2. Larry Pimentel
Speaker’s President and CEO
Picture Azamara Club Cruises
Ferrari for a Day
Customizing the Luxury Experience

3. Luxury a State of Mind
• The Red Ferrari
– How many of us here today would like to have a fire
engine red Ferrari to drive around here in Las Vegas?
– Maybe just for a day?
• Just what is Luxury?
– So before we talk about customizing the luxury travel
experience let’s see if we can agree on just what luxury
is.

4. One Person’s Luxury is Another’s Necessity
• Market researchers believe that luxury is just a state
of mind--- that is, the idea of luxury isn’t the same to
everyone.

5. The Idea of Luxury has Become Fragmented
It can be many different things to many people.
• Caviar or Heirloom Tomatoes
• Frette Bedsheets
• Montecristi Panama Hats
• Fine Luggage
• Your Own Private Flower Garden
• Fine Wines

6. The Luxury Travel Experience
• Just as there are many definitions
of the concept of luxury per se, it
is difficult---perhaps impossible---
to succinctly define luxury as it
applies to travel.
• Almost everyone has an opinion of
just what it is.
• Again, one person’s luxury travel
experience is another’s necessity.

7. The Concept of Luxury Travel has Evolved
• Used to be:
– Highly Structured
– Pre-Programmed
– Formal
• Dramatic Changes in
the Concept
• Now:
– Many Experiences of
Luxury

8. The Concept of Luxury Travel has Evolved
• Luxury Travel has Become Highly Personal
• The Constants in Luxury Travel

9. The Concept of Luxury Travel has Evolved
• Freedom of Choice
• Freedom of Time
• Freedom to be Casual

10. The Concept of Luxury Travel has Evolved
• High Standards of
Personal Service
− Pampering with a high
degree of personal
service.
− Service that goes beyond
the expectations of the
traveler is much more
appreciated.

11. The Concept of Luxury Travel has Evolved
• Unstructured Experiences
• Along with seeking a casual
lifestyle, vacationers
increasingly want to find
unstructured experiences
that don’t force them into
pre-programmed activities.
• However, unstructured
experiences are not
necessarily disorganized
experiences. “Unstructured”
means doing what they want
to do and doing it largely on
their own timetable.

12. The Concept of Luxury Travel has Evolved
• Excellent Cuisine
• Dining is one of the
highest priorities of all
travel
• Fine dining is eagerly
sought by luxury
travelers.
• Maybe not fancy,
formal traditionally,
classic cuisine, but
what you want when
you want it

13. The Common Denominators of Luxury Travel
• While individual preferences vary, in most
definitions the same concepts recur:
• Freedom on Choice
• Freedom of Time
• Freedom to be Casual
• High Standards of Personal Service
• Unstructured Experiences
• Excellent Cuisine

14. The “Seller” who Sells Luxury
• Key components of selling
• Listen
• Understand and qualify your customer
• You can’t customize what you don’t know
• Research, and know your product inside-out
• Emphasize value, not price
• Be straight-forward and honest - trust builds loyalty

15. Speaker’s Larry Pimentel
Picture
President and CEO
Azamara Club Cruises