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BCD Travel expands operations in Greece
BCD Travel, the world’s third largest travel management company, announced that it has expanded its operations in Greece by establishing a joint venture with Amphitrion Holidays SA. The joint venture will operate under the BCD Travel brand.

Ilona De March, BCD Travel’s president – EMEA, said: “Over the past 18 months, we have noticed growing demand by multinational clients for a strong presence in the Greek market. We already service a significant number of clients in Greece, and we are pleased to be able to partner with Amphitrion Holidays, This expansion sends a strong signal that as a global player in the corporate travel management industry, BCD Travel is committed to being where our customers need us to be, with owned presence in key markets, and uniformly excellent service in all of them.”

De March added: “We will continue to service our existing clients with every attention to detail and will work together to foster new business development growth.” Amphitrion Holidays was founded in 1973 and has an annual turnover of US$143 million. The company provides a complete range of travel services (including corporate, leisure, marine, incoming, and meetings and incentives), with 250 employees in four offices, including a 24-hour operation at the Athens airport.

Dinos Mitsiou, chairman and CEO of Amphitrion Holidays, said: “We are excited by the decision to forge a strategic partnership with BCD Travel. Building on our almost 40-year presence in the Greek market and our solid reputation, this move helps secure our future role in a global marketplace by aligning ourselves with a company that understands the importance combining global reach and purchasing power with local expertise and flexibility for its customers. We look forward to using our strong local relationships to expand the BCD Travel brand in Greece in coming years.”

With annual sales of US$14 billion and a workforce of over 13,000 travel professionals, BCD Travel is the world’s third-largest global travel management company. BCD Travel simplifies and streamlines the corporate travel process, helping companies manage and control the movement of its people, information and resources. Clients can take advantage of BCD Travel’s presence and technology infrastructure to track every trip, every traveler and the costs incurred throughout every journey.

Founded in 1973, Amphitrion Holidays is a leading presence in the Greek travel industry. In addition to its focus on corporate and marine travel and incoming/outgoing tour operations, the company offers a comprehensive range of travel services, including: leisure, limousines, coaches, yachts, MICE and GSA representations. Amphitrion Holidays has 250 employees in three offices in Athens (Argyroupolis, Syngrou Avenue, Athens International Airport) and three additional offices across Greece. Theodore Koumelis - Thursday, October 15, 2009