Scottish travel agency Barrhead Travel yesterday revealed its turnover had increased by £21m to £267m in 2015, despite a “difficult trading year”.
Highlights of the firm’s balance sheet included 31% year-on-year increase in turnover for foreign exchange and a 20% rise in cruise sales, to £70m.
Passenger numbers flying to the USA rose by 18%, while Spain remained a popular holiday destination, with numbers up 10% year-on-year.
Despite the strong figures, the Glasgow-based company refused to disclose its pre-tax profits for the year.
Barrhead CEO Sharon Munro said: “I am delighted with our results especially in what was a difficult trading year. The travel industry is a high volume, low margin business as shown by our average profit being only £10 per passenger.
“We have exciting plans for the rest of the year with the introduction of virtual reality headsets into our stores which will allow our customers to view hotel public areas and bedrooms along with destination experiences before they book.
“We are also about to launch a new online customer portal providing customers with a secure online space which allows the Barrhead team to deliver a very personalised and unique service from start to finish.”
In 2015 Barrhead Travel opened its first flagship store in England. The outlet in Newcastle’s Eldon Square will be followed by two more this year and there are plans to open five more each year for the next few years.
The company, which has a store in Aberdeen’s Union Square, said it is continuing to perform well in the current year, with increased passenger numbers and a high level of repeat business at 47%.
Barrhead employs around 900 staff, with more than 800 based in Scotland.