Michael Friisdahl
Chief Executive Officer
1 These are unaudited pro forma figures for the twelve months ended 30 September 2008. For a definition of how these figures have been compiled, please refer to Appendix 1 - Unaudited pro forma financial information. See the Statutory results for the eleven months to 30 September 2008. See Appendix 2 - Key performance indicators definitions.
Operational highlights
- Strong performance through improved aircraft utilisation, reduced peak season accommodation costs and a further reduction in hotel commitments
- TriWest acquisition meeting our strategic goals and integration going well with synergies on track
- We are now a leading player in independent travel in Canada
- Now achieving all year-round profitability by eradicating the previous seasonality of the mainstream tour operator while still providing good utilisation of the Group’s aircraft during the winter months
- Strong growth in online bookings of 24% at this early stage of our development
Key facts
0.8m
passengers
56
retail outlets
2
aircraft
Our North American business has performed solidly in the period under review, despite continued difficult trading conditions and over-capacity in mass market tour operating in Canada. The pro forma profit from operations increased by £1.1m to £6.0m and the operating profit margin was increased to 1.4%.
The pro forma revenue for the twelve months to September 2008 increased by 16.0% to £439.8m. Adjusting for the impact of changes in the translation exchange rates and the acquisition of TriWest, underlying revenue decreased by 8%, reflecting both decreased passenger numbers and lower selling prices.
Increased fuel costs adversely affected the year on year margin performance. However, excluding this, underlying margins were increased year on year through better flight utilisation and an improved brochure mix, despite the current market conditions. In addition, the result benefited from changes in year on year exchange rates and the acquisition of TriWest. Going forward, we expect the proportion of profits from our independent businesses, and in particular TriWest, to increase significantly, thereby reducing our exposure to the highly competitive mass market operations.
Internet distribution continues to grow in our Canadian business. The proportion of passengers who booked on the internet was 15.8%, an increase of 24.4% on the prior year. The proportion of passengers departing in the period who booked through our controlled distribution channels (owned websites, shops and call centres) grew to 27.2%, an increase of 25.9% on the prior year.
Key performance indicators
Controlled
distribution‡
+25.9%
Internet distribution‡
+24.4%
Passengers†
−2.3%
Capacity††
−2.4%
Average selling price#
−2.6%
Load factor†††
+0.1%
Brochure mix##
+6.6%
See Appendix 2
Note: Controlled and internet distribution percentages include independent travel bookings.