THE BUSINESS TRAVEL INDUSTRY NEEDS TO WAKE UP TO THE SHARING ECONOMY

The sharing economy is one of the hottest business debates of the year and companies like Airbnb have attracted massive publicity following their success in the leisure market. Airbnb is at the forefront of the sharing economy, which is defined as the peer-to-peer service industry, and began actively chasing the business travel market earlier this year. Now they are going after business travellers, it’s critical that buyers and managers stand up and take note. 

The Business Travel Show has responded by including a panel session on the sharing economy at the Business Travel Show for the very first time. The session, which takes place at 10:00 on Thursday 26 February, will debate, for example, whether corporate travel buyers should allow companies like Airbnb into their travel programme, whether they are going to end up costing more or less than conventional travel suppliers and whether there are risks which could compromise duty of care. It’s an absolute must-attend session, especially as Airbnb’s Marc McCabe will be taking part alongside Ajay Thakkar from NH Hotels, Isabel Montesdeoca of Concur Technologies and BCD Travel’s Claudia Unger. 

Airbnb is also exhibiting at the Business Travel Show for the first time, which really shows how important the business travel market is to them and, in turn, how important they may well be to the market. So don't miss out, make sure you register for your free visitor pass ASAP at www.businesstravelshow.com. The show is Europe’s leading dedicated exhibition and conference for travel managers and buyers, taking place 25-26 February 2015 at Olympia Grand, London. 

This blog post was written by the Business Travel Show event director David Chapple. You can chat with him on Twitter @david_chapple. You can also follow us on Twitter @BTShowLondon and join the conversation with our hashtag #BTShow.