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Why Hoover’s free flights fiasco was the greatest business error of all.
Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales has, like many towns in the region, had its ups and downs.
The town relied on manufacturing to supply work to the population for decades, specifically a factory which built white goods that at its peak employed 5,000 staff.
While many factories in the area are no more because of globalisation, the Hoover factory closed down because of a business decision that was designed to shift a few old vacuum cleaners and washing machines that had been gathering dust in the back of a warehouse.
Hoover was such an iconic brand in the UK that the verb ‘hoover’ is still used to this day in British homes as a synonym for cleaning the carpets.
Hoover had been trying to offload some old washing machines and vacuum cleaners that had been gathering dust in the back of a warehouse.
The bargain of the century
Hoover’s offer must have seemed like the bargain of the century in the early nineties when cheap flights were not an option for many people. All you had to do was spend over £100 on their products and you could qualify for two return flights to the United States worth £600.