Category Archives: Agents

SOTC Travel has ventured into the forex business to provide travellers with a one-stop solution for their entire travel related requirement. Users can see the best rates for foreign exchange and based on customer requirement, they could either collect it from the store or have it home delivered. To bring complete transparency, SOTC showcases the exchange rates in real time and delivers the order to the customer’s doorstep. SOTC engages in the FFMC business which enables it to not only service such requirements internally but also make an entry into retail and wholesale foreign exchange business, thereby opening up another revenue stream. Speaking on the launch, Vishal Suri, Managing Director, SOTC Travel said, “The main priorities of Indians travelling abroad are secure and hassle-free travel, easy access to foreign currency and convenience of making payments. With the launch of the forex business, SOTC offers all these benefits and more. It aims to provide the ease of travel with utmost security feature to the target audience. As a company, SOTC is focusing on the growing travel requirements of the millennial and looks forward to making a mark in this segment.”  

The official destination marketing organisation for the five boroughs of New York City – NYC & Company – recently invited a select group of travel agents in Mumbai for an evening of cocktails and meet Makiko Matsuda Healy, Managing Director (Tourism Market Development), NYC & Company who was in the city for a quick visit. The evening also involved a quick run through of some of the new tourism projects that are taking shape in New York, particularly the new hotels that have come up, new attractions, and the airport that is getting an upgrade. Making this short presentation was Christopher Heywood, Senior Vice President, Global Communications, NYC & Company, who also took questions from the agents. There were about nine agents from eight agencies who focus on leisure FIT and group holidays to North America.

Cox & Kings Global Services (CKGS) has opened a new Morocco Visa Application and Information Centre (MVAIC) in Mumbai. The office was inaugurated by Moroccan Ambassador to India, Mohamed Maliki. It currently has centres in Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Pune, Goa, Indore and Bengaluru. CKGS is set to open a new MVAIC in Hyderabad in June 2018. Speaking on the occasion, Maliki said, “The ties between Morocco and India go back over several centuries and both the counties have enjoyed cordial bilateral relations over the years. The government of India and Morocco have agreed on a newly revised air service agreement which will have certainly a positive impact on facilitating and boosting tourist movement between the two countries. Foreseeing the growth in the number of Indians travelling to Morocco, we needed to create a seamless experience for Indian travellers in applying for visas.  The Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco is glad to entrust the responsibility to CKGS by appointing them as our representatives to open visa application centres in India.” Commenting on the mandate, Venku Murthi, Chief Operating Officer, CKGS said, “We are happy that the Embassy of Morocco has put their trust in our proven expertise. Our offices across 12 centres in India will seamlessly facilitate visa processing, thereby accelerating outbound travel to Morocco. This is an opportune time to tap the growing Indian outbound travel market, which is growing in double digits.’’

Ctrip.com International has signed a partnership with AccorHotels which will allow Ctrip’s over 300 million registered users to access and enjoy personalised experiences from AccorHotels’ global brands portfolio, ranging from internationally acclaimed luxury brands as well as the popular midscale brands to the much-prised economy brands. AccorHotels operates 4,300 hotels and 10,000 private homes in 100 countries. The MoU is a milestone for both companies to embark on a deeper cooperation which will greatly enhance the growing Chinese travellers’ journey  globally. The partnership will focus on four strategic pillars, including highlighting AccorHotels accredited hotels more prominently, building a flagship store for AccorHotels, joint development of loyalty programmes and cooperation on IT. “We are very excited to be deepening our partnership with AccorHotels. With the ever growing number of outbound Chinese travellers, we are always looking for ways to provide better services for our customers and with the deepened AccorHotels relationship, we are able to offer magnified experiences and property choices,” said Jane Sun, CEO of Ctrip. “We are pleased to take the partnership with Ctrip to the next level, and proud to be a priviledged hospitality partner of Ctrip, ” said Sebastien Bazin, Chairman and CEO, AccorHotels. “Our role is to provide hospitality expertise to all segments of the market. We want to offer Chinese guests our knowhow and service skills in order to become their preferred hospitality group.”  

With a vision to strengthen its pan-India service network, Travkart has signed on its first franchise in Mumbai. The move is in line with Travkart’s endeavour to tap the immense potential that Mumbai offers. What also makes the launch of Travkart’s franchisee programme in Mumbai an interesting development is the end-to-end business support that it offers to partner travel agencies. As part of the programme, the company will provide assistance to the associated travel agency to help it deliver better end-customer services. It provides comprehensive training spearheaded by a qualified in-house franchise manager, in addition to extensive operational assistance, to ensure seamless operations. The platform plans to undertake similar expansion in cities such as Chennai, Chandigarh and Nagpur. Manheer Singh Sethi, Co-founder, Travkart commented, “As India’s business hub, Mumbai is one of the most promising travel markets in the country. There exists a growing demand for travel packages within the city, which is why we are delighted to have signed our first franchisee here. While we received a large number of requests, we closed a franchising agreement with The Kangaroo Travels based on its commitment to the brand’s long-term growth and the end-customer’s satisfaction. Our aim is to expand our presence in all major cities in India and build 100 Travkart franchisees by 2020.”  

