ON THE GROUND ➔ Compact rentals in favour
AVIS UK reports that nearly three quarters of its UK corporate customers have chosen to rent compact and economy vehicles during the first half of 2010. Despite emerging signs of recovery in the economy, businesses are still spending cautiously when it comes to travel and are looking for solutions to help ride out the downturn. Some 72 per cent of Avis clients chose the smaller vehicles and 59 per cent of business customers rented on a daily basis rather than for the longer term – which only eight per cent opted for. The trends were revealed in
the Avis’ Business Travel Index which also showed that more than half of all rentals were from non-airport locations. The Index also highlighted a continued focus on home markets, with domestic rentals up three per cent year-on year.
TRISTAR EXTENDS ONE-MINUTE PICK-UP PLEDGE
TRISTAR Worldwide Chauffeur Services has expanded its successful one-minute pledge to cover selected European cities as well as locations across the UK. The one-minute pledge means that if Tristar’s chauffeurs are late picking passengers up, even by just one minute, their entire journey will be free of charge. The pledge is now being offered to Premium Service customers in Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, Milan, Frankfurt, Berlin, Düsseldorf, Munich, Geneva, Zurich and the Netherlands, with more cities to be added soon. Tristar has a presence in
over 70 countries worldwide and its services are bookable through 24-hour reservation centres, by email, website, fax or on the GDS. Tristar corporate customers include a number of major airlines.
Five minutes with... Rebecca Hollants van Loocke
PROFILE
Regional General Manager UK THE ASCOTT LTD
Rebecca's first job in the hospitality industry was as a receptionist at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel. She worked abroad for IHG, Hilton and Hyatt for many years, before returning to the UK in the serviced office and property asset management sector. She joined The Ascott Ltd. in 2007 as vice president UK operations and 18 months later was promoted to regional general manager UK.
In response to trends shown
in the Index, Avis has developed its Flex service, which offers a fixed daily rental price with the only commitment of keeping the car for a minimum of 28 days. The service saves clients significant amounts of money when compared to daily rentals and gives them more options for managing their car rental
and fleet programmes. Among other new developments for Avis is the opening of a new branch at London Victoria train station and the move of its London Mayfair branch to the Marriott Hotel at Marble Arch. For customers living near these branches, home delivery of vehicles can also be arranged for £10 each way.
BUDGET'S DISCOUNT OFFER
What is your most memorable business travel trip and why? My first trip to Bangkok training with The Ascott Ltd. I loved everything about Thailand, from its friendly people to the traditions and customs. To be introduced to such a wonderful city by a local really opened up corners that I would never have discovered otherwise. Thai food is one of my favourites and the massages are amazing – definitely worth being a little stiff when walking afterwards!
What is your worst business travel experience and why? Jakarta, where I was running my own business and consulting for Hyatt. The traffic was dreadful, I was stuck for hours, missed my appointment and then spent 12 hours sleeping at the airport before catching a flight home. Not a journey I want to repeat.
BUDGET Rent-a-Car has relaunched its Business Connections programme for corporate customers. Business Connections is a no-contract, pay as you go discounted service that has been overhauled in response to feedback from Budget’s SME clients. Stuart Liddle, head of Budget UK, says, “The launch of this service means that SMEs can benefit from a 12 per cent discount off retail prices every time they book – there is no minimum number of hires and no membership fees. “For many small business operators the value of a face- to-face relationship with a
customer is invaluable, but the pressure to tighten purse strings has never been greater. We hope that by reducing the cost of our daily rentals we can help bus- inesses retain a crucial link.” Once customers complete
the Business Connections registration form they receive an email welcoming them to the programme, and a Budget Customer Discount (BCD) number entitling them to a 12 per cent discount on each rental in Europe, the USA, Middle East and Africa. Budget operates in over 3,400 locations within 128 countries worldwide, including over 800 airports.
What is your favourite destination worldwide and why? Istanbul. It’s the most stunning, vibrant and colourful city with a wonderful mix of multicultural people. It has an incredible history, the architecture is breathtaking, and its deep-rooted religion dates back centuries. The people are always happy and welcoming and with so many fascinating things to do and see I could happily live there.
What single thing could be done to improve your business travelling life? Priority lanes for quicker routes in and out of airports and stations.
What destination/s would you like to visit next and why? South America, and in particular the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu. I’m fascinated by the culture and history of the place and how a culture could create something so incredible hundreds of years ago.
WWW.THEBUSINESSTRAVELMAG.COM I 41
BIGSTOCKPHOTO
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84