Major global travel management companies (TMCs) Expedia Corporate Travel, FCm Travel Solutions and BCD Travel, have extended their worldwide presence with new partners in Europe.
Expedia Corporate Travel has launched a full-service travel offering in Italy through its partnership with Italian TMC, L”Orchidea Viaggi. Expedia now offers a fully localised service with content, language support and website, featuring online booking and travel management tools, in Italian.
”Combining L”Orchidea Viaggi”s local market knowledge and service expertise with Expedia Corporate Travel”s award-winning technology ensures that our customers will have the same consistent corporate travel management experience,” said Expedia Corporate Travel vice president Europe, Christophe Pingard.
Meanwhile, FCm Travel Solutions has extended its offering in central Europe through a partnership with Columbus Travel Management in Austria, which will be re-branded under the FCm name with
immediate effect.
In keeping with the TMC”s strategy of appointing managing zones for each region, the Austrian division will be overseen by FCm”s management partner for central Europe, German-based FCm DER Business Travel.
”Our agreement with DER Business Travel last year to become FCm”s regional partner for central Europe means that we have been able to accelerate our growth in that area,” said FCm director network development EMEA, Brian Donnelly.
”Our global competitors divide their regional management structure into three worldwide areas. But at FCm we operate in seven regions which we believe enables us to service clients more efficiently with local knowledge, expertise, and often a common language,” he added.
BCD Travel, a division of BCD Holdings which has quickly risen to become the third largest TMC, has also been active in Europe with the acquisition of Irish company Tommy Tobin Travel, a corporate arm of Joseph Barter & Sons.
Founded in 1856, Joseph Barter & Sons has been a long term strategic partner for the company, having represented it as BCD Travel Ireland through its corporate division since April, 2001.
”A shared passion for best-in-class service exemplifies the successful partnership between BCD Travel and Tommy Tobin Travel during the past six years,” said BCD Travel president and COO UK & Ireland, Mike Walley.
”Formalising this relationship through this acquisition is a logical step in BCD Travel”s strategy of ownership in key markets where our customers need us to be.”