The business travel industry in 2024 continued its rebound from the depths of the pandemic but felt a few growing pains amid some big acquisitions and growing volume, notably American Airlines’ about-face in its controversial corporate sales and distribution strategy. These changes are represented in this abridged list of the 2024 BTN reports that garnered the most unique readers.
1. Amex GBT Agrees to Acquire CWT (March 25)
The first report of what would be the largest travel management company acquisition in years was BTN’s most-viewed report of 2024. American Express Global Business Travel’s acquisition of CWT, if completed, would be worth about $570 million. However, it has drawn scrutiny from the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority, which in a preliminary report suggested the would-be deal could lessen competition. The TMCs nevertheless continue to hold that the deal should close in the first quarter.
2. What a Trump Win Could Mean for Travel (Nov. 6)
Past sometimes is prologue, and BTN in the first hours past former president Donald Trump’s Nov. 5 election defeat of Kamala Harris looked at Trump’s first four years as president to project how his second four might look for the business travel industry. It’s all preliminary until Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, of course, but seems safe to say he’ll tread a different path than outgoing President Joe Biden.
3. American ‘Regrets’ Distribution Execution, Plans Changes (May 29)
American Airlines’ aggressive embrace of New Distribution Capability at the expense of EDIFACT channels and its controversial attempt to remake its corporate sales strategy and structure both were unwound in an abrupt May course change that included the departure of former chief commercial officer Vasu Raja and CEO Robert Isom’s professed “regret” that the carrier “moved faster than we should have” and “didn’t execute well.” Later, the carrier acknowledged the abandoned strategy cost it about $1.5 billion in lost revenue in 2024.
4. Investor Group Led by Steve Singh Acquires Direct Travel (April 2)
Longtime business travel industry entrepreneur Steve Singh took his first step into the travel management company sector by leading a group of investors to buy Direct Travel, a move to supplement the other holdings in his portfolio: Spotnana, Troop and Center. Singh since discussed how the development of his tech holdings relates to the future of travel management, and suggested at The Beat Live conference that his strategy could halve the cost of servicing TMC clients.
5. U.S. Travel: Business Travel Spending to Grow, but Slowly (Jan. 17)
While revenue generated by business travel spending for many suppliers has matched or exceeded 2019 levels, in many cases that’s due to higher travel prices, with actual volume still short of pre-pandemic levels, albeit growing. The U.S. Travel Association one year ago suggested U.S. domestic business travel volume would remain below pre-pandemic levels until 2026. A summertime Global Business Travel Association forecast projected inflation-adjusted global business travel spending wouldn’t reach 2019 levels until 2027.
6. Marriott to Lay Off Hundreds of Corporate Positions (Nov. 18)
Marriott International lands on this list twice, first for the news that it would lay off 833 employees from its Bethesda, Md., headquarters. The move capped a tenuous year for the global hospitality industry, with steadily returning corporate demand undercut by leisure and lower-tier softness.
7. Delta Unveils NDC Strategy, With an Eye to 2025 (April 18)
In contrast to American, Delta Air Lines has moved deliberately with regard to NDC, promising to work the standard into its retailing efforts while retaining content in EDIFACT channels. In April, Delta further detailed its approach, pledging some NDC offerings in 2025 with omnichannel servicing slated to be available in the second half of the year.
8. Hertz to Sell 20K EVs from U.S. Fleet, Replace with Gas-Powered Cars (Jan. 11)
Hertz in recent years bet big on corporate traveler usage of electric vehicles, but one year ago sharply reversed course, committing to sell 20,000 EVs from its U.S. fleet. That number would increase to 30,000, about half its U.S. electric fleet. Competitor Sixt later would note EV demand was lacking “momentum,” and a BCD Travel survey noted a substantial majority of corporate travelers don’t rent them. Still, EVs remain a key cog in some corporates’ emission-reduction efforts.
BTN’s 25 Most Influential of 2024
9. Marriott Gets Aggressive with SME Business Travel Program (July 9)
Marriott in July introduced a new option for small and midsized companies that offers them not only discounts and loyalty points but also a full suite of travel management tools, based on a Spotnana tech stack. Following in the footsteps of a similar program offered by Qantas, Marriott’s offering, dubbed Business Access by Marriott Bonvoy, illustrates two major 2024 trends: the aggressive pursuit of the SME sector by business travel suppliers, often with segment-specific products and services, and the growing prominence of loyalty programs within corporate travel arrangements, as travelers must be Bonvoy members and book directly to realize the full scope of Marriott’s offering.
Taking Flight: BTN’s 2024 SME Report
10. Amex GBT Aims to Shed ‘Legacy TMC’ Label (Aug. 26)
American Express Global Business Travel EVP of global clients and Americas general manager David Reimer spoke to BTN’s Michael B. Baker about why he no longer considers the TMC a TMC, as well as the company’s progress on NDC and AI.
Bonus! 11. CWT: Don’t Count on Travel Savings in 2025 (Sept. 19)
Inflation in recent years has helped to drive up travel prices in every sector and throughout the world. And while it cooled in 2024, higher business travel costs probably will be a long-lasting consequence, CWT argued in its 2025 business travel price forecast, which projected higher average airfares, hotel rates and car rental rates than in 2024, but at lower percentages than in the year prior.
