Beverley Travel is opening its sixth store this week, after the directors jumped on a business opportunity in Hull.
The new store, which they are calling Paragon Travel Lounge, occupies a unit in Hull’s Paragon Arcade, a Victorian arcade that’s a hub for independent shops and cafes.  

Director and co-owner Kelly Cheesman described the new opening as a “passion project”.  

“I’m very passionate about this area,” she said. “It’s somewhere I grew up and I had my wedding reception in a pub probably about 50 steps away. I have wedding pictures outside the arcade. It’s really close to my heart.”


Thanks to its history and thriving independent spirit, Paragon Arcade is a unique retail community, and that has inspired Kelly and her co-owner Karl Douglas to take the agency in a more luxury direction. 

“Paragon Arcade is like an oasis in Hull. Outside the gate, it’s like being in any other city centre,” Cheesman explained. “Consequently, we’ve framed this shop very differently. It’s going to be appointment-led. The shop is upside down, with a reception downstairs and seats and desks upstairs. It’s very different to any normal travel agency, it’s certainly very different for us.”


Although the new store officially opens this Wednesday – once new signage and bespoke furniture is in place – a grand opening is planned for 24 June.

“It’s going to be a teatime event,” said Cheesman. “We’ll sell tickets and everybody will get a voucher to come and spend at any of the businesses in the arcade. There are some amazing food venues, one of the most beautiful florists you’ve ever seen, a vinyl record shop, there’s beauty and hair. We’re big on supporting the business community, and we know we’ll all benefit, because it’ll bring more business to the arcade for lots of different reasons.”

Cheesman and Douglas acted swiftly to secure this store, which was a cake shop before the lease became available. They viewed it on 1 May and signed the lease on 18 May.  "Five weeks ago this wasn't even on the cards," chuckled Cheesman.

They already have three members of staff starting within the next couple of weeks.

“Two of them have worked in retail and one is just coming off the [cruise] ships,” said Cheesman. 

The business growth is also supported by Hayley Bolton, who has been at Beverley Travel since it was founded in 2020, and has recently been promoted to director, and also Elizabeth Hillary, operations manager.  

This new opening comes hot on the heels of Beverley Travel’s other opening this year, Driffield Travel in Driffield. This brings the store tally for these former TTG Top 50 UK and Ireland Number One Travel Agents in 2023 to six, with business growth a clear intention for Cheesman and Douglas.  

Cheeseman said: “We set ourselves a plan in January, we knew the government rises that were coming in April, and the huge impact that would have. And we could either decide to cut back or stick with our growth plan. 

"When they come at us and try to take everything they can off us, we choose to fight forward and do everything we can to grow the business.”