THE Guild of Travel Management Companies and its industry partners have pledged to work together more closely following discussions at the association’s annual conference in Las Vegas.
The agreement marks a sea-change in the relationship between suppliers and travel agents, which GTMC chairman Paul Allen described as “more co-operative than ever”.
Allen said: “There is now much more of a feeling of unity and a willingness to co-operate.
“We have been through the pain. We are all grown up and we realise we have to work together, particularly as business travel becomes more complex.”
New initiatives agreed at the conference include joint lobbying with airlines on common issues and an in-depth study into the changing hotel market and how they affect corporate clients.
P&O Travel managing director Alan Coles, who chairs the GTMC’s airline working group, said: “We have agreed to work together on occasions when we have a common message.
“The airlines already have powerful lobby groups, but if we can join forces with them, it will add weight.”
He said one example would be to join forces with British Airways and Virgin Atlantic to lobby the Government on what they see is the unfair practice of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US.
Coles added: “We will talk to each airline and see if there are any other common themes.”
Meanwhile, hotels working group chairman Richard Furness said work will start next month on a paper looking at recent changes in the sector. The findings will be shared with GTMC hotel partners and other bodies such as the Institute of Travel Management.
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