Diaz joins European Travel Partnership power panel

Adele Wolstenhulme

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Dufry Group CEO Julián Diaz is among the top-level speakers at the inaugural event to be held in Barcelona in June

Dufry CEO Julián Diaz has pledged his firm support for the first-ever European Travel Partnership Symposium, where he will take the stage alongside other global heads of travel-retail business to debate the key issues facing the industry. The much-anticipated event will be held in the Cosmopolitan city of Barcelona on June 27-29.

Other newly confirmed speakers include Daniel Levecky, CEO of Purecommerce.com, who will join Director of Category Insights Richard Timmis to explore partnerships between currency providers and technology companies to achieve better price transparency for the travelling consumer.

Delegates will also be privy to brand new consumer insights from the AC Nielson Online Omnibus panel of over 3,000 Chinese travellers. Interested industry executives are urgently invited to pose questions they would like to address to the panel by the closing deadline of April 20th. Dr Grace Pan, AC Nielson China Head, leisure and travel research / senior manager client service, is an expert on the travelling, shopping and buying habits of the Chinese, and will address the Symposium on day one with the results. Questions will need to be sent to awolstenhulme@ravenfox.com no later than April 20 to be considered for the May panel.

The European Symposium is the next in the series of regional Travel Partnership events, following hot on the heels of its highly successful Asian equivalent—held in Macau in January in partnership with Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA).
 
The European agenda is packed full of decision-makers from Europe’s most powerful travel-retail operators, brand companies, airports and airlines who all share a common interest in seeking partnerships with travel and tourism service providers to build brand equity with travelling consumers.

Key sessions to include:
Profit in Partnership: Building Consumer Confidence
The inside track on Europe’s key spenders
Currency confusion: partnering for transparency
Communication in the new environment
Marketing the Travel-Retail Brand
Taking Zurich to Asia: marketing an airport destination
Targeting the youth market: creating the fun factor
The Chinese entry into Europe
Completing the travel chain: the beauty perspective
A model environment for the health conscious
Re-writing Europe’s low-cost map
Completing the travel chain: the hotelier perspective
Creating a seamless travel experience

The ground-breaking presentation given by Diageo’s Ron Anderson in Asia, entitled Completing the Travel Chain perfectly crystallised the thinking behind this new series of events. Ron identified the greater opportunities that brand owners can embrace by connecting with travellers at every point in their journey. This journey starts when they book a journey, sit in the airport lounge, take a limousine or rental car to their hotel, walk through the lobby and shop in the destination. This is possible through partnering with online booking companies, hoteliers, credit card companies, rental car companies and currency exchange providers.

The main Symposium will be preceded by two very different and exciting workshops, including a Private Workshop moderated by Dr Ian Cesa, President & CEO, Horizon Research Corporation and a Master Class moderated by Aviation Health Director Farrol Kahn

Space is limited at the Private Workshop because the programme is structured in a way that means only one supplier from each product category may attend. The Master Class will offer delegates an exclusive insight into one global travel retailer’s plans to integrate Healthy Flying products and services into its existing retail offer. The identity of the retailer will be revealed closer to the event.

For further information and to book your place for the early bird discount, please contact Gerrard Kennedy on gkennedy@ravenfox.com or tel: +44 (0)207 779 8222.