Today, Travelodge, the UK’s first budget hotel chain which operates over 590 hotels across the UK, Ireland and Spain announces the launch of Travelodge Business.
This bespoke one-stop service has been created to help businesses restart their business travel programme post-pandemic, by supporting their accommodation needs and giving them substantial cash savings.
During the last 12 months, Travelodge has worked extensively with its regular business customers to help create a new and improved Travelodge Business product. The group conducted a comprehensive study with over 3,000 businesses of all different sizes and in different sectors to obtain a full perspective on the needs of companies and businesses travellers emerging from the national lockdown.
The key findings from this research alongside feedback from a series of business travel themed focus groups helped define the features and design of Travelodge Business™.
Following the May 2021 Government roadmap announcement, Travelodge soft-launched its new Travelodge Business service with nearly 100 existing customers and it has been well received. On average, since the full launch nearly 1,000 new companies are signing up to the service each week and all Travelodge’s existing business users have now been transferred over to the new service.
Travelodge Business is designed to support a range of businesses ranging from blue chip companies, SMEs and entrepreneurs. It provides a tailored, self-service business travel solution that offers genuine cost savings, exclusive benefits and a dedicated support team, enabling business customers to have full control over their bookings at a click of a button. This is a vital feature in the current environment as business travel plans can rapidly change.
On average, the savings companies can make via Travelodge Business range from a large company saving up to £250k on their hotel spend to a small SME making a saving of £1k per year on their hotel spend.
In addition, customers that hold a Travelodge Business Account card can enjoy all the benefits of Travelodge Business as well as the benefit of up to six weeks interest free credit so that the business traveller does not have to pay for anything on arrival. This includes expenses such as the room booking, WIFI and food & drink in the hotel Bar Café.
Craig Bonnar, Travelodge Chief Executive, said, “We are seeing green shoots that business travel is restarting across the UK as businesses recognise that travel is important to success. Business travel is often about building relationships and some face-to-face meetings are essential.
'Our research shows company bosses are concerned about their bottom line and how they can make business travel affordable and safe in the ‘New Normal’, which is why we have invested in Travelodge Business™.
As the UK’s first budget hotel chain providing good quality and great value accommodation to business travellers, we have over three decades of expertise in business travel. With the launch of Travelodge Business™ and a network of over 578 hotels across the length and breadth of the UK, we are ready to support British industry as it kick starts its business travel programme again.”