Dig For Victory: Adapting to the changing world

By Harry Rix, CDO of Rix Group

While not as hard as the 1940 'Dig for Victory' campaign, the UK leisure industry faces bleak conditions, prompting this comparison. Stock is mounting up for manufacturers and holiday parks alike. We're all competing for scarce demand, and some are likely to starve.

Though an industry outsider, this blog aims to change that view. My SaaS and Digital Transformation background gives me a unique perspective. As I gain experience and expand my network, I'm seeking others who share my passion for innovation.

This blog aims to champion those who are thinking a little differently about how we adapt to the changing world around us to thrive, not simply survive. I will delve into the following themes that I believe are critical for us all to consider:

1. Product innovation
2. Industry collaboration 
3. The power of data 

1. Product Innovation

75% of consumers have been influenced to travel to a destination by social media and 48% of consumers travel to show off on social media (Hoseasons).

At the Elite Dynamics conference in April, Luke Hansford and Paul Shoebridge from Hoseasons captured my attention with trends that resonated with my days as an Innovation Consultant; the rise of the sharing economy, changing expectations from Millennials and Gen Z, and exponential digitisation. 

Unsurprisingly, these trends are causing havoc in the holiday home industry, much like they are across all sectors, manifesting themselves in a reduction in holiday home ownership, growing expectations for experiences that delight visitors, and an increased demand for unique ‘Instagrammable’ stays.

Considering Victory's product mix and trends, I believe we truly stand apart (slight biased…), especially with our Lumiere and Evolution units. Credit is also due to Swift for their S-Pod range. Nonetheless, there's room for further innovation to meet evolving market expectations.

Speaking to Stacey Hope, I found someone with a similar passion to further shake up the product mix available from the major manufacturers. We sat down with a drink of straight 63% proof Wray Nephew (thanks Jamaine) to get the creative juices flowing. Together we settled on the concept of a sustainable, one-bed fleet unit, that felt like you were immersed in nature. As a manufacturer we knew the idea was feasible, and multiple park operators at the bar told us it was desirable, but the final test of viability would have to wait for another day. For this we still needed to consider the shelf-life of the unit, it’s ROI vs traditional fleet model, and interior design specifics, to name but a few. We postponed further viability analysis with a glass of something more palatable. 

(Source: Board of Innovation)

Since the conference, the team at Victory have made sure that the business case stacks up for such a unit, across both parks and manufacturers; the next step is to collaborate on the product design. To the innovators out there, we’re inviting park operators to participate in an ideation session. If you are interested, please feel free to register your interest here, and we will share further details shortly.

2. Industry Collaboration

“SMB business market is experiencing a 22% YoY growth of SaaS solutions” Top SMB technology trends in 2023, Analysis Mason

Having been invited onto the panel at the Elite Dynamics Conference to discuss Victory’s adoption of EliteManufacturers (Dynamics 365 CRM) - an all in one solution for aftersales management, I told the story of our growth from a manufacturer who produced 800 units pre-Covid, to a volume of 3000 units at the height the staycation boom. 

While a fantastic story, growth didn’t come without its pains, namely 7000 open aftersales claims with no real system to support our creaking processes. Having worked with Elite Dynamics to build a technical solution, place the right people in the right positions, and define rigorous processes, we are proud to have reduced our open claims by 70%. Our next goal is to get to down to managing 750 open claims within 12 months of the platform’s launch. I don’t think this level of success would have been possible without capitalising on Elite Dynamics' industry expertise.

When David Pennant from Pennant Park raised his hand in the crowd, I was certain this was the moment someone voiced their frustration with an aging warranty claim. I was delighted when he promptly congratulated us on our progress and coined us “the highest performing manufacturer for aftercare in the industry”. 

The appreciation for Elite Parks, designed exclusively for park operators, was widely felt throughout the panel. I was encouraged to hear CFOs of parks discuss how they had overcome reporting difficulties from five separate systems, COOs talk about a centralised tool for park operations, and Elite Dynamics themselves talk about industry leading applications that drive customer engagement, such as Elite Owners. 

What became apparent was the opportunity for industry wide collaboration with businesses that are on the same cloud-based infrastructure. Imagine a world where owners logged aftersales issues on an app, parks received the claim directly into their management system, both the dealership and the manufacturer are seamlessly notified, and the claim is resolved without your intervention. Sounds dreamy, right? And we can see how it's possible. 

Digital transformation is difficult and expensive but, do it right, and you can disrupt a whole industry. I believe any business working in the Microsoft Dynamics ecosystem will, within a year, experience ground-breaking operational efficiencies and stronger partnerships than the industry has previously known. To register your interest in the market leading integration, click here. 

3. The Power of Data

“Data is the new oil. Like oil, data is valuable, but if unrefined it cannot really be used.” Clive Humby

The Rix Family are well known in the Petroleum distribution industry, and our flagship brand, Rix Petroleum, is one of the UK’s largest independent fuel distributors in the country. Over my lifetime, I foresee ‘the core business’ declining as the UK transitions to Net Zero. In its place will rise the businesses we are diversifying into, such as Victory Leisure Homes, Victory Conversions, Jordans, Rix Renewables and Rix Energy Services. A cornerstone of this diversification is taking a data backed approach to growth.

For holiday park operators to realise their potential, I believe they should also look at the data. I was intrigued to hear about three products that provided parks with the insights they needed to set themselves apart from the rest. 

The first solution we were introduced to was EliteInsights, a tool which anonymises and aggregates industry data to enable benchmarking with peers in the industry. For example, a park owner can compare their average nightly tariff with the industry average in their area at a granular level, ranging from years down to weeks. Other use cases include, but are not limited to, reviewing deal margin, finance terms and site fees, all against the industry average. 

The second data backed solution harnessed the power of AI. In collaboration with Companial & Microsoft, Elite Dynamics have developed a neat solution within EliteParks that finds which bookings can be upgraded and identifies opportunities for additional revenue. Utilising Azure OpenAI, a sales pitch email is automatically generated and sent to prospective customers, outlining why they should upgrade, without the need for human intervention. 

The final solution was Hoseasons' dynamic pricing engine. With 70% of total bookings on the Hoseasons platform happening within 8 weeks of arrival, it’s critical that portfolios are responsive to fluctuating booking patterns and last-minute demand. By utilising the machine learning technology, 4,500 properties have been repriced, leading to 11% YoY increase in revenue for those on the platform. 

Leveraging data lets your business price reactively, use competitor data, and upsell, enabling smarter work. The opportunities in data are exponential. At Victory, we have a tech roadmap and will launch a Find A Park tool in late 2024, revolutionising how we support parks in selling our products. Register your interest in the beta launch here.

Conclusion

Following the Second World War “Dig for Victory” campaign, the UK experienced significant changes in its relationship with food, shaped by societal shifts in a relatively peaceful world and several technological advancements. As the leisure industry is confronting weakening demand and challenging economic outlooks, those who adapt will have to leverage the technological advancements and respond to the changing market trends referenced here. 

I believe product innovation, industry collaboration and utilising data will be the difference between those who adapt and survive the economic hardship, and those who fail to experience the sweet taste of Victory.