easyJet has launched a new Business team focused on deepening existing commercial relationships, innovating in distribution, managing local TMC relationships as well as enhancing partnerships with the corporate travel sector, now representing around a fifth of the airline’s business.
easyJet’s former Head of Sales for Northern Europe, Andrea Caulfield-Smith, takes the new role of Head of Business Development, a pan-European accountability. Her team has a wider remit than previous Heads of Sales and will support easyJet’s business development by focusing on the identification of new, broader relationships with customers and partners.
Distribution Strategy Manager, Marilyn Barnett, takes responsibility for all indirect channels and commercial relationships with GDS and Aggregators in addition to leading easyJet’s anti-screen scraping efforts and enforcing the airline’s distribution charter.
Business Continuous Improvement Manager Stephanie Kyprianou will focus on setting up easyJet’s new b2B API scheduled for launch in 2018, simplifying sales processes and driving performance and innovation with our B2B team in our contact centre. She will also take the lead on future Business NPD.
They all report into Ian Cairns, easyJet’s Director of Customer.
Ian Cairns, easyJet’s Director of Customer, commented:
“Our business customers are very important to us and by having their travel experience within my overall accountability for Customer Experience will help provide focus for this group of high value and frequent flyers. We’ve appointed a single Head of Business Development for Europe, in Andrea, to ensure more consistency of sales approach in all our main markets. We’ve also created one team of Business Development Managers working under Andrea who will look after both corporate and TMC relationships, and again this is all about a consistent and integrated approach to key corporate accounts.
“James Marchant will lead the Business Development Managers accountable for the UK, Netherlands and German relationships and the French, Italian, Swiss, Spanish and Portuguese team will be headed up by Thomas Busser. James and Thomas are well respected in the travel industry and have extensive experience having been at easyJet since 2011 and 2012 respectively.”
“Marilyn and Stephanie are both very experienced Business travel experts but more importantly, they are able to challenge how we work with partners in the interest of our Customers. Innovation and challenge has always been at the core of easyJet’s DNA and this team will generate more disruptive ideas and approaches to distribution and commercial relationships; whether it’s with GDS, Aggregators or Contact Centre providers.”
Andrea Caulfield-Smith, easyJet’s Head of Business Development commented:
“I am delighted to have been appointed as Head of Business Development and look forward to focusing on driving our business strategy to fruition in the coming months. The team is extremely excited about their new roles and focusing on building more in depth relationships with our customers and partners.
“When I joined easyJet 2 years ago, our the primary focus was working with businesses and major travel management companies to make sure customers have access to the best fares on offer. These partnerships are still really important to us and will continue to be however with a new lens. We say goodbye to the traditional sales and account management and embrace business development. For us this is about developing a real customer obsession, uncover new and exciting partnerships which allow us to develop more broader relationships which drive differentiated and reciprocal value – It is now no longer just about the seat on the aircraft.
Whilst we change our approach it is still increasingly important for us to remain a leader in low cost market in Europe, supplying products and solutions our customers want and need.
Over the last few years easyJet has continued to successfully grow its share of the managed corporate travel sector. Alongside famous low fares, a raft of innovations have contributed to enabling easyJet to compete more effectively with legacy carriers and gain a larger slice of the business travel market.
easyJet has continued to focus on growing and connecting with the TMC’s efficiently through market leading distribution capabilities. The partnerships easyJet has built across the managed travel industry have meant the airline has been able to successfully grow its presence across the sector.
With flights to more of the major airports on the top 100 European routes, high frequency flights, Business Fares, Fast Track Security, speedy boarding, mobile boarding passes with the easyJet app and allocated seating as standard, easyJet is helping make business travel easy and affordable for everyone.