By
Susan Parker |
Holland America Line has begun this year with some pretty impressive figures. It celebrates 140 years in business, 55 years of round-the-world cruising, 30 years of being in Seattle and 25 years of sister company Seabourn.
With 16 ships in the Holland America Line and six in the Seabourn fleet, president and chief executive officer of HAL and chairman of Seabourn, Stein Kruse, has plenty to keep him busy and is clear about the company and its philosophy.
“I see us as a company that is well-established, knows who it is and is not going to dramatically change any time soon. We understand our passengers and our operations and we are still very successful after 140 years in business,” he says.
While it may not be an organisation that goes ‘guns blazing into somewhere’, it is a global company with a global presence, attracting guests from all over the world. Kruse says: “We go to markets that are established. We are not a pioneer that will all of a sudden ignite the Indian cruise market but, if it happens, we will be part of it.” Looking ahead, he believes the company will maintain its size relative to other brands, “making capital investments similar to others”.
With the wave season underway, Kruse says of the business: “We are cautiously optimistic about 2013. It feels that the significant effects of the Costa Concordia last year have diminished a little bit.” He adds: “The economies of the world seem to be in a slightly better place. The news of the EU contracting in mid-February is not so good but in the US the stock market is up and unemployment is down a little.”
Capital investments for the company include the Pinnacle project. In early 2016, HAL will take delivery of its first ever post-Panamax ship. “A wider ship gives us a lot more opportunity to look at areas further down in the vessel,” explains Kruse.
HAL last took delivery of a ship in July 2010, Nieuw Amsterdam, which was ordered in 2008. “A lot has changed since then. This whole notion of evolving and learning from past newbuildings is something we really value.” In other words, the newbuilding will be an evolution of the most recent HAL ships but will fully integrate Safe Return to Port and Probabilistic Damage under IMO SOLAS.
Architectural and interior designer Yran & Storbraaten is working on the project but with this ship HAL has brought in Tihany Design from New York, which has world-renowned restaurants under its belt (as well as the main dining-rooms on Celebrity Cruises’ Solstice-class ships).
The ship will have “new design concepts and new elements that will not have been seen before. We will also do a lot more on things where we have looked at trending, for example, the proliferation of communications devices. So obviously the ship is being built to make the maximum use of personal electronic devices.”
HAL has taken heed of feedback from the passengers, the crew and the travel distribution channel when designing the ship with particular reference to entertainment, dining and accommodation. “There will be a very strong new entertainment array offered. Some will be based on technology and some based on venues and locations.”
When it comes to dining there is an opportunity to add more restaurant and dining venues but also in terms of HAL’s culinary offering, “there could be some surprises in that regard”.
In terms of cabins, there has been a lot of feedback regarding “how things flow, the lighting, the colours and also design elements about how people refurbish their own homes and the expectations they have when they travel”. New categories of staterooms catering for families will be introduced. Crew members have not been forgotten either, with attention being paid to cabins, accommodation and recreation areas.
While the architectural layout and design specifications are still being refined, Kruse says: “In summary, it will be a bigger ship with a lot of new elements but with adherence to HAL consistency and iconic design features.” Specific details will be made available in stages as the planning progresses: “We are at the very beginning of this journey and for our own selfish purposes, we are better off making timely announcements,” says Kruse.
Keeping the rest of the fleet refreshed and refurbished is a trend in which he led the industry when he introduced HAL’s Signature of Excellence programme in 2004, beginning with Ryndam. The initial investment was US$0.25bn but this has grown to at least $0.5bn and the programme has become intertwined with the company’s philosophy. “It has become part of our corporate DNA. Our people worldwide and on the ships identify with the notion that we are a signature of excellence. It has become part of the software and hardware. It is an ongoing effort of always making sure that our fleet is relevant.”
HAL is known for taking its ships to far-flung places, visiting 120 countries and more than 150 ports of call in a year. Kruse comments: “We are now finalising our 2014 itineraries so very soon we will be looking at 2015. If we don’t have any relief on Emissions Control Areas (ECAs) – any type of compromise or technological breakthrough – there will be implications. We have to look at where the implications are the greatest – for example, in Alaska.”
While promising that HAL will not abandon Alaska, he says the line will have to look at mitigation, which includes the length of time it might keep ships out of the ECA and what ports to call at. “It may be that we drop some ports altogether, maybe take some ships out of Alaska and put them elsewhere. I cannot influence it; I can only react as best I can. I have to protect our business and that is where we are at.”
There is about a year in hand before HAL has to go firm on its itineraries, but Kruse says: “We are not completely abandoning hope that there will be some sort of technical or other solution.”