The annual Power List, an inventory of the world's biggest sellers of travel, has often served as a barometer for major events. One need only track the list over the three years of Covid to see how the industry was affected as a whole: stunned, then down, then back.
In our 2023 Power List, which measures full-year 2022 travel sales, we see that the overwhelming majority of travel agencies are reporting that business travel sales are on the comeback trail, complementing the leisure category, which burst back last year.
With sales numbers exploding, Travel Weekly restored the traditional $100 million global sales threshold for agencies for the first time since 2020. And the changes in the list from the last time the industry was quote-unquote normal, in 2019, is fascinating to see.
On the one hand, steadiness prevailed, with the top five companies retaining their order from last year.
On the other, the list is peppered with newcomers. More than a dozen travel entities entered the list this year at all levels, from multibillion-dollar roll-ups to $200 million agencies.
At 61 companies in total, this makes the 2023 Power List our biggest yet.
Changes in the list
One newcomer to the top 10 is Chase Travel Group, which acquired Frosch, No. 14 last year (which in turn had acquired Power Listers Valerie Wilson Travel and Conlin Travel). Chase joins 18 travel behemoths that reported $1 billion or more in sales. Among those is Navigatr, which acquired Travel Edge and host agency Travel Edge Network (No. 27 last year).
Among the newly appearing brands are Sequel Travel, the result of the merger between Hess Corporate Travel (No. 43 on last year's list) and Maupin Travel, and Gifted Travel Network, which reported a 200% increase in sales over 2021 and a 400% increase over 2019.
And a few regular Listers fell just shy of the mark; for example, last year's No. 50, Covington Travel, came in at $99.3 million in sales.
What Power Listers said
Most companies were optimistic that the worst of the pandemic's effects were behind them. However, some expressed caution while anticipating potential challenges and addressing real problems: economic uncertainty, such as rising interest rates; nagging inflation pressure and the threat of a recession; geopolitical unrest; flight scheduling disruptions; and hospitality industry staffing issues.
Many companies noted the planning and complex implications of rapid NDC deployment as another challenge.
Agencies responding to this year's survey about 2022 accomplishments and 2023 goals frequently mentioned an increasing focus on and investment in artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve both the agent experience and customer service. Diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and incorporating more specific data to enhance sustainability throughout travel were also commonly mentioned.
Another recurring theme was how to define and make the most of the long-simmering travel category of bleisure, that increasingly sought-after blending of business and leisure. It's an opportunity that can't be ignored, especially in the pandemic's wake when employees, especially younger workers, want the ability to linger and enjoy the sights and sounds of places when their business obligations are complete.
Paul Szydelko is the contributing editor for the 2023 Power List.