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Jamaican travel company takes on the world
Published: Thursday | December 9, 2010
When the boss of this major American agency, with staff flitting around the world, wants to know their whereabouts, or whether it's on top of its travel budget, he jumps on his computer, calls up a site and inputs his password.
A screen pops up with the relevant information: which staff is where, the airline by which he travelled, the hotel into which he is booked and the cost of the trip. The boss can also review the travel itineraries
of all staff for the next year.
Significantly, the network that supports this service and the company that offers it is not in New York, London, Los Angeles, or any of those major cities. It is based in Kingston, Jamaica.
"We have gone way beyond the shores of Jamaica," said Conrad Graham, major shareholder and president of Trafalgar Travel Management Ltd. "And we have done so with home-grown technology - created and integrated right here."
And the spending, he suggested, is not over, as Trafalgar attempts to stay ahead of the game and grow its business.
An associated company of the well-known travel retailer, Trafalgar Travel - with which it shares common shareholders and directors - Graham's outfit helps mostly large corporations with big travel budgets to save money by spending it more efficiently.
"We come in, look at all your travel information
and travel needs, help you plan your travel, and continuously provide you with updated information," Graham explained.
He added: "Trafalgar Travel Management is providing solutions for corporate needs, which are very large. We do audits and budgeting for travel and entertainment, providing tremendous value and savings."
Part of the way Trafalgar Travel Management helps to save costs is through its upfront 'acquisition' of airline seats and hotel rooms. The savings are passed on to corporate clients.
But the story of this growing global venture began a decade and half ago when Graham, who is also a real-estate developer, and his partners launched their travel agency, Trafalgar Travel. Initially, it was a single branch at 14 Gazelle Avenue in Kingston, with four agents.
Spreading its wings
These days, the travel agency's operation is larger.
"We have 12 branches islandwide - New Kingston, Sovereign Mall, Spanish Town, May Pen, Mandeville, Port Antonio, Savanna-la-Mar, Negril, Montego Bay, Brown's Town and two branches in Ocho Rios," said the company's executive vice-president, Michelle Davis-Roper.
Additionally, with a series of acquisitions since 2008, the company has spread to The Bahamas, Barbados, and St Kitts-Nevis, each with a single branch, and Trinidad and Tobago, where there are four branches. The Trafalgar operations employ more than 130 people, 80 of whom are in Jamaica.
Up to earlier in this decade, Trafalgar acquired its upstream travel service from a firm called Carlson Wagonlit, which ranks second to American Express as the world's largest travel-management company.
Trafalgar Travel paid annual franchise fees to Carlson Wagonlit, which allowed it to use their network to deal with the services that might be required by their more sophisticated, full-service clients.
However, Graham and his team felt that they could provide a better, more efficient service and, thereby, compete for business globally.
"We created our travel-management company," said Graham.
Over the past five years, the investors have spent large sums of money - precisely how much he would not say - developing the technology that, according to Graham, is better than anything currently used by competitors.
"What we have tried to do is bring it to another level," he said. "Nobody can match us with what we do in terms of supplying information to clients at their fingertips."
Graham declined to name specific clients, but said that they include "some in the United States and Britain".
"We are now the largest travel-management company in the Caribbean," claimed Graham, ahead of the Barbados-based firm, Going Places.
Growing relatively fast
As with private companies, the financials of the Trafalgar operations are not public and Graham was reticent about revealing them. He, however, suggested that the travel-management side accounted for around a quarter of overall revenues, although this was growing relatively fast.
"Interestingly, this is not a brick-mortar operation," Graham said.
"Technology has flattened the world. One of the greatest things is to compete with international companies and beat them."
Of course, the global recession has softened the travel. All segments of the business have felt the pinch, including travel management and retail firms.
Jamaica, too, has felt the chill.
According to Trafalgar Travel's Davis-Roper, the company's revenue has been flat over the past two years, as more people stay at home, or search for cheap fares via the Internet. This hurts commissions.
But she believes that, inevitably, most of these customers will return, especially after they have had bad experiences or poor services with purchases via the Net.
