Imagine Cruising pulls out of Stuttafords

IMAGINE Cruising has
closed its concession stores
in Stuttafords in Cape Town
and Sandton, less than a
year after announcing the
launch of the concept (see
TNW August 27).
The retail agency cited a
lack of profitability as the
main reason for shutting
shop.
Peter Schanks,
development director of
Imagine Cruising, says
although the concept
was successful in raising
brand awareness, a
progress review showed the
concessions were simply not
productive enough.
All bookings made
through the concession
stores will be honoured,
Peter says. “We have
written to our customers
who booked through our
concession stores and they
will be looked after by our
expanding call centre in
Cape Town.”
The termination of the
agreement with Stuttafords
doesn’t mean Imagine
Cruising is abandoning the
South African market, Peter
adds. He says Imagine
continues to experience
growth in South Africa.
“In 2015, so far, we
have experienced overall
passenger growth in
excess of 25%,” he says.
“Meanwhile, we continue to
grow our marketing activity
across a range of channels
and to expand our call
centre activity to support our
customers’ needs across
both holidays and cruises
as we continue our planned
growth in South Africa over
coming years.”