Meet Ali Shah, founder of TravelUp
My background has always been in travel. Before moving to the United Kingdom in 2002 I was selling holidays as my job in Pakistan’s Punjab province. When I came to the UK I didn’t speak English, so I learned the language by keeping the television on day and night with the subtitles running.
My first business venture in the UK was advertising flights to Bangkok on Teletext. I felt there was space in the travel sector for a company that was focussed on helping consumers as much as possible. In those early days, I would send a handwritten ‘thank you’ card to each customer for choosing to travel with my service.
I’ve always been interested in technology and I realised quite soon after moving to the UK that the best opportunity to scale the business lay in digitisation. In 2004 I built a website and bespoke booking system called E-Traveller, which is still the backbone of the business today.
I love to be hands-on as the Founder of the brand and I am still the majority owner of the business. But I am also incredibly proud of the team that we have built at TravelUp, which is packed with the best talent and leadership in the sector.
What’s the most common problem your customers approach you with?
Unsurprisingly, COVID-19 has presented the greatest challenge to our customers and to our business. The speed at which the crisis escalated led to major challenges for the entire travel sector. There was great uncertainty and we were faced with a huge number of refund requests to process. We built a new in-house system to deal specifically with refund requests, which took us around seven weeks.
In normal circumstances that would be fast. But with travel bookings being cancelled by the day, customers wanted to know immediately what was happening with their flights and holidays. We’re now in a much stronger position, and the feedback from our customers is that, as long as they can get through to a member of our customer service team, they are confident their case is being dealt with.
Securing refunds from airlines tends to be the most common problem customers raise in this context. We have experienced frustrating delays getting money back on behalf of our customers. That is why we have launched a new campaign to try and persuade the airline industry to move to a new ‘trust account’ model. This would mean that the fares would be held in a secure account until a flight takes off. This would be refunded quickly if the flight did not depart.
What plans do you have for TravelUp over the next two years?
Our business was built upon a digital foundation and our proprietary booking system is what makes us so strong as a business. Over the next couple of years, we would like to grow the digital offering for our customers. We know there will always be a requirement for human interaction, but we want to allow customers to be their own boss of their travel plans. Our vision is that customers will be able to plan, research, book, manage, adjust, add and remove elements of their bookings. They would be able to do whatever they want, whenever they want with their travel plans.
Our vision is to implement this capability for our customers not just prior to departure, but while they are on holiday or in a resort as well. By providing customers with the tools to wield this level of control, we are confident that we can provide not just the best deals but the best customer experience available.
How do you set yourself apart from other businesses in your industry?
The founding principle of TravelUp was to create a business that offered consumers the best deals and experience, particularly on long-haul flights. While that remit has expanded to cover all manner of flights, we remain the agent of choice for those who have family on a different continent, or for those going on a major, once-in-a-lifetime long-haul holiday.
Our bespoke E-Traveller technology is also part of our unique service It is best in class when it comes to finding and merging the best deals instantly.
Building the business around those pillars has been a resounding success. At the time of writing, we work with more than 200 airlines and 400,000 hotels across the globe.
What advice do you have for travel during the coronavirus pandemic?
Ah, to travel or not to travel? That is the golden question during these uncertain times. Of course, it is important to be aware that some destinations may be impacted by the ever-changing and evolving quarantine list. But there are many options for customers looking to holiday in the coming months – or to travel to a destination.
Although the travel process and experience upon arrival may not be the same as it was before the pandemic struck, the differences may not be all bad. Our TravelUp colleagues have reported having the historic sites of Pompeii and the Colosseum in Rome practically to themselves.
If you are healthy enough to travel, major tourist cities like Venice and the Greek islands which typically become overwhelmed with visitors are especially empty right now and could make for a more relaxing and enjoyable holiday without the crowds.
While destinations in the US and Canada face increased travel restrictions, we expect to see long-haul flights to the Far East to continue to grow in popularity. As long as you carry out your research, use a travel agent that is up to date with all of the latest developments and be sensible when abroad there is a case to be made to travel right now.
What are your thoughts on failure?
There is a couplet that I would like to share with you. Taken from a longer poem written by a gentleman from Sialkot in Pakistan.
“ Don’t get daunted by the fury of opposing winds, oh eagle! These blow only to make you soar higher.”
I keep this little saying in my mind at all times. Failure only materialises when you let it. Other than that, a problem is just something that needs to be overcome. Yes, we try things and sometimes they do not work but we re-engineer them, rework them and that so-called failure evolves into something that turns in to a workable and successful solution.
Do you have a morning routine or ritual to get your day started on the right foot?
As soon as my eyes open the first thing, I reach for is my mobile phone. All the previous day’s figures and statistics will have been processed overnight and I can see reports for me to assess the previous day’s trading. Once I have processed this, and only at this point, can I begin my new day.
Time is a commodity that needs to be used wisely. I work from the office every day, but I have quite a long drive. So it is imperative that I optimise this time to the best of my ability. This is when I plan out ideas and communicate with my team. We get so much underway during this time and it allows me to walk into the office engaged and ready to guide the team.
That is not to say I do not have time for a quick coffee stop. I am sure there has not been one day where I have neglected my coffee stop in the morning, this is a true ritual.
The ability to run this routine every morning is achievable due to one main factor. I never leave an unread email before finishing up for the day. All my emails are cleared and responded to. By doing this it means that my day always starts afresh.
