Letter from Penang: Beyond food to tech, heritage and startups
I have in my Dropbox a food guide to Penang. It saves me time whenever a friend tells me, “Hey I am going to Penang, what shall I eat and where?”
The problem with Penang is the good food is found in places which I don’t even know the name of, just the location – for example, right across [...]
How reward-U is aiming to be “Hong Kong’s everyday loyalty programme”
In putting together its reward-U loyalty programme, Hong Kong’s low cost carrier HK Express turned a couple of things on its head.
One, members are rewarded for dollars spent, not miles flown. Two, it moved from an FFP (frequent flyer programme) to a lifestyle-based scheme, rewarding customer l [...]
Skyscanner says evolution from metasearch to marketplace the logical path to future distribution landscape
Skyscanner has made its intentions clear: it is transitioning from just being a metasearch engine to becoming a marketplace with multiple storefronts, where travellers “can shop for a rich array of air fares with a seamless process from start to finish across any device”.
Sounds like a logica [...]
It’s a Spanish welcome to metasearch for alternative accommodation
Spanish tech company Hundredrooms has found a niche entering the metasearch space within the disparate alternative accommodation market in Europe. Establishing itself first within Spain in 2014, it has since branched out to Italy, Germany, France, Mexico and the U.K. It is soon to expand into the La [...]
Dara Khosrowshahi on pivotal leadership moments, confluence of 3Ms and being a tortured executive
In a catch-up over local coffee with Yeoh Siew Hoon, Dara Khosrowshahi, president and CEO of Expedia Inc, recalls his early stepping-back-in-leadership moments, and why it’s important to know where you are going, not just what you are doing. Plus, his thoughts on the confluence of the 3Ms and the [...]
Trends that matter In hospitality
What are the trends that matter in hospitality? In a one-on-one with WIT founder Yeoh Siew Hoon, Lorraine Sileo, vice president research, Phocuswright shared these insights at WIT Hospitality in Hong Kong
What are the biggest trends in hospitality
Room revenue is on the rise, growing f [...]
Expedia’s first Innovation Lab in Asia will be beach-head for mobile learning
We sat in one room watching a man have sensors attached to his face – two above the eyebrows and a couple on his cheeks. The sensors, using Electromyography (EMG) technology, will tell us when he’s frustrated or delighted as he browses the Expedia website for his dream hotel.
Turns out he’s [...]
Gibergues’ view of online travel: New trends being set in Asia, Skyscanner & Ctrip will bring marketplace model to the world
Having just spent three months based in its Asia offices, Sebastien Gibergues, Head of Leisure and Online Travel at Amadeus, is better able to appreciate the different way the Asia online travel market is developing compared to Europe and the US.
“I also spent a lot of time in the US previously [...]
Letter from Hong Kong: Hard questions posed at WIT Hospitality, the answer lies in commitment to change
The sky was blue. The air was distinctly chilly. Hong Kong put on her best winter frock for us as we kicked off our first WIT event of the year, our conference dedicated to hospitality.
The day prior to the event, we had held a Think Tank gathering of about 20 industry leaders and we were gathere [...]
Confessions of an airline miles hunter: Building Mileslife is harder than a self-drive in Western Africa
He says his hardest trip ever was a self-drive in Western Africa. Over a month, he crossed three countries. Road conditions were terrible and he kept hitting police checkpoints everywhere and at each point, he never knew if he would be arrested or released.
“It was a very hard trip,” says Tro [...]