The Board of Thomas Cook (India) (TCIL) has approved (subject to regulatory approvals) a corporate restructuring exercise aimed at streamlining its businesses into four key verticals namely, Travel (outbound, domestic, business travel & MiCE), Foreign Exchange, Destination Management Services and Portfolio Investments such as Sterling Holiday Resorts. In its current structure, TCIL along with its subsidiaries and associate companies such as SOTC, TCI, TC Travel (earlier Tata Capital Travel) and Sterling Holidays are engaged in various travel and travel-related financial services, vacation ownership and resorts while Quess Corp is engaged in human resource and business related services such as industrial asset management, integrated facility management, and technology solutions. In order to streamline the various businesses of the group, both from operating and management perspective, the restructuring will consolidate like businesses into identified entities creating a simpler and more efficient operating structure with dedicated and focused business verticals. Madhavan Menon, Chairman & Managing Director, TCIL said, “This proposed restructuring with the realignment of the travel businesses of TCIL and consolidation of the  human resource services business into Quess Corp, will simplify the group’s structure, enabling both TCIL and Quess to grow independently and consolidate their positions in their segments with far greater clarity of focus from an industry and growth/opportunity point of view – for investors, management and teams.”  

Catering to the demands of high value customers and requirements for exotic itineraries, TBO Group has launched a luxurious book creating awareness about new high-end products. Starting at $15,000 dollars a night, the book has 24 handpicked hotels across the world and two experiences that will help the agents offer their clients new ideas and crisp content. The book will be distributed to key travel agents.  

Ebix, Inc, an international supplier of On-Demand software and e-commerce services to the insurance, financial, e-governance and healthcare industries, has acquired India-based CentrumDirect Limited (CDL) that operates in the foreign exchange and outward remittance markets, for approximately US $175 million. CDL will be tightly integrated into Ebix’s Financial Exchange EbixCash offering in India and abroad, with key CDL business executives becoming an integral part of the combined EbixCash senior leadership. Ebix Chairman, President and CEO Robin Raina said, “The acquisition of CDL provides us with new abilities in niche financial exchange sectors while expanding our footprint in India and establishing our EbixCash Financial Exchange as the largest financial exchange in the country. We have been eager to build a strong footprint in India’s airports and shipping ports, as their high levels of customer traffic provide recurring sources of revenue and income for any Financial Exchange. With a long-term presence in 24 international airports, and a few others to be deployed this year, the addition of CDL will substantially extend EbixCash’s branding and leadership position in India’s financial exchange markets.” Raina adds, “CDL already has a strong financial trajectory in terms of top line and operating margins, though we intend to build upon its success through complementary products and operational synergies. I am particularly pleased that the CDL acquisition will also further strengthen our management resources with the addition of CDL’s strong senior leadership team.”

rooms XML and getabed have announced merger of their businesses. Both roomsXML and getabed are independently owned and have been successfully providing accommodation to travel and wholesale partners in their respective markets. Ruchir Bang, Executive Director, roomsXML commented, “We currently are in a very interesting phase within the travel wholesale industry and certainly see a great future if we have the right mix of passionate team, user-focused technology and strong financials, and that’s exactly what both roomsXML and getabed bring to the table.” He added “This all started with the vision on where we want to see our businesses in future and what growth opportunities we can bring to our valued staff members across offices, rather than just seeing if the balance sheet numbers added up.” Under the new structure, owners of both roomsXML and getabed will continue to play an integral part in running the combined business, with Ruchir Bang as the CEO and Matt Stuart as the Chief Commercial Officer. The remaining senior leadership roles will be announced soon. The joint business will provide significant benefits and scale, which will then be passed on to their customers and suppliers.  As a result of the merger, they now offer a genuine global business with deep penetration in travel agency space across India, Middle East, APAC and Europe. Matt Stuart, MD, getabed said, “This is a hugely exciting time for both getabed and roomsXML. With the accommodation wholesale market evolving rapidly, we needed to ensure that we remain relevant. “

Air Guru Travel Solutions has been appointed as the exclusive partner in India to represent Bali’s high-end hotel properties that include Double Six Luxury Hotel, Seminyak, The Breezes Bali Resort & Spa, Seminyak Bali, The Downtown Villas, Seminyak Bali, Le Jardin Boutique Villas Semniyak, and the famous Bali Safari Marine Park & Mrar River Safari Cottages. Air Guru Travel Solutions already represent BPPD (Badung Tourism Promotion Board, Bali) in India. Dhiraj Kumar, Managing Director, Air Guru Travel Solutions, was appointed as an Honorary Representative for Badung Regency Bali by BPPD Badung Tourism Promotions Board, Bali, Indonesia in 2017. With the inclusion of the new luxury segment hotels, resorts and parks, Air Guru has now become a holistic travel solution providers in India for Bali for its B2B clients. He says, “The aggregation of vast variety of travel hot spots under one company will certainly result in more cost benefits for our B2b clients. We are honoured and delighted that Air Guru Travel Solutions is rising in capacity and services rapidly. Our vision is to offer complete travel solutions specially to Bali and Indonesia under one roof. We’ve been handpicking and partnering the most incredible portfolio of hotels, resorts and parks in Bali. Travellers are seeking enhanced ways to enriching travel experience and we believe our partnership with these luxury hotels, resorts and amusement park will meet this need.”