Dnata Travel Group’s UK chief executive plans to enhance agent relations through more familiarisation trips and events. Lesley Rollo, recently appointed as the UK chief, seeks to leverage dnata’s resources and Emirates Group’s strengths.
- Rollo aims to foster relationships between agents and dnata staff through strategic events and trips.
- The focus is on growing the Gold Medal brand through enhanced agent engagement and education.
- Rollo emphasises the importance of agents in maintaining market awareness and expanding long-haul strategies.
- The group is investing in technological and operational alignments to maximise brand value and efficiency.
Lesley Rollo, the newly appointed chief executive of Dnata Travel Group UK, is spearheading an initiative to enhance the company’s engagement with travel agents. She plans to organise more familiarisation (fam) trips and events aimed at strengthening the trade relationships that are central to the Gold Medal brand’s success.
During a webcast from the ‘Big Day Out’ event held in Chester, Rollo highlighted the significance of agents as the ‘eyes and ears on the ground’ for the company. She noted that while business-to-consumer strategies can become insular, business-to-business interactions provide vital insights into market dynamics. The event saw participation from 70 agents and 25 suppliers, showcasing Dnata’s commitment to fostering knowledge-sharing and networking.
Rollo announced plans for increased fam trips across all Dnata’s B2B brands, including Incredible Journeys, Pure Luxury, and Cruise Plus. These trips are intended to be opportunities for agents to experience and understand the products better, thus enhancing the service they provide to their clients. Emphasising the educational aspect, Rollo stated they are offering more places for these trips than ever before.
In addition to strengthening agent relations, the company is strategically capitalising on its parent organisation’s strengths. By being part of the Emirates Group, Dnata is focusing on long-haul travel and strengthening routes to and through Dubai, highlighting Dubai as a key goal destination. Rollo underscores the investments made in Travel Republic to improve the online consumer experience and its pivotal role in the group’s airline purchasing strategy.
Despite the diverse brands under the Dnata umbrella, Rollo aims to harmonise the operational and technological infrastructure. The integration process focuses on leveraging the scale of Netflights for airline negotiations and enhancing brand value while maintaining individual brand identities. This approach aims to balance the benefits of being within a large group while fostering unique brand experiences.
Dnata Travel Group’s strategic focus on agent engagement through fam trips underlines its commitment to leveraging its corporate strengths and enhancing market presence.
