Graham Turner, affectionately known as Skroo, grew up in Stanthorpe driving tractors from 7 years of age before studying veterinary science. Hardly the typical upbringing of one of Australia’s best business people. In 1973, Skroo and 2 mates made the decision to buy a run-down double-decker bus for 650 pounds while travelling in England. One bus turned into two and so on until they formed Top Deck Travel. Skroo and his mates grew Top Deck Travel from essentially, as Skroo describes it, an excuse to party on a bus with some mates, to a fleet of over 65 buses that went all over Europe. This business would have been more than enough to live a great, comfortable life, but through their time observing travel overseas – Skroo returned to Aus with greater plans.
“Bucket shops” as they were known in London would sell an airline’s excess seat inventory. Skroo saw an opportunity to bring this principle to Australia and a few short years after Flight Centre’s formation in Australia, the government introduced legislation to allow for the sale of discounted tickets and Flight Centre was full systems go. With a headstart on the pack, Flight Centre took off and has since survived industry-threatening events such as the GFC, 9/11 attacks and Covid-19 through Skroo’s determination to make Flight Centre the $4.75 billion company it is today.
On todays podcast, we explore the formative years of one Australia’s greatest business people, we unpack the iconic story of Top Deck Travel and the early years of Flight Centre and finally we gain an insight into how the composed leadership style of Skroo has left FlightCentre in the strong position it is today.
We hope you enjoy!
Remember to follow our LinkedIn and Instagram by searching for The Business Of. And leave a 5 star review if you enjoyed!
