The post you are reporting:
Watty:
Doubt that the slightly extended voyage times have much of an effect on retail sales. Anybody that wanted to purchase anything and also have a meal had plenty of time before. Suspect that the amount that is sold is not earth-shattering in any case, nothing compared to the heady days of duty free. Nevertheless, shoreside management is always trying to promote additional sales as anything sold is icing on the cake.
Having worked for several major ferry companies over the years, I have a somewhat cynical view of retail and catering management on ferries in general. What I have seen time and time again is some wally with an inflated ego brought in from shoreside to revolutionise matters. He will have no knowledge of the very special circumstances pertaining to ferries and will proceed to try to alter things on the lines of whatever organisation he has come from.
Competent staff with many years of seagoing experience will be eased out. Lots of superfluous managers will be appointed onboard with inflated job titles which mean nothing to anybody. They will abruptly realise that they are on a very steep learning curve and will wander around looking like deer in the headlights.
They will have to accustom themselves to very long hours day and night, quick turnrounds, heavy weather, endless streams of demanding passengers tired after long drives, skeleton staff, new computer systems which never work properly, trying to rest in a cabin which is vibrating and shuddering, etc, etc.
Worst of all, they never know one end of a ship from another and they have an important role in the safety organisation to fulfil, with the catering staff required to muster the passengers in the event of an emergency and to assist in their evacuation. The holocaust which consumed the modern DFDS ferry Lisco Gloria in the Baltic a few weeks ago shows yet again just how crucial this is.
