The 30th anniversary of the Business Travel Show Europe, presented by The BTN Group, took place in London in June. Welcoming corporate travel delegates from across Europe, the show brings industry leaders together with an innovative programme of events. The Business Travel Show attracts a diverse corporate audience, providing a forum for industry insiders to learn and build new connections.
SilverDoor’s Katie Garrahy sat down with Lauren Arena from BTN during the Travel Show as part of their recent Accommodation Spotlight series, which delves into the analysis of evolving market trends – accommodation rates, outlook for the market, importance of data, as well as content and distribution.
Read on for the interview key takeaways, covering market trends in Europe, price forecasts for 2024/2025, and technology with a focus on the Carbon Calculator.
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1. The use of serviced apartments has gained traction |
In recent months, Katie says she’s seen corporate appetite for the serviced apartment model gaining significant traction in procurement and RFP processes which is an incredibly positive sign for our industry. In April, BTN reported that ‘serviced apartments have become one of the most rapidly expanding real estate asset classes within the UK’, reflecting an upward usage trajectory in the market right now.
“A lot more corporates now are going to RFP for their serviced apartment provider. If you look even five or six years ago, it was few and far between, whereas now there are far more corporate RFPs coming from the serviced apartment space which is very important and a positive shift.” – Katie Garrahy
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2. Sustainability benefits are driving serviced apartment usage up |
One of the main trends discussed at the 2024 ITM Spring Conference was sustainability action and the power the travel industry has to affect meaningful change. As more than half of corporates now require sustainability credentials within RFPs from serviced apartment providers, there has been a significant increase of apartment usage since 2023 (ITM Empower, 2024).
With better standardisation, the serviced apartment sector has evolved in terms of emissions measurement and reporting with established tools and compliance programmes available. At SilverDoor, we encourage collaboration within the supply chain and regularly engage our property partners to share their environmental practices and accreditations to better place them for corporate bookings.
“Since the pandemic, there has been a lot of use of serviced apartments, however this did lightly taper off in the past year or so. This has started to build up again, to which we believe one of the reasons being due to the focus on sustainability as clients are more aware of the significant impact this has on business travel and relocation.” – Katie Garrahy
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3. Corporates are increasingly examining the ROI of a business trip |
Alongside sustainability, one of the primary considerations in corporate travel is cost containment. There tends to be fewer trips of longer duration in travel programmes now, and serviced apartments offer the lifestyle benefits that corporate assignees need. With lower nightly rates than alternative accommodation models and VAT reductions for longer bookings in the UK, serviced apartments not only allow businesses to reduce costs on bookings, but also reduce total trip expenditure on things like food and laundry. Check out the benefits of serviced apartments as corporates accommodation here.
“Another big focus is on the ROI of a trip, as it is clear that corporates are trying to contain those costs. Although these trips are fewer, they are longer in duration and corporates do continue to use serviced apartments, to have the option of a more home from home accommodation.” – Katie Garrahy
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4. Adapting to corporate demand is essential to continued growth |
A business’s ability to adapt allows them to navigate and embrace changing traveller demands effectively. Within the serviced accommodation industry, this is apparent more than ever with significant advances in traveller expectations of technology and service; the idea is that if we as providers do not adapt to these changes, corporates will find what they want somewhere else.
“Demand is always on the increase for serviced apartments. It is a space that has evolved quickly and there is more evolution to come – it’s an exciting place to be.” - Katie Garrahy
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5. Making serviced apartment content easy to access is key |
The onus of easy, accessible travel booking systems is on the agents to ensure booking serviced apartments is made simple and in line with other travel verticals like air travel.
“SilverDoor recently launched our very own API, which has brought serviced apartment content onto an online booking tool. From conversations I have had with clients, it seems they are keen to have all the content they need in one space. They want a simple, easy process for booking travel and accommodation online and an instant service.” – Katie Garrahy
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6. Demand for all-in-one booking solutions for business travel and mobility professionals remains strong |
Business travel and mobility professionals want an all-in-one booking solution that fits into their existing eco-system. A key takeaway from the 2024 ITM Spring Conference was that flexibility, control and simplification are at the top of the priority list for corporate travel programmes: they want quick and easy, and they want it now.
“All-in-one booking platforms are definitely the future – getting all the content online and instantly bookable for clients and corporates in key. However, with serviced apartments, not everyone wants to be able to instantly book; some would prefer to have a conversation, understand the exact needs and requirements, especially for those longer stays. But for shorter business travel stays, you might want the ease of simple, fast booking. So there is still a market for both services, but the most important thing is to make it easy for travellers, to keep them in your space so they don’t have to go out and find another booking tool.” – Katie Garrahy
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7. It's important to strike a balance between the convenience of live, online booking and high-touch service you get from a booking agent |
As technology advances within the serviced apartment industry, it can be difficult to establish a balance between online booking platforms versus a between online booking platforms versus a booking agent with real people at the end of the phone booking agent. This will always be dependent on what it is the client is looking for, and their requirements.
“I think there will always be a place for human interaction in the serviced apartment space. The range of requirements and needs from different clients are so broad, that sometimes a one-to-one booking with our Account Management team can be the difference between a good service and an excellent service.” – Katie Garrahy
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8. Capturing, interpreting and sharing booking data is crucial |
Business travel, corporate mobility and accommodation can significantly contribute to the carbon footprint of a business and corporates increasingly want to track the impact their travel has on the environment, which historically has been hard to do.
“We recently launched our Carbon Calculator, in which you can see the carbon emissions per night of your stay in a serviced apartment. This has been an attractive launch to new and existing corporate clients, especially those who value sustainability within business travel. We have encouraged and educated our property partners to make sure they are fully aware of the importance of this. This technological advance also gives us the opportunity to collect data and report on this.” – Katie Garrahy
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9. Technology and sustainability will remain at the forefront of the global mobility sector over the next year. |
As it states in the latest 2024 GSAIR publication, corporates and clients ‘are on the hunt for technology that offers more choice, is efficient and offers a slick user experience’. This industry insight shares the idea that times are changing, and it’s important for suppliers and agents to keep up with trends in order to remain necessary. This is clear in terms of sustainability particularly, as environmental progress and objectives continue to be more closely considered in corporate RFPs, which makes the ability to adapt more important than ever before.
“Like I have said before, it’s a really exciting time in the industry. There are a lot of eyes on serviced apartments, and a greater volume of competition within the market. The shift of focus on sustainability has defined a gap in the market for serviced apartments and placed an overriding benefit for travel programmes. There is also likely to be an increase in technology, in terms of online connectivity and APIs which will win over large corporate conglomerates.” – Katie Garrahy
If you would like to learn more about travel industry updates and trends, check out the Key Takeaways from ITM Empower 2024, or here from industry expert Karen Hutchings exclusive interview as she is appointed as Strategic Advisor for SilverDoor.
