An Open Letter To The Group Travel Industry
Dear Motorcoach Family,
First, I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy! To all of the families who have lost or have loved ones currently fighting, my heart goes out to you. I’d like to thank the front line workers and their families from the bottom of my heart. Your bravery and strength are truly inspiring and we are forever indebted for your sacrifice.
I’d also like to thank Christian Riddell, President of UBT for sharing his open letter, which inspired me to write this.
This is an unprecedented time for the world, with immense pressure on our health and economic systems. Travel as a category is sitting at the eye of this Category 5 hurricane sweeping across the world and unfortunately, the bus industry is feeling some of the deepest impacts. Fear and the feeling of being stuck hit me like a ton of bricks when this all first started. Not stuck in the physical sense (although most of us are technically stuck at home), but stuck in the sense that there is little to do to change what’s happening. Since then, both the feeling of fear and the feeling of being stuck has shifted.
First, the shift in feeling stuck. If there was an industry I’d want to be stuck with, it’s the bus industry. There are two words that describe the dedicated operators, suppliers, associations, destinations, and other members of the ecosystem. Those two words are resilience and courage. The bus industry heeds the call of duty time and time again, transporting children to school, professional sports teams to games, bringing communities together to have shared experiences, our military, and our fellow Americans in times of disaster. The bus industry moves ~600,000,000 passengers around the United States each and every year, only second to airlines. Truly incredible. In speaking with some operators over the last few weeks, they’ve cautioned me that the effects on the industry are far worse this time around than what was experienced in the aftermath of 9/11. But because of the resilience and courage I’ve seen from operators, I’m confident that together we will come back from this stronger than before. This industry will always move and will never truly be stuck.
Fear. It’s perfectly okay to have fear. Our very way of life has been altered and this is one of the scariest times the world has faced as we collectively fight this common enemy. Fear of failure, as this industry faces unprecedented economic strain. Fear of safety. And one of the greatest fears of all, fear of change.
But as John Bailey’s (Bailey Coach) father Captain Fred Bailey always used to tell him, “proactive not reactive and nothing is constant but change.”
Travel and transportation will be different than it was before. This industry deserves relief from Congress and it’s abundantly clear the incredible impact this industry has in all of our communities across the country.
But as we look to come out the other side of this stronger than before, money isn’t going to be the agent of change. As Christian Riddell so perfectly put it, “now is the time for us to start to shift our focus from the next few days to the next few months, and even the next few years.”
We need to start preparing for what the world will look like post Coronavirus because the only certainty anyone has right now is that it won’t look the same as before. Increasing the profitability of trips is essential. Customer loyalty and customer experience will be major difference makers in winning business. We need to look at where efficiency can be driven in each part of the business. And now more than ever is the time to speak with our customers and understand how they see the world post Coronavirus so that we can adapt to those shifting tastes and show our customers that we are right there with them.
We must work together to solve the new challenges we will face ahead. We must work together to tell the story of this industry. We must work together to shape a new future. A new future, where we are stronger. A new future, where we are collaborative. A new future, where we are no longer ignored. A new future, that we own and that only we have control of determining what it holds.
This road back won’t be easy and it won’t be quick. Not just for our industry, but for most other industries out there. But this industry has a foundational advantage. The community and togetherness that I’ve witnessed time and time again since starting Busie with my co-founders. It’s that community and togetherness that will drive us forward and make us stronger. Two more foundational pieces of this industry that when combined with the community and togetherness will truly get us to where we want to go: Resilience and Courage.
Stay safe and healthy and may strength be with you, your families, and your business during this challenging time. Put trust in one another and trust yourself, we’ll make it through, together. You are all truly inspiring and I thank each and every one of you for letting me and the Busie team learn from you and witness what makes the Motorcoach Family so special each and every day.
Never stop moving,
Louis Bookoff
