By
Cherie Rowlands |
It is a question that comes up time and again and one on which president and managing director of Cunard, Peter Shanks, is unequivocal. There will not be a fourth Cunard ship for the fleet – at least, not within the next two or three years.
“We have built three new liners in the last eight years and that’s transformed Cunard as a business. We now have three large ships that are carrying around 200,000 passengers a year. For the next two or three years, that’s about right for us,” says Shanks. “Do I have a vision for Cunard to grow further and to have a second transatlantic liner? Of course, but there’s nothing in our plans at the moment.”
The main priority for Shanks over the past 12 months has been the long-term strategy for the brand. “First, we are repositioning Cunard to appeal to luxury travellers and evolving our marketing to this segment,” he says. “Second, we have been focusing on our international strategy, so we’ve been growing our business in Germany and Australia, while still growing our business in North America. Now we’re looking at other parts of the world, such as the developing markets in Asia. The third – and probably the most important – thing we do is to make sure we continue to deliver to our guests’ expectations by developing our White Star service and training programmes for all our crew.”
Research undertaken by the brand shows that delivering on destination is one of the main reasons passengers choose Cunard and ports of call are a priority for the line. “What we did in 2012 and 2013 and will do more of 2014 is add variety to our deployments and destinations,” says Shanks. “For the first time we have placed all three Cunard ships on world voyages and differentiated the offering for each. Queen Mary 2 focuses on Australia, Queen Victoria is doing a full South America cruise in 2014 and Queen Elizabeth is heading to Asia, where we’ve added three Japanese ports, along with calls through China and Hong Kong.”
Factors for deciding which destination to call at may surprise some ports. “A destination has to have something to offer, either a great shorex or city experience – something at or close to the port – and it has to have pull,” Shanks explains. “It must do a great job at looking after the customers, but it doesn’t need to be a massive destination with a huge terminal and facilities. There are fantastic ports around the world with few facilities, but they work at providing the right tender service, giving a good local welcome and making sure they offer the customer the right experience. We also want to go to ports that offer an efficient service at a competitive cost. So if a port is not able to deliver a really smooth experience for the passenger and it becomes prohibitively expensive, we’ll go elsewhere.”
Shanks’ pride in Cunard is clear: “Cunard is legendary – the red, black and white of the ship, with its history, heritage and reputation. If a white ship sails into Sydney Harbour, that’s okay. But when a Cunard liner sails into Sydney Harbour, thousands come out to watch and you feel really special. It is a legend that has taken 173 years to build and that is what sets us apart.”