Flight Shop to open 4th store in Mumbai this week; will expand retail footprint with Rs 100 cr funding

Flight Shop, the signature retail travel brand of the Flight Centre Travel Group, is all set to launch a store at Flora Fountain in South Mumbai by mid this week, which would be the 13th outlet of the brand in India. The store, located at Mumbai’s corporate hub, will add to the existing three stores in the city at Kurla, Prabhadevi and Ghatkopar.

Vicki Parris, National Brand Leader, India, Flight Shop, said, “We have mapped key ends of Mumbai, thereby increasing ease of accessibility for our customers. Moreover, with an exhaustive web of over 1,000 airline and hospitality partners, as well as travel-facilitators at every-step, Flight Shop offers end-to-end travel assistance mapped to varied budgets and aspirations.”

Having raised Rs 100 crore in fresh capital from existing stakeholders, the brand aims to train a team of specialised travel experts and build quality infrastructure aimed at providing a unique interface for diverse travel needs. Flight Centre Travel Group had ear-marked Middle East and Asian markets for investment, with focused efforts to cater to local markets. “With India-focused investments, Flight Shop is geared to strengthen the existing pipeline and create a footprint of 36 stores across the country,” asserts Rakshit Desai, Managing Director, India, FCm Travel Solutions and Flight Shop.

Talking about the year gone by Desai added that 2014 will go down in history as the year of two very different halves for the travel and tourism industry. While travel sentiment was relatively low in the first half with the industry struggling to achieve any growth, the second half was a revelation, with general sentiment improving given greater political certainty. “From July, the travel industry has clocked double digit growth every month. Both business and leisure travel by Indian travellers is on the upswing and up nearly 15 per cent year on year,” he shares.

Source: http://goo.gl/OztTX6