A new opportunity for well-run medium sized travel agents to partner with the international travel giant UNIGLOBE has been brought to South African by Duma.
UNIGLOBE is a global travel management system that helps its members to win new customers, access cutting-edge technology, benefit from massive purchasing power, operate more cost-effectively and gain market share.
Now UNIGLOBE is partnering with black-owned and operated Duma to sign up members in Sub-Saharan Africa. The partnership was officially launched on Wednesday the 14th of June in Johannesburg when executives from UNIGLOBE’s London’s EMEA offices signed an agreement and explained the benefits of international cooperation.
UNIGLOBE has more than 600 partners across 60 countries, but since its presence in Africa is still small, this is the ideal time for independent travel agents to come on board, says Themba Mthombeni, the founder and CEO of Duma.
He is now inviting other agents to join the family and gain access to a global brand, business-boosting technologies, training to international standards and a global hotel programme with 38,000 properties in 6,000 cities.
This global strength and brand affiliation is important at a time when local travel agents are facing severe challenges, Mthombeni says. Threats include slow economic growth, a reduction in travel volumes, shrinking profit margins, escalating running costs, and technology stealing the traditional market share.
The partnership model is designed to help both new and established Travel Management Companies (TMCs) maximise their profits through more efficient distribution systems and marketing support, as well as on-going professional development, training and networking opportunities. UNIGLOBE has its International headquarters in Vancouver, Canada and annual sales volume of more than $5 billion.
“Business travel is becoming increasingly global, and as customers streamline their in-house administration and search for Travel Management Companies to manage their complex travel needs, brand strength will put you on their radar,” says Derek Hearl-Maunder, President & Chief Operating Officer of UNIGLOBE Europe, Middle East and Africa.
As a 100% black owned and 50% black woman owned business, Duma is in a strong position to lead transformation in the industry, and has launched three other new divisions to drive this change and make other players stronger through unity and collaboration.
Its Duma Associates division is buying stakes of up to 51% in medium-sized travel agencies to give them the BEE benefits of being partly owned by black shareholders.
Its Duma Tech division has developed an online booking system that ties into back office functions to give agencies a ready-made e-commerce platform.
Its fourth new venture, Duma Shared Services, will supply its associates and other agencies with centralised services that are routine but crucial, such as ticket issuing, back office functions, sales and after-hours support to benefit from economies of scale and reduce the time spent on admin.