Bedsonline’s UK demand is performing 20% better year on year compared with its record-breaking 2023 as consumers continue to “prioritise travel”.
Rebecca Brett, retail director for Europe, said people are increasingly taking more trips each year and many are willing to pay more than they did before the pandemic.
“Last year was a record year, so to see another surge in 2024 has been really good and really promising,” she told Travel Weekly at WTM London 2024.
She added: “People were travelling anyway, but they’re maybe doing more trips now. Since Covid, people have been prioritising travel far more than before. They’re putting off those other purchases like TVs and cars.”
Key destinations that have grown year on year include the US, Greece, Turkey, Italy and Spain, while other trends include rising demand for multigenerational travel.
Bedsonline, part of HBX Group, operates in 170 countries and offers 250,000 accommodation products, 23,000 activities and 500 car hire suppliers, while recent developments include the introduction of financial technology products and insurance.
Brett said: “We’re so much more than a bed bank. That word is used so often – our name doesn’t really help scream about all the other products we have.
“It’s really important that agents understand how much we do have and what that actually means and how they can use that to their advantage.
“We sell a fantastic product [range]. We’re selling things that people want and it’s something they’re excited to buy. And while they’re excited, we can make sure we can fulfil all their needs.”
Although the brand is already well-known in the UK, it still wants to increase the number of agents it works with.
“There’s always a growth plan because we want to work with absolutely everybody,” said Brett. “I’m sure there are pockets of agents who haven’t worked with us and we would love to work with them to maximise their revenues.”
In response to trade demand, the business has introduced a greater range of flexible products such as ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ items.
“We’re making sure we collaborate with our travel agent partners,” said Brett, adding: “We’re making sure what we offer suits what their clients wants. Everything is driven by what their clients want and need.”
Greater investment in technology is among the steps taken to help agents, she added, as the business draws on artificial intelligence and other tools to ensure it can share helpful information.
HBX Group receives 5.6 billion searches a day, Brett said, compared with Google’s 8.5 billion.
“We’re looking at how we can use our data to help agents,” she said, pointing to the ‘Insights’ tool as an example.
“We say to agents: ‘These are the destinations we’re seeing elsewhere that we’re not seeing for you’.”
Underlining the brand’s commitment to its B2B model, Brett added: “Clients don’t know our name and they don’t need to. We’re here to support travel agents.”