FROM THE CEO
As I write, I’m just recovering my land legs after spending a busy couple of days on board Saga’s beautiful boutique cruise ship, Spirit of Adventure. It was my first ever cruise and I’m happy to say it more than lived up to my expectations. I’d heard so much about our enthusiastic guests, exceptional crew, fascinating guest speakers and thoughtfully designed ships, but it’s only after experiencing it for myself that I now fully appreciate the quality of the operation run by our cruise team. Well done to all of them.
I spent many of my 48 hours on board chatting to guests and hosted a lively Q&A session in the theatre. A lot of the questions were about our recent announcement that we are exploring partnership opportunities for the ocean cruise business. I’m delighted at how much demand there is for our fantastic ocean cruise experience, but it does mean that with only two ships, there is a limit to how many customers we can share it with. It is a determination to meet this demand and deliver growth that lies behind our thinking. We are at very early stages, but we believe a partnership would be a great way to bring our unique cruises to more customers. Importantly, this would not mean compromising on the quality that our guests have come to expect from us.
I was quite taken aback by how curious everyone was about me and my background – and what made me the right person to be at the helm of a business they clearly hold very dear. It was a salutary reminder of the trust that has been placed in me, and the responsibility I have to grow this great brand, while staying true to its original principles: to create innovative products and services to make older people’s lives better. That applies across the board – to our cruises, our wider travel offer, our insurance policies, our personal finance products and, of course, to this magazine.
Mike Hazell Group Chief Executive Officer
TMAcustomers @saga.co.uk
Now that I have sampled ocean cr
