< >In an exclusive interview, Rebecca Barnes hears from Riverside Luxury Cruises’ managing director, Stuart Perl, about no deposit bookings, the luxury of space and redefining the river cruise sector
How did this role come about? Give us the lowdown!
Last year, I was approached by an old contact who mentioned that German hoteliers Seaside Collection were looking to expand into the river cruise market. At the time, I was taking a break from the industry due to the pandemic and wasn’t actively looking for roles, but when I heard about this new proposition, it’s safe to say my interest piqued. Eventually I had a meeting with the co-founder Gregor Gerlach – we spoke at length about his goals for Riverside Luxury Cruises and I knew I had to be part of this project. The rest is history as they say!
What motivates you?
My work – I’m incredibly motivated in my new role. Breathing new life into the ex-Crystal Cruises fleet is bringing us all great satisfaction and we’re incredibly excited to be on this journey of establishing Riverside Luxury Cruises as an ultra-luxury brand. We want to position ourselves in a class of our own and I can think of no better challenge.
How important is networking to you?
Business is all about people. I’ve worked in the luxury and premium sectors with both ocean and river cruise lines for more than 25 years, and I’ve built many strong and long-standing relationships during that time. I’m happy to say, I’m still in touch with many of these people now. I understand the value in honing these relationships and value the importance of making new connections, too. We recently attended the Clia conference and it was great to connect with old friends and meet new faces.
How is Seaside Collection planning to disrupt the industry?
We’re seeing a trend of high end hotels expanding into ocean cruising, but we believe we’re setting new standards when it comes to expanding onto the rivers. We want to combine Seaside Collection’s existing offering with new propositions that challenge the industry, such as trialling our game-changing payment terms of booking without a deposit. Guests aren’t asked to pay a deposit for a hotel booking when a credit card number to guarantee suffices, so why should they have to pay a deposit for cruise? This is a first-of-a-kind initiative which could very possibly become the norm in years to come. We also have a strong focus on cuisine: with the biggest food and beverage budget per passenger in the sector, we will provision the freshest produce with the greatest variety, relying less on frozen food. Combine our award-winning executive chef with our onboard sommeliers and you can understand how we’re taking our culinary offering to the highest level. Another game-changer is offering our guests and crew the luxury of space, whether on our double-width flagship, Riverside Mozart, or our four 135m ships. We carry fewer guests than others, meaning they have larger suites, a greater choice of dining venues and the ambience of a boutique hotel. Equally, it allows the crew (one to every suite and guest) better working conditions with larger accommodations and a less crowded working environment.
What are you most excited about and why?
Being on the ground level of a brand-new start-up that now owns the luxurious ex-Crystal river cruise fleet and raising the bar in the areas I spoke about earlier, is exciting enough in itself. But introducing further innovations such the duration of our itineraries, the opportunity to combine cruises, price plans that ensure guests do not have to pay for what they don’t want and our astonishing choice of excursions, we are defining the new, ultra-luxury river cruise sector.
What are your personal and company goals?
I would like to build a team that develops strong, long-lasting relationships with travel agent and tour operator partners. We understand the values of trust and integrity, and appreciate that these values will bring success to our distribution network and enable us to establish Riverside Luxury Cruises as the best river cruise in the market, both now and long into the future. Our business goals are simple: our exquisite cuisine, the highest standards of personal service, luxurious ships and highly curated itineraries and excursions will see Riverside Luxury Cruises as the leader in true luxury river cruising for discerning guests. We aim to be the go-to river cruise provider amongst our trade partners, through providing sales and marketing support, training and exceptional service. Together, we can achieve great success.