Flight Centre Expanding Its Horizons

Media Release
21 October 2008

Flight Centre Taking On The Small To Medium Business Travel Market

Flight Centre New Zealand Limited has expanded its horizons with the launch of the Flight Centre Business Travel (FCBT) brand this week.

The new office, located in Albany on Auckland’s North Shore, tailors the Flight Centre model specifically to suit New Zealand’s small to medium enterprise market, with experienced consultants specialising in travel for businesses and delivering first class, one-on-one service.

Jenny Macdonald, executive general manager for Flight Centre’s corporate division, says the brand is designed to appeal to small companies who may not travel often, but need to ensure their specific travel needs are met while making sure costs are kept to a minimum.

“We believe this brand will appeal to businesses that are too busy to give the time and consideration needed to get the best value from their travel spend,” Ms Macdonald says.

“They may be booking online to keep down costs, but don’t realise that they aren’t getting the best bang for their buck.

“With FCBT, a business can have someone else compare costs across airlines and hotels for them – outside of company time – and remove all the risks and pitfalls of booking online, like scams, scheduling flights that don’t connect, and making sure insurance policies are adequate.

“It is just like having an unpaid staff member to take care of everything from airfares, to accommodation, rental cars, or excess baggage.“

The FCBT brand has been operating in Australia for three years, and Ms Macdonald says the decision to launch it here is both in line with the company’s growth strategy and the business landscape in New Zealand, which is dominated by small to medium enterprises.

“Albany is one of the fastest growing areas of New Zealand and a large number of SME businesses are based in that region. It is the natural place to start the FCBT business.”

In addition to the Albany team, two other FCBT offices will be operating before the end of the year; one in Hamilton East, and one in Tauranga.

FCBT will be operated by FCm Travel Solutions, Flight Centre Limited’s corporate travel management company, and led by Angie Dudley, who has been with Flight Centre Limited for five years.

Flight Centre (NZ) Limited is New Zealand’s largest travel agency, with 140 businesses nationwide.

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