There’s a new roll-up in town. Besides a presence on Glassdoor, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube — and a “Sell Your Agency” button on its website — it’s trying to be stealth. Alpharetta, Ga.-based private equity firm Travel Equity Partners lists as its CEO and managing partner Jason Block, who is the son of Travel Leaders…
[CORRECTION, June 28, 2018: The International Air Transport Association projects its New Distribution Capability initiative to achieve critical mass by 2020, not 2022 as originally stated here, according to a spokesperson. This article has been updated to reflect that projection.] The travel industry still is trying to understand the consequences of IATA’s New Distribution Capability….
CCRA’s Dic Marxen sees corporate travel agent salaries rising by double-digit percentages because of the profession’s aging workforce and dearth of new labor. He wasn’t surprised to see Travel Leaders Group this month create a scholarship program for military veterans. Marxen had a similar idea three years ago that died at the feet of federal bureaucracy,…
Three unidentified travel management companies have enlisted 30SecondsToFly’s Claire chatbot, according to co-founder Felicia Schneiderhan. Claire’s parent is de-emphasizing direct client servicing in favor of powering other business travel entities due to the cost and limited return of maintaining small-business accounts. Claire uses the Facebook, Skype, Slack, SMS and web platforms to communicate with users about…
If it proceeds as planned, HRG’s acquisition by American Express Global Business Travel would give the latter new proprietary operations in Austria, Italy and Russia. As if integration of acquired companies isn’t difficult enough, GBT also would need to sort out a complicated array of relationships the two travel management companies hold in markets where…
After beating the packaging drum for more than a year, Jay Walker’s Upside Travel is now also offering flights and hotels individually. It added Uber as a packaging option and will soon announce new support services. TMC relationships have not advanced, but Walker reiterated during a Thursday interview that they’re part of the plan. Upside…
Nothing beats word of mouth for business travel providers seeking new clients. Established players count on referrals, with the most gratifying coming from former users recommending them to new employers. New entrants incentivize to evangelize. The lucky business travel startup hooks a big fish corporate account and rides the wave of publicity. Downstream from big…
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