Anyone who calls a Galeria travel agency is first greeted by a cheerful jingle: “Welcome to the sunny side of Galeria Reisen.” It is at least doubtful whether the 250 employees of the travel agencies have the feeling that they are on the sunny side after the Signa bankruptcy. Your future is now in limbo.
“Galeria Reisen is a subsidiary of Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof and is itself solvent,” the company explained when asked South German newspaper. “The travel agencies’ operations – just like those of the department stores – continue to operate without restrictions.” Galeria left unanswered the question of whether some travel agencies are now threatened with closure. Managing director Rolf Maltzahn is at least optimistic; after consulting with the insolvency administrator, he writes: “We are assuming a positive future for both the travel agencies and the online business at Galeria Reisen.” It is fitting that he continues to recruit: “Like all competitors, we are also looking for tourism specialists, trainees or career changers,” says Maltzahn.
The future of Galeria travel agencies could also depend on whether the department stores in which they are based remain open. Like that Industry magazine fvw reported that last year, after the closure of department stores, Galeria travel agencies continued to operate in external branches nearby, for example in the Wandsbek district of Hamburg. According to managing director Maltzahn, this is also an option now – “in the hypothetical event of the department store closing”. However, setting up travel sales on the premises of the department stores is actually part of the business model.
This is what the Galeria Reisen boss said in an interview with the trade magazine in 2022 TRVL COUNTER, The travel agencies should be integrated as transparently as possible because they want to “closely integrate travel bookings with the wide range of products on offer in department stores”. The idea behind it: Anyone who books a trip may also need a new suitcase, bath towels, flip flops, new sunglasses or would like to get in the mood for the holiday experience with a wine from the region – all of which they can buy directly in the department store after booking.
What happens in the event of bankruptcy?
Overall, the mood in German travel agencies at the beginning of the year is extremely positive. According to the latest results of the Tourist Sales Climate Index, a pulse meter for the travel industry inspired by the Ifo Index, the majority of travel agencies rate the current situation as optimistic and classify the demand and earnings situation for the next two quarters as stable to increasing. Marija Linnhoff, chairwoman of the Association of Independent Travel Agencies (VUSR), is convinced that bookings for summer 2024 will far exceed the record summer of 2019 before the pandemic. “A third of the entire annual turnover is normally brought in in January and February, and we have already achieved that a long time ago,” says the head of the association happily. The head of Galeria Reisen is also satisfied: “At Galeria Reisen, the weeks from January to March are among the weeks with the highest bookings of the year,” says Maltzahn. “Demand is good and customers trust Galeria Reisen.”
Customers who have already booked their next vacation with a Galeria travel agency or are planning to do so soon have nothing to fear. The travel agencies only act as intermediaries between travelers and tour operators such as Tui, DER Touristik or Schauinsland, explains VUSR boss Linnhoff. In the event of bankruptcy, the organizers would contact customers directly and ask them to contact them directly if they have any questions about bookings in the future.