Privately held Carlson Wagonlit Travel claims it has garnered $2.2 billion in new sales through August, a 69 percent year-over-year increase, according to a CWT earnings report released today. The travel management company also claims increases in total sales volume primarily coming from the U.S. market, online transactions, its meetings & events business and strong traction for its online travel management portal.
About 40 percent of new business derives from large global companies consolidating their travel program such as Bayer, John Deere and Terex, according to the company, which also said the remaining 60 percent of new business comes from small and midsize domestic organizations, as well as government bodies including the U.S. Department of Justice and HM Revenue & Customs in the United Kingdom.
The sharp increase in new sales accompanied a 45 percent year-over-year increase in overall sales volume for wholly owned operations to $11.1 billion for the first six months of 2007, the company said.
CWT saw the most significant sales volume increase in the U.S. market, which grew 104 percent. The release cited the August 2006 Navigant International acquisition and successful integration as a driver of that growth. Notable growth also occurred in Australia, which increased its sales volume by 86 percent, in the United Kingdom with a 33 percent increase and in India, where CWT acquired a majority stake in its joint venture earlier this year
(BTN, July 9), with a 31 percent increase.
"The growth of CWT in the first part of this year is the result of three factors: solid industry fundamentals, including a strong world economy and its increasing globalization, the positive effects of the acquisition and successful integration of Navigant, and the success of our strategy focused on delivering the value of effective travel management to corporate clients and government institutions around the world," said CWT president and CEO Hubert Joly in a prepared statement.
The company also claimed a considerable growth in its meetings and events business, including a year-over-year European sales volume increase of 27 percent to $189 million in the first six months of 2007.
CWT said its clients are gaining online bookings traction in Europe, where online transactions increased 55 percent and Asia/Pacific, where they increased to 26 percent, up from 12 percent in the first half of 2006.
In addition, the company noted a strong traction rate for its online travel management portal, which it debuted in April. The TMC claims more than 10,000 organizations in 60 countries have adopted its CWT Program Management Center.