XL Leisure to launch online ‘shopping mall’
XL Leisure Group has revealed its plans for 2007, including a new consumer brand, revamped website and new routes.
The company – formed from a management buyout of Excel Airways Group three weeks ago – officially rebrands as XLLG today.
Its direct-sell holiday and charter divisions, Excel.com and Excel Airways, become XL.com and XL Airways in line with the parent company’s name change.
However, there is no change to Florida specialist division Travel City Direct nor XLLG’s trade-facing brands: tour operator Excel Holidays, luxury brand Aspire, seat-only operator Freedom Flights and newly acquired Kosmar and Medlifehotels.
A new website, XL.com, is launched today, which managing director Martin Lock claimed would become “the biggest portal in the world within two years”.
Lock said the site will be a “shopping mall, rather than a single shop,” and will sell third party product.
XLLG’s European airlines, Star Airlines in France and Star Europe in Germany, are being rebranded as XL Airways today.
Meanwhile, the carrier is to enter the Australian market in winter 2007 with a Perth to Phuket/Bali service, following a joint-venture agreement with Australian carrier Skywest.
Lock said: “XLLG is becoming a global proposition. We are pushing aircraft to different areas around the world and within a year we will have all of our products on the same platform. That means we will be offering huge inventory out of XL.com.”
The company will add four new 189-passenger aircraft next summer, bringing the total number it owns to 42, flying to 50 destinations.
By Lisa James
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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