Former Portman Travel CEO Steve Allen, who is joining The Firebird Partnership
The Firebird Partnership, a strategic consultancy to help travel companies “survive, develop and thrive”, has appointed Steve Allen as a director at a time when the business travel sector faces a critical few months.
Allen was formerly Portman Travel CEO and Wexas managing director and recently returned to the UK after a three-year stint as senior vice president at dnata, part of the Emirates Group.
Firebird was launched by business strategist and experienced company director Ian Finlay and corporate finance specialist Stewart Lambert in June 2020 to help travel businesses affected by Covid-19 rebuild, as well as offering pathways to exit.
Finlay said: “Steve brings a wealth of experience and insight, particularly in the corporate sphere. The coming months will be critical for many in travel, and there are few consultancies who can match our growing team’s skill and experience.”
Allen told BTN Europe, “The business travel sector in the UK is under severe pressure given the state of demand and the constraints around international travel. Elsewhere, in China, Australia and the US for example, domestic travel is recovering and represents an important part of the business of TMCs serving customers in those markets. In the UK, the reliance by most TMCs on international travel has led to very limited travel activity.
“The UK TMC sector will see more consolidation and at pace in the coming months, as companies adjust to reduced demand levels through 2021, a recovery that will take several years, and with an outcome that will see different travel profiles for many companies and organisations compared to 2019.”
He added: “With the very welcome furlough scheme highly likely to finish end-March, companies have to map their recovery plans for 2021-22 mindful of cash burn and the lower levels of activity to come. Many TMCs had low profit margins pre-Covid and will be working out how best to survive. For many, the answer will be through scale, which means merging or selling to a competitor.”
The TMC sector has faced a brutal few months, with Horncastle Executive Travel the latest TMC to cease trading.