Mystery Shopper Success For Our Lymington Branch

Just a few weeks after we announced a record year for the sixth time in a row, it seems that the accolades for our knowledgeable staff just keep coming. Last week’s Travel Weekly featured a familiar face, as Samantha O’Conner from our Lymington travel agents was crowned winner of the publication’s Mystery Shopping feature.

Each issue, the magazine scrutinises a number of different agents and reports how they fared under their Mystery Shopper test. This usually involves a customer calling or visiting the shop in person under the pretence of booking a holiday. This time, the focus was on Lymington, on the Hampshire coast, and the request was to suggest a 14-night European cruise to somewhere that would be hot in August, with the total price of the trip coming in at under £5,000 for two people.

Samantha passed the first test of acknowledging the mystery shopper straight away. Travel weekly have a strict ten-minute cut-off point for this and anyone not greeting the customer before then will ‘time out’ and receive no score. She then went on to suggest a perfect holiday, talking passionately and confidently about cruising in the process. Incidentally, all three of the travel agents visited offered suitable cruises, but it was Samantha’s knowledge of the various ships and their facilities that made her stand out above the rest. She received an impressive overall score of 97%, beating agents from Hays Travel and Thomson respectively.

Sam said, “I am very passionate about my job and I am delighted that my knowledge and service has enabled me to source the best holidays or cruises for my clients.” We are very proud to have people like Samantha working for Fred. Olsen Travel Agents and recognition like this highlights how our staff make the difference with their service and product knowledge.

Congratulations Sam!