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Home » News » House of Travel Group unveils team of ‘cruise nerds’ to bring new strategy to life

House of Travel Group unveils team of ‘cruise nerds’ to bring new strategy to life

The House of Travel Group has unveiled the team that will bring its new group-wide cruise strategy to life, appointing Jeff Leckey as general manager cruise – Australasia.

With over 120 years combined experience, bringing together a group of experts who live and breathe cruising, the team will ensure House of Travel and TravelManagers agents have access to the best cruise information, agent-friendly booking tools and some of the most creative cruise deals available.

 HOT Cruise Trans Tasman product team:   Jacqueline Kennedy, Jeff Leckey, Matthew Nicholl, Lia Malone, Pauline McLennan. (Supplied) 

Joining Leckey and TravelManager’s cruise product manager Lia Malone are Matt Nicholl, Pauline McLennan and Jacqui Kennedy in new roles that have been created to recognise internal talent and bring together the required skillset to execute the strategy.

Nicholl joins as groups manager, bringing years of experience with the House of Travel Cruise team. He has successfully run the Hosted Journeys programme and managed significant group space across many brands, particularly the overwhelmingly popular upcoming Disney sailings. He is tasked with creating unique products and experiences for the group on both sides of the Tasman.

McLennan has over 12 years of experience with House of Travel and has been instrumental in working alongside Leckey in creating House of Travel’s product and marketing programme in New Zealand. Working closely with her Trans-Tasman counterpart, Malone, the team will create outstanding fly/cruise packages and group deals that Kiwi and Australian travellers are sure to love.

Kennedy has worked as House of Travel’s Cruise Reservations Team Leader for almost a decade, and joins the team with a wealth of knowledge on Cruising.

Leckey is excited about the potential of the new team and is looking forward to building on what House of Travel has done in New Zealand, “It is fantastic to be working with such an experienced and committed team of cruise experts,” he said.

“Some would call us cruise nerds, but we wear that badge loud and proud and put cruise first in everything we do.”

The House of Travel Australasia team wasted no time in getting together to plot their new course, having recently connected for an in-person planning day. Their first port of call is celebrating CLIA Cruise Month, which has launched in both New Zealand and Australia.

House of Travel and TravelManagers are currently offering a fantastic collection of Ocean cruise deals to tempt customers into booking early.

“There has never been a better time to book a cruise, with fabulous savings and lots of added-value packages throughout the month,” says Leckey.

View the range of House of Travel Cruise deals HERE .

Email the Travel Weekly team at [email protected]

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Movers + shakers: house of travel & travelmanagers introduces new cruise crew, the house of travel group has shared the experienced team of self-described "cruise nerds" who will steer its cruise strategy across australia and new zealand, led by the group’s newly appointed general manager cruise – australasia, jeff leckey ..

The House of Travel Group has shared the experienced team of self-described “cruise nerds” who will steer its cruise strategy across Australia and New Zealand, led by the Group’s newly appointed General Manager Cruise – Australasia, Jeff Leckey .

Matt Nicholl, Pauline McLennan and Jacqui Kennedy will join TravelManagers Cruise Product Manager Lia Malone, bringing more than 120 years’ combined experience to the House of Travel Group team that lives and breathes cruising.

The newly created roles recognise internal talent and will share the required skillset to execute the strategy and ensure House of Travel (NZ) and TravelManagers (Australia) advisors have access to info, booking tools and creative cruise deals.

Matt Nicholls joins the team as Groups Manager after successfully running the Hosted Journeys program and managing the group space across brands. He is tasked with creating unique product and experiences for the Group across Australia and New Zealand.

Pauline McLennan brings more than 12 years’ experience and worked alongside Mr Leckey on HoT’s product and marketing program in NZ. Working closely with Ms Malone in Australia, the team will create fly/cruise packages and group deals.

Jacqui Kennedy has been HoT’s Cruise Reservations Team Leader for almost a decade and shares her wealth of cruising knowledge with the team.

Mr Leckey said he is excited about the new cruise team’s potential and looks forward to building on what HoT has done in NZ.

“It is fantastic to work with such an experienced and committed team of cruise experts. Some call us cruise nerds but we wear that badge loud and proud and put cruise first in everything we do,” he said.

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