Journey From Agency to Superstore Brings Profits

For Canadian Ron Pradinuk, just running a storefront travel agency was not a big enough challenge. He wanted to increase his revenue and grow his brand.

So he decided to expand into a multifaceted travel business that today includes a travel superstore, a pre-travel health clinic and a tanning salon.

After opening Uniglobe’s first Manitoba franchise in 1982, Pradinuk spent the next 17 years developing a solid following for his Winnipeg agency, which later became Renaissance Travel.

Two factors made Pradinuk reconsider the direction his business was heading – United’s elimination of commissions and the agency’s loss of its lease. With that, Pradinuk decided to start the travel superstore he had long dreamed of.

With a background in advertising (he still owns an advertising agency), Pradinuk had the skills to test the market. This included running a series of focus groups about his ideas.

A new brand
In June 2000, Pradinuk opened his travel store and tanning salon, investing in a multimedia advertising campaign to launch the enterprise. He branded the store under a new name – Journeys Travel & Leisure Supercentre – while keeping the Renaissance brand for his agency.

He expected to lose money the first year, but the store ended up having a better year than expected. And that year his agency business was up 75% over the previous year.

Things fall apart
Then the events of 9/11 hit, and things fell apart. “We went through a long year and a half. My family tried to get me to give it up and walk away,” he said.

“We spent almost $1 million on the lease and all the equipment. The following year, we advertised and did business, but all we did was pay for ads.”

Gradually there was a turnaround, and the supercenter became the place to go in Winnipeg for travel necessities. The store sells just about everything travelers would need – from luggage and clothing to guidebooks and maps.

In 2003, Pradinuk opened the pre-travel health clinic in the same location.

Two companies
Today his business is divided into two companies – the store and the agency. The superstore brand, Journeys, has become so well known that Pradinuk is in the process of switching his travel agency brand name to Journeys.

The agency focuses on selling leisure travel. Pradinuk employs 12 travel consultants in the winter, Canada’s primary travel season, and six to eight agents in summer.

And while the agency brings in $7 million in annual sales, the superstore generates more.

Low conversion rate
One disappointment has been the conversion rate from superstore customers to agency clients. “Ninety-five percent of the superstore’s business comes from people who didn’t book travel with us,” Pradinuk said.

“The goal was always to switch people over, but when they come in, they’ve already booked their travel.”

Pradinuk is instituting practices that he hopes will change that. Now, when superstore customers make a purchase, they’re asked for their email address. The travel agency then adds those names to its list for email promotions and its monthly newsletter.

Vaccinations & advice
The travel health clinic has become an important part of the business, expanding from one part-time nurse to one full-time nurse and two part-time nurses.

The clinic has the hardest thing he’s ever done, Pradinuk said. The reason: it required dealing with regulations and learning how to do such things as store vaccines.

“I was more afraid of the clinic than anything else, but I was determined. I had a sense that it would differentiate us,” he said.

Among factors that have helped the clinic grow – pre-travel vaccinations are not covered under Canada’s government-funded health care system, and most doctors don’t want to deal with the type of vaccinations required.

Shop while you wait
In addition to vaccinations, the nurses give out health advice related to the traveler’s specific destination.

When patients are vaccinated, the nurse advises them to stay on the premises for at least 15 minutes, in case they have a reaction to the vaccine. During that time, they stroll through the superstore; most end up buying something, Pradinuk said.

The other pre-travel service, a tanning salon, caters to travelers who want to get a base tan before taking off for the tropics. These customers often also buy swimwear.

Active around town
Pradinuk, a former president of the Association of Canadian Travel Agents, is involved in a wide variety of activities that directly or indirectly drive business to his travel agency and superstore.

He writes travel articles and for the Winnipeg Free Press, as well as a weekly Q&A column called “Ask Journeys.” He also hosts a one-hour weekly radio show on travel.

Last month, the travel agency launched Worldly Women, a women’s travel club that caters to widowed, divorced and single women who want to travel, but not alone. The agency will promote a February trip to Mexico for the club by hosting a get-acquainted meeting at a local Mexican restaurant.

Road bumps
Although Pradinuk’s businesses are doing quite well these days, there were challenges along the way.

For instance, the tanning studio does a great business in wintertime, when people are preparing for travel, but not in the summertime. That’s because it’s never been promoted as a regular tanning studio, he said.

Managing the health clinic was a challenge for Pradinuk, until he expanded the clinic’s full-time nursing position into a management role.