High street travel agency Dawson & Sanderson has made boardroom and senior team changes several months after a row over its accounts.
The Newcastle-based business, which has been running since the early 1960s, described the last two years as the "most difficult in the travel industry's history" and said it had initiated a "major restructure" ready for post-Covid trading. As part of the changes, newly appointed finance director Annelene Hutton and retail director Jan Fawcett have become joint managing directors, with Chris Harrison leaving the business.
Meanwhile, Judith Alderson, who has held management roles in the firm, has been appointed to the board and commercial and corporate director David Chambers, the grandson of founder and chairman Tom Dawson, has been made a director. A Dawson & Sanderson spokesperson said: "Our new executives understand we need to adopt to change and prepare the business to ensure we service our customer base and meet the demands expected from a leading travel company."
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The appointments come as Dawson & Sanderson is yet to publish restated accounts following the resignation of auditor Greaves Grindle earlier this year, when it said it had not signed off published accounts. In May Dawson & Sanderson blamed the issue on individual error and said fresh accounts would be available at Companies House "in the coming weeks".
Then managing director Chris Harrison acknowledged the 2021 accounts had been filed without formal approval but insisted there were no irregularities or discrepancies in the report, which showed an operating loss of £1.15m for the year ending August 31, 2020, as turnover dropped from £9.78m in 2019 to £4.5m. Announcing the latest changes, Tom Dawson said current trading was strong.
Ms Fawcett, who has worked for Dawson & Sanderson for more than 30 years, has extensive experience, having been responsible for the day-to-day running of the sales and operations parts of the business. And Ms Hutton, who was appointed in March, brings experience from global firms.
Ms Alderson has previously been in management roles across the firm's retail, cruise, worldwide and corporate operations while Mr Chambers has worked across the business in retail, corporate, foreign exchange and golf activities. Dawson & Sanderson said he will focus on project management and carrying on the ethos and future of the family business.
Mr Dawson said: "This new and exciting leadership team offers a wealth and variety of skills and experience to drive the business forward. Trading is strong and has reached pre-Covid levels. I’m delighted the new executive team understand the challenges of a travel business which has been built over the last 60 years on delivering customer service, satisfaction and value for money."
He added: “Now we are facing a set of new challenges of fuel price inflation, which inevitably impact on holiday prices. Therefore, our key objective is to work hard to give customers the best option within their budgets.”
Having responded to the increasingly digital nature of the travel business, 220-strong Dawson & Sanderson still operates 21 branches across the North East. Mr Dawson added: “Our business is perfectly placed to offer the best of all words, across our world – from the widest array of popular online offers to the more boutique demands of the more affluent or adventurous travellers, be it on your screen, on the telephone, or face to face.
"The Dawson family are confident that this new leadership team will continue to grow the business and keep the true core values and our position in the North East holiday market."
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