5 June 2025 - 10 Minutes News for Hoteliers - Page 5

1 min

Galaxi eyes landmark growth as it clocks up…

📅 Galaxi, a B2B marketing and events company in the travel industry, celebrates its fourth anniversary in 2025. In November 2024, they appointed Josh Lewis as Head of Partnerships. Initially planning two roadshows for 2025, they increased to three due to demand and plan five for 2026. A special giveaway for travel agents includes prizes like a luxury hamper and a 5-night stay in Mallorca. Co-founders Craig Vickors and Phil Turner express pride in their accomplishments.

2 min

Global Travel Collection’s AI use set to…

🛫 Global Travel Collection (GTC) launched Atlas, an AI platform developed with Microsoft, to enhance itinerary planning. It aims to save 1.5 million hours annually for over 1,500 luxury travel advisors globally. Atlas integrates diverse travel systems, reducing planning time by up to three hours. Security features include GDPR and PCI compliance. GTC is exploring monetisation by featuring preferred partners within Atlas for high-end leisure, corporate, and entertainment clients.

2 min

Uber for Business appoints head of…

📁 Andrew Laughlan is appointed head of enterprise for Uber for Business UK, tasked with improving corporate ground transportation management. A YouGov survey reveals that 67% of UK travel policy decision makers prioritize cost savings. The Uber for Business platform offers spending control, centralized policies, and a sustainability dashboard. For employees, it provides priority pickups, premium transport, and automated expensing. Laughlan aims to streamline costly and complex corporate travel through familiar technology.

2 min

Insurtech company Blink Parametric welcomes…

💻 Brian Barter becomes CEO of Blink Parametric, an Irish B2B SaaS company, as of 2023. He replaces Sid Mouncey, who stays as Chief Commercial Officer. Blink, founded in 2016, partners with over 28 entities across 22 regions, boasting £1.6 million in Annualised Recurring Revenues. Barter's past roles include Managing Director at BoatyardX, acquired by Ergo in 2022. Blink is part of CPPGroup Plc, focusing on travel and cyber solutions for insurance firms worldwide.

2 min

Kaptio strengthens its presence in…

🗺️ Global travel tech company Kaptio is expanding its presence in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, establishing a sales office in Australia amid rising demand for cloud-based travel solutions. Rebecca Esterhuizen, with over a decade of experience, is appointed Head of Region, APAC. In 2024, Australia reported 11.7 million outbound departures, showing a 21% increase year-over-year. Kaptio aims to enhance customer support through a "follow-the-sun" model and engage with local tourism bodies like CATO and ATIA.

6 min

How Restaurants Can Use Tech Without Sacrificing the Guest Experience—And Maybe Even Improve It

💻 Eran Hollander, CPO at HungerRush, discusses how tech-driven labor tools improve restaurant operations. Rising labor costs push restaurants to leverage integrated POS data for smarter staffing, examining factors like menu complexity and weather. AI-powered payroll demands interoperability, data privacy, and scalability. Cross-training gains momentum, aided by tech that supports multi-role capabilities. AI enhances scheduling and supports employee well-being. Avoiding tech missteps requires fitting tools that align with workflows. AI optimizes labor models by understanding employee preferences and improving guest interactions.

2 min

AI Gets You Found — But Social Media Seals the Deal

💻 James Filsinger appointed CEO of VENZA, effective immediately. VENZA, a cybersecurity provider in the hospitality industry, aims to enhance innovation and client impact. Filsinger brings over 20 years of experience, previously leading companies like Yapta and EZYield.com. Former CEO Jeff Venza becomes Chairman. Filsinger plans strategic acquisitions to boost VENZA's capabilities, previously driving a 35x revenue increase at Yapta and managing $2.5 billion in transactions at Moneydirect. VENZA's growth remains aligned with its core values.

3 min

5 Restaurant Tech Trends to Watch

🍴 In 2025 at the National Restaurant Association Show, Kevin Corr and Partha Das from Cognizant discussed trends like unified commerce, requiring flexible, API-driven, cloud-based systems to integrate operations. Labor shortages push restaurants to use AI and automation for tasks such as scheduling and food prep. Quick-service drive-thrus process 70% of orders, now digitizing with voice AI. Digital menu boards adapt to real-time changes, introducing dynamic pricing similar to airlines and ride-sharing services.

Is Airbnb’s new ‘services’ feature unfair to hosts?

🚨 Jun 5, 2025, Airbnb's new Services feature, including extras like massages and private chefs, is causing host backlash. Hosts are concerned about not sharing revenue from services in their properties, increased risk, and lack of control. Services auto-enroll, requiring hosts to opt out manually. Critics demand revenue sharing, opt-in policies, and more host involvement to address fairness and trust issues. The current setup risks eroding trust between Airbnb and its host community.

Airbnb’s makeover as a super app of experiences

💻 Jun 5, 2025 – Airbnb is shifting from home rentals to a lifestyle platform, inspired by WeChat and Amazon. With slowing revenue growth at 6%, Airbnb aims to increase user engagement from its 200M+ users and 78% gross margins. Services are expanding to 650 cities with 20,000 listings, mostly under $50, and Airbnb takes a 15% cut. New features include social networking and AI-driven personalization to increase app usage frequency. Skepticism about brand dilution remains.

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