BCD Travel Creates Global Consulting Practice

BCD Meetings & Incentives to offer global strength and customer-focused service

London, 11 July, 2006 – BCD Travel, the world’s third largest travel management company, today announced the creation of a global organisation and brand focused on supporting meetings, incentives and events.

BCD Meetings & Incentives combines the experience and expertise of three legacy companies to achieve an unparalleled depth of service and talent across the meetings and incentives industry. This new company has been formed by a combination of the following:

WorldTravel Meetings & Incentives – Americas focus on strategic meetings management, incentive travel, product launches and creative communications
TQ3 Events (a subdivision of TQ3 Travel Solutions Management Holding GmbH) – European focus on meetings, incentive travel, sports programmes and customised cultural group travel
Talking Point – United Kingdom and European focus on full-scale creative event management, production and live show management and incentive travel fulfilment
BCD Meetings & Incentives will be led by Scott Graf, who served as president of WorldTravel Meetings & Incentives before it joined WorldTravel BTI and several other travel-related companies under the BCD Holdings N.V. umbrella.

“Since the launch of BCD Travel, existing and prospective customers have become very interested in learning how we can support their meetings, incentives and events on a multi-national and global scale,” said Graf, global president of BCD Meetings & Incentives. “As we combine the skills of three very successful companies, our depth of service and talent will make us well positioned to meet the demands of a growing global business environment. We will be an organisation that acts globally, aligns regionally and—most importantly—services locally.”

Immediate initiatives in this endeavour include:

Exploration and adoption of an integrated global technology platform — enabling BCD M&I to lead meetings and incentive customers further forward in an ever expanding integrated global marketplace
Integration of Talking Point’s production and event services into American and European markets, ensuring the company’s traditional MICE customers have ready access to this specialised service
A global account review to identify ways to drive efficiencies for global customers currently working with one or more of the legacy agencies

Graf believes that being a stand-alone operating business within a large company offers BCD Meetings & Incentives customers the best of both worlds. “As a distinct operating unit of BCD Travel, we enjoy the strength and leverage of a $12 billion company. But as a separate business, we can maintain the intimate, customer-focused culture that made each of our legacy organisations a success.”

BCD Meetings & Incentives has about 500 employees in the Americas, Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA) and Asia Pacific (ASPAC). It has a presence in 21 countries – wholly owned in 13 countries, with strong partnerships in eight countries. Its world headquarters is in Chicago, with regional hubs in San Francisco, Mexico City, London, Brussels and Singapore.