Ellesmere Port based flight consolidator Aviate has reported strong growth figures for 2017, with revenue forecast to increase by 55%.
The company attributes its success to a number of new innovations launched in 2017, including Aviator Club, an exclusive rewards offering for tour operators. Aviate also added 26 new airlines to its product portfolio, contributing to further growth.
To support the business’ growth, Aviate has been on a recruitment drive, increasing headcount from 138 to 209. This saw the introduction of a new lead generation team in August, bringing in 69 new clients in September and a further 78 in October.
The company is also supporting future talent in the industry, with the introduction of an apprenticeship scheme earlier this year. The seven apprentices have joined a number of departments including finance, IT, HR and customer services. They will be working towards level three and level six (degree level) apprenticeship qualifications, combining on-the-job training to offer the new starters an alternative route into a career within the travel industry
Michael Edwards, Managing Director of Aviate, said: “2017 has been a great year for Aviate. We’ve had some really exciting developments, from a product and business perspective, which have enabled us to carve out a strong performance for the year.
“Our new products are starting to make an impact on the market and driving strong results for the business. October was our busiest month to date, with 10,500 tickets issued versus 5,500 in October 2016”
The 2017 success follows several years of increasing sales. In 2014, Aviate worked with 10 airlines, generating £21.2m revenue. In 2015/16 and 2016/17 revenue was at £38.7m and £60.7m respectively. Now the company works with 50 main airlines and is on schedule to generate £94m revenue in 2017/18.
Aviate’s sister company Calrom, which is an award-winning travel technology provider, has also enjoyed a successful year, with the opening of a new office in Lahore to facilitate its expansion.
Sister company Lime, which provides a search, booking and ticketing service to the UK travel trade seeking British Airways tickets, has also recently announced that its customers will not incur the Distribution Technology Charge (DTC) applied on British Airways GDS bookings thanks to the launch of NDC technology earlier this year within its dedicated online portal for British Airways content.
