UK businesses are planning to ramp up their spending on travel, new research shows.
Business travel has largely been affected by Covid-19 in the last two years, with some businesses reluctant to spend more money on travel even now. However, this habit could soon change as new research by American Express shows that two-thirds of UK businesses plan to boost their spending on business travel by 50 per cent or more.
The research was conducted back in July (but published this week), with the latest news about inflation and tax changes in the UK possibly influencing these plans. However, the figures show that business travel is still seen as essential for UK firms, with the research surveying business travellers and decision-makers and finding that around four in ten businesses are looking to increase the amount of business travel they undertake, while over two-thirds plan to ramp up their spending in this area by 50 per cent or more compared to current levels.
As business travel looks to bounce back, companies are thinking differently about their policies and priorities in this area: the rise of ‘bleisure’ – a combination of business travel and leisure – means that more employees can bring their partner or a family member on work trips for little or no extra cost. “There's clearly a renewed focus on the entire business travel experience to ensure both companies and employees maximise the value of trips,” said Hana Lear, Vice-President of UK Card