LAUNCH OF UK’S FIRST INTERACTIVE TRAVEL GEAR WEBSITE

Added: (Fri Dec 08 2000)

Pressbox (Press Release) - INCLUDES PARTNERSHIPS WITH HIGH PROFILE TOUR OPERATORS, AIRLINES AND ONLINE TRAVEL AGENTS

Unique service provides travellers with the right gear for their holiday

London, 6 December 2000 – Travelcamel Ltd, the UK’s leading online travel gear retailer, has today launched a redesigned website. The travelcamel.com site allows consumers to purchase their pre-travel requirements from the one convenient location.

Travelcamel’s new site includes a new unique feature that gives customers advice on what they will need to take on their travels. Customers are asked to select their destination (eg. France, Eastern Caribbean, West Africa or New Zealand, etc) and holiday type (eg. Sun & Beach, Backpacking, Family or Business, etc). The Essentials Finder tool then provides the customer with a suggested list of travel gear appropriate for that particular holiday.

Business Partner Microsites
As well as selling products direct to the consumer from www.travelcamel.com, Travelcamel Ltd has quickly built a reputation in the travel industry by working with leading UK travel companies such as easyJet, Expedia, Ebookers, Thompson Travel Group and Ryanair.

Travelcamel builds retail microsites for partners that want to offer the Travelcamel range of travel gear as an extension of their core ticketing business. Online travel consumers can organise all aspects of their holidays using sites that provide the Travelcamel service. Not only can they book flights, hotels, car-rentals online but they can also purchase items such as film, sunscreen, insect repellents and bags online.

James Vaile, managing director of Expedia UK said: “The Expedia customer now has an even more comprehensive travel offering from the Expedia.co.uk site. By integrating the great travel products which Travelcamel provides, the UK traveller can get everything he wishes for his trip abroad, from rucksacks and sun cream to accommodation and flights. It leads to the perfect travel shopping experience.”

Marketplace
Forrester Research predicts that by 2005 eight percent of all travel goods sold will be purchased online, while in a separate research, Mintel Retail Intelligence estimates the holiday shopping marketplace to be currently valued at £2.5 billion in the UK.


John Curran, commercial director of Travelcamel, says, “These statistics equate to an online market place of £200 million. Being the UK’s only specialist online retailer of travel focused products, and with the partnerships we have in place with leading travel companies, Travelcamel has assumed a dominant position in this market segment.”

Ends

Notes to editors

Travelcamel Ltd
Travelcamel is an online retailer of travel gear. Sales are made both direct to the consumer via www.travelcamel.com, and via microsites built in conjunction with tour operators, airlines and online travel agencies. Travelcamel has established strategic partnerships with companies such as Thomson Travel Group, Ryanair, easyJet, Expedia, Ebookers and Holiday Autos.