In line with the Hungarian national carrier’s foreign commercial strategy, the local representation in one of the airline’s vital Western European markets, Germany, has been handled by a general sales agent since 10th May. In future, Malev will work with Aviareps.

One core element of Malev’s commercial strategy is to restructure and rationalise the operation of its foreign local offices and representations as well as to increase their revenues. Prior to making any decisions the Hungarian carrier conducts in-depth market research and monitoring in order to analyse the consequences of closing down a local representation and turning it into a general sales agent. General sales agent operations represent rationalisation, cost-efficiency, increased revenues, professional representation and the highest service level on the market for Malev. The Hungarian carrier has concluded a contract with Aviareps, GSA representative for more than 75 airlines, including oneworld member carriers such as American Airlines, LAN Airlines, Royal Jordanian Airlines and Mexicana.

Karim Makhlouf, Malev’s CCO, said: “The successful implementation of Malev’s new commercial strategy greatly depends on the cost cutting measures we have launched at Malev. These measures are painful, but we are determined to continue with our cost reduction plans. With this important step on the German market, Malev is optimising its costs in Germany, making our product even more affordable both on the German and Hungarian markets. It also represents significant additional revenue opportunities combining synergies with one of the best established worldwide players with proven high standards of performance such as Aviareps.”

Michael Gaebler, CEO and founder of Aviareps, adds: “We are very proud to welcome such a renowned client and oneworld member like Malev aboard. By signing this new contract we are now in a position to demonstrate our local market expertise. Together with our professional and highly skilled team members in Germany we will continue providing all Malev customers with the first-class service they are used to and successfully support its new commercial strategy.”

Customers flying from Germany to Hungary or onward to any Malev destination will hardly notice the changes; they will continue to enjoy the same benefits and services as before. They can continue to make e-ticket bookings via malev.com, contact the telephone customer service centre and arrange matters in person at the Aviareps large, state-of-the-art office located in Frankfurt.

Malev operates two flights a day from Budapest to four key destinations in Germany -Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg and Stuttgart- and offers smooth connections on its network via Budapest to South-East Europe and the Middle East. The company ensures a high quality service to business and leisure customers.