Thomas Cook to sharpen focus on MICE sector

MUMBAI: After consolidating its travel businesses under a common head, Thomas Cook (TCIL), India’s largest travel and financial provider, is now focussing on the fast growing meetings-incentives-conventions-exhibitions (MICE) segment that last year grossed revenues of more than Rs 400 crore.

Thomas Cook’s move is aimed at driving its inbound and outbound businesses in a market that is growing at the rate of 20%, among the highest in the world. The MICE segment takes up for a large chunk of corporate clients and includes companies who send employess on overseas holidays as an incentive.

Interestingly, Bollywood, with its international film awards functions, is emerging as one of the fastest growing source of income in this segment. Thomas Cook last week took almost 500 delegates, including celebrities from the entertainment field, to United Kingdom for the International India Film Awards.

It is now said to be negotiating with actor Suniel Shetty to cover the Global Indian Film Awards, scheduled to be organised by the actor. “Thanks to the MICE segment, the travel business is no longer seasonal,” says Nalini Gupta, president and head, travel businesses. “Apart from the corporate clients, Bollywood has also become a big-time part of the segment,” she added.

Ms Gupta recently moved from South African Airways to join TCIL, after the travel company merged its outbound, inbound and corporate segments under a single head. Ms Gupta is also a director at Travel Corporation of India, which was acquired by TCIL in an all-cash deal worth Rs 180 crore earlier this year.

“Among our corporate clients, two major companies had each taken about 1,000 employees to New Zealand and Turkey,” said Ms Gupta. TCIL is also handling the upcoming 20:20 cricket series in South Africa and expects to take about 500 corporate professionals to watch the Indian team’s performance.

Other senior management reshuffle included Mr Vinayak Purohit who took over as executive director, finance and Mr Rajeev Kale who will handle the company’s emerging incentive business.