Said Davis-Roper: "The Internet will give you what you request. However, a travel agent has the knowledge base to give you the best advice surrounding that travel request."
http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/2...ead/lead4.html
Published: Thursday | December 9, 2010
When the boss of this major American agency, with staff flitting around the world, wants to know their whereabouts, or whether it's on top of its travel budget, he jumps on his computer, calls up a site and inputs his password.
A screen pops up with the relevant information: which staff is where, the airline by which he travelled, the hotel into which he is booked and the cost of the trip. The boss can also review the travel itineraries
of all staff for the next year.
Significantly, the network that supports this service and the company that offers it is not in New York, London, Los Angeles, or any of those major cities. It is based in Kingston, Jamaica.
"We have gone way beyond the shores of Jamaica," said Conrad Graham, major shareholder and president of Trafalgar Travel Management Ltd. "And we have done so with home-grown technology - created and integrated right here."
And the spending, he suggested, is not over, as Trafalgar attempts to stay ahead of the game and grow its business.
An associated company of the well-known travel retailer, Trafalgar Travel - with which it shares common shareholders and directors - Graham's outfit helps mostly large corporations with big travel budgets to save money by spending it more efficiently.
"We come in, look at all your travel information
and travel needs, help you plan your travel, and continuously provide you with updated information," Graham explained.
He added: "Trafalgar Travel Management is providing solutions for corporate needs, which are very large. We do audits and budgeting for travel and entertainment, providing tremendous value and savings."
Part of the way Trafalgar Travel Management helps to save costs is through its upfront 'acquisition' of airline seats and hotel rooms. The savings are passed on to corporate clients.
But the story of this growing global venture began a decade and half ago when Graham, who is also a real-estate developer, and his partners launched their travel agency, Trafalgar Travel. Initially, it was a single branch at 14 Gazelle Avenue in Kingston, with four agents.
Spreading its wings
These days, the travel agency's operation is larger.
"We have 12 branches islandwide - New Kingston, Sovereign Mall, Spanish Town, May Pen, Mandeville, Port Antonio, Savanna-la-Mar, Negril, Montego Bay, Brown's Town and two branches in Ocho Rios," said the company's executive vice-president, Michelle Davis-Roper.
Additionally, with a series of acquisitions since 2008, the company has spread to The Bahamas, Barbados, and St Kitts-Nevis, each with a single branch, and Trinidad and Tobago, where there are four branches. The Trafalgar operations employ more than 130 people, 80 of whom are in Jamaica.
Up to earlier in this decade, Trafalgar acquired its upstream travel service from a firm called Carlson Wagonlit, which ranks second to American Express as the world's largest travel-management company.
Trafalgar Travel paid annual franchise fees to Carlson Wagonlit, which allowed it to use their network to deal with the services that might be required by their more sophisticated, full-service clients.
However, Graham and his team felt that they could provide a better, more efficient service and, thereby, compete for business globally.
"We created our travel-management company," said Graham.
Over the past five years, the investors have spent large sums of money - precisely how much he would not say - developing the technology that, according to Graham, is better than anything currently used by competitors.
"What we have tried to do is bring it to another level," he said. "Nobody can match us with what we do in terms of supplying information to clients at their fingertips."
Graham declined to name specific clients, but said that they include "some in the United States and Britain".
"We are now the largest travel-management company in the Caribbean," claimed Graham, ahead of the Barbados-based firm, Going Places.
Growing relatively fast
As with private companies, the financials of the Trafalgar operations are not public and Graham was reticent about revealing them. He, however, suggested that the travel-management side accounted for around a quarter of overall revenues, although this was growing relatively fast.
"Interestingly, this is not a brick-mortar operation," Graham said.
"Technology has flattened the world. One of the greatest things is to compete with international companies and beat them."
Of course, the global recession has softened the travel. All segments of the business have felt the pinch, including travel management and retail firms.
Jamaica, too, has felt the chill.
According to Trafalgar Travel's Davis-Roper, the company's revenue has been flat over the past two years, as more people stay at home, or search for cheap fares via the Internet. This hurts commissions.
But she believes that, inevitably, most of these customers will return, especially after they have had bad experiences or poor services with purchases via the Net.
Said Davis-Roper: "The Internet will give you what you request. However, a travel agent has the knowledge base to give you the best advice surrounding that travel request."
http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/2...ead/lead4.html