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Travel agent interview: Farooq Siddiqui
ATN: Why did you decide join the travel trade?
I’ve been in the travel trade for seven years.
I started with IATA when I finished college, but I decided to move to a travel agency, in ticketing and tours. I chose tours because it is more interesting and glamorous.
Every day my job proves to be challenging.
ATN: What is the usual business mix at Regency Travel and Tours?
Around 60% are walk-in clients, and 40%, corporate customers.
The walk-in clients are usually local Qataris, whereas the expatriates tend to work for the big multinational companies based in Doha.
ATN: What unique products do you sell?
We sell language course packages for Arabic people who want to learn French or English for example, in the UK, the USA, and Canada mainly.
Some people like to go hunting, in Tunisia especially.
It’s mostly sheikhs and the big families [from Qatar].
They also go to Pakistan for hunting.
ATN: How has Doha changed in the seven years that you have worked here?
In the last three years it has become totally different – it is really booming.
Inbound travel has increased and lots of new hotels are being built.
I believe that in the next two years, Qatar will become a totally different country.
ATN: What is it like to be a travel agent in Qatar?
I have been to lot of countries but I have found that the clients are a bit different – it’s difficult to understand and explain things to them in some places.
Here it’s easy because more people are educated; they’re also very understanding.
They travel regularly so they know the product they want; it makes our work very easy.
They look after the environment here and its good to work with people who are so understanding.
I would say that this is the best place to live and work.
ATN: What ambitions do you have in terms of progressing your travel industry career?
My ambition within Regency Travels is to create new package products that no one has ever done before.
I have a lot of ideas, but I’m still working on them.
ATN: What advice would you give to fledgling travel agents?
They should increase their quality of service if they want to be successful.
You should be very aware of the products you sell so that you can give customers a good explanation of them.
This will ensure you provide good quality service and secure repeat business.
- Established in 1987, Regency Travel achieved revenues of QR 250 million (US $68.7) in 2004.
- Regency has eight branch offices with a staff of 200, and implant offices in companies including Al Jazeera Channel.
- The one-stop-shop head office in the heart of Doha, contains travel agencies, car hire companies, cruise companies, travel insurance firms and other companies that provide travel related services.
- The company released a glossy colour brochure for the fist time this year, including hundreds of original photos of the destinations featured.
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