Brittany Ferries – from a cause to a brand 1973-2005

In a little over three decades, Brittany Ferries grew from a single ship freight operation exporting agricultural produce from Brittany to England, to being the sole operator of cruise ferry services from Britain and Ireland to France and Spain.  In addition, the Company built the highest of reputations for quality and service.

A regional ’cause’ was transformed into one of the most respected brands in the travel industry – a business that started from a group of Breton farmers being angry at their inability to secure fair prices for their produce that evolved to a position where the established ferry operators went from being sceptical to finding they could no longer compete.

Brittany Ferries benefitted from multinational management. The formation was driven by Alexis Gourvennec, one of the Breton farmers, politically astute and eventual long-standing Company president.  Charismatic Christian Michielini acted as bridge between the French and British management teams.  The French provided the initial cause, the finance, the ships’ crews and built the onboard experience into a renowned product.  Yet most of the revenue was generated in a southbound direction, so sales, marketing, branding and route expansion strategies were driven by a management team in the UK.  The result was an international blend of the best of French and British cultures.

Brittany Ferries developed a unique identity by using a market-led approach to the business and a destination-based advertising focus, built a substantial holiday business, and crafted a strong reputation for product quality enhanced by a long-term fleet investment programme.

With a narrative based on extensive interviews with former senior directors and their teams in the UK and Ireland, this book tells the inside story, from their perspective, of how Brittany Ferries grew from a cause to a brand.

Includes many unpublished images, plans, brochures and paintings of this iconic company.

This book is being distributed by Ferry Publications on behalf of the publisher Lainson Publishing.

Softback 245mm x 165mm. 384 pages.