INFORM


WORDS MOLLY DYSON


AMEX M&E SIGNS UP TECH TRIO


AMERICAN EXPRESS Meetings and Events (Amex M&E) has forged partnerships with event technology companies Doubledutch, Attendify and Splash. The Doubledutch agreement is an extension


of an existing partnership and will see Amex M&E – a division of American Express Global Business Travel – use the company’s mobile attendee experience solutions for clients with “mature and robust” meetings and events programmes. Meanwhile, Attendify offers technology


solutions for Amex M&E clients with simpler meeting requirements. Splash allows event planners to launch, promote and scale event programmes through consolidated attendee management and customised event marketing. The partnerships come after Amex M&E


launched a new platform to help users source smaller meetings.


Contactless payments now accepted on Heathrow Express


PASSENGERS CAN PAY for journeys on Heathrow Express using contactless and Oyster cards, as well as mobile devices following the introduction of new ticket barriers at Heathrow and Paddington. The new barriers mean passengers


are no longer required to purchase tickets online in advance or at the station. Contactless fares are the same as Peak or Off-Peak Express Single tickets, depending on the time of travel. However, the route is not included in the current daily or weekly


fare capping seen on Transport for London (TfL) services. Heathrow Express said the best value fares were still available online or via the company’s mobile app, and with barcode scanners now available at every ticket barrier, customers who purchase tickets online or via the app no longer need to print out their ticket. Passengers travelling in Business First class can also use


contactless payment by touching in and purchasing an upgrade from the onboard team, according to Heathrow Express.


MILLENNIUM & COPTHORNE WARNS OF CHALLENGES


MILLENNIUM & COPTHORNE HOTELS has warned investors that the hospitality industry faces “intensifying” challenges in the near future in the form of staff shortages and competition from the growth of Airbnb and serviced apartments.


Chairman Kwek Leng Beng made the comments as the group revealed a drop in pre-tax profit for 2018 to £106 million – down 28 per cent on 2017 in constant currency. The fourth quarter was particularly hard, with profits plummeting 76 per cent to £7 million. Kwek blamed “a range of geopolitical and global economic headwinds”, including


26 MARCH/APRIL 2019


US and China trade relations, Brexit and increasing minimum wage levels. The company also saw revenue per available room fall 7.4 per cent in London, mostly driven by the closure of its Mayfair hotel for refurbishment. Excluding that property, revenue grew 3.3 per cent. Millennium & Copthorne says a particular challenge in the UK is the effect of Brexit. It claims to be struggling to recruit EU workers, “which currently comprise more than half of the London workforce”. The shortage of talent is also intensifying with many new hotels being built around the world.


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