleadership@flightcentre.co.za, or please feel free to contact our dedicated Customer Experience team on 0877405080 or at customer@fctg.co.za," said Stark.
Written by: Gabriella Steyn.
Guzzle Media
