Skift Take
TUI is known for its sun-and-beach holiday packages. However, its digital approach is now more attuned to independent, do-it-yourself travelers looking for flexibility.
TUI Group wants to shift more than 50% of its bookings to its TUI App, an ambitious long-term goal for Europe's largest holiday package tour operator, given that app bookings account for less than 10% of its sales in key markets like the UK and Germany.
TUI Group CEO Sebastian Ebel shared the target and the company's recent return to profitability earlier in August. With more than 21 million customers annually, the company is focused on a digital shift in addition to its traditional brick-and-mortar travel agencies with 3,500 agents.
Ebel wants to transform the TUI app into a one-stop shop for travel. The goal is to reduce the high costs associated with performance marketing channels like Google and improve TUI's repeat bookings through loyal customers.
Peter Ulwahn, CEO of TUI Musement, the group's tours and activities division, and Jessica Enbacka, Nordics market managing director, joined Skift in an exclusive interview to discuss the strategic shift.
"In terms of digital transformation, we were offline before. Now we are transforming the company, and we really want to compete with the other OTA players in the space when it comes to technology," said Ulwahn.
Headquartered in Germany, TUI's global travel operations include more than 400