Recliner

"Tony Polson" <docnews2011@> wrote in message
news:9bc2849nt1fauj1hbt4biu6mini2v9l8uj@
> "Recliner" <nigelp@clara.co_dot_uk> wrote:
>
>> He's already announced that he's selling his large Welwyn house and
>> downsizing to the west country, which certainly sounds like
>> retirement to me. So, even if he stays involved with UKRT, I don't
>> suppose it'll be the same hands-on approach that made HRT successful.
>
>
> I wish him all the best.
>
>
>> Also, Stobart's
>> failure probably makes it harder to sell on a successful John Farrow
>> railtours company sans John Farrow.
>
>
> It wasn't the sale to Stobart that went wrong - the sale happened
> outside John Farrow's control. What went wrong was the previous sale
> to a company that couldn't or wouldn't pay. The company went bust and
> Stobart bought all or part of it in the resulting fire sale.

I'm talking about Stobart's failure to make a go of it, not FMRail's
collapse, which had nothing to do with the railtours business. Stobart
acquired all the assets of HRT, including the brand, customer list,
tours programme history, contracts, etc, and also combined with DRS to
create a dedicated, high quality Mk 3 train.

It could hardly have had a better start, but it was still a dismal
failure, because of the absence of John Farrow and his team. So why
would anyone want to buy another John Farrow-created railtour company,
if he wasn't going to remain part of it? These small asset-less
railtours companies are heavily dependent for their success on the
skills and contacts ties of a few key individuals. The companies have no
value in someone else's hands if those key individuals go elsewhere.