Local travel tech giant Sabre is evolving its long-standing partnership with Delta Air Lines through a new multi-year global distribution agreement that will result in commercial and technological innovation.
Sabre and Delta, which are based in Southlake and Atlanta, respectively, said the ‘transformative’ deal will drive change and create value across the entire global travel industry, including for agencies and travelers. They also expect the agreement to evolve the way travel partners do business. It will give Sabre-connected travel buyers access to Delta’s content globally, while allowing Delta to extend its reach within Sabre’s global network.
Sabre is currently on a journey to create a new marketplace for personalized travel. Delta was a fitting partner to take its next steps: The airline takes an omni-channel, customer-centric approach to provide consumers with an elevated shopping experience within their preferred channel.
The intent is to enhance the traveler experience by offering more customizable options.
“Our vision is to shift the mindset of the entire ecosystem toward modern retailing, selling customers what they want, where they want it and how they want it across all channels,” Jeff Lobl, managing director of global distribution for Delta, said in a statement. “We are grateful to Sabre for their innovative and pioneering spirit in taking this journey with Delta and establishing a new and exciting path forward for third-party distribution.”
One project that has already resulted from the partnership is the New Airline Storefront, a modernized retail solution intended to make comparison shopping easier and more valuable for travelers. The platform hosts digital “shelves” that organize an airline’s offerings in a side-by-side display. The goal is to help consumers understand new airline product offerings and simplify the purchasing decision.
“Technology innovation combined with collaborative partnerships are key to realizing our vision,” Wade Jones, chief product officer of Sabre Travel Solutions, said in a statement. “This new agreement is one example of that partnership philosophy, and our innovation to transform our storefront experience reinforces this by ensuring Delta and Sabre’s mutual customers can shop with confidence and see the value of the offerings available to them.”
Sabre said the benefits are two-fold for both sellers and buyers across the travel ecosystem: Airlines get maximized upsell opportunities, while travel buyers gain access to relevant offers and increased efficiency. Travelers are offered transparency and increased trip value.
The storefront was developed by Sabre in collaboration with Delta, travel management platform CWT, and other partners. It’s now available in Sabre Red 360.
“Both our new global distribution system approach with Sabre and their transformative new storefront are two important steps forward in evolving the retail shopping experience for travelers while creating value for all stakeholders across the ecosystem,” Lobl said. “By focusing on value, travelers will benefit from greater choice and visibility to all product offerings while corporations will benefit from their travelers being more comfortable in their preferred booking channel and within their travel policies.”
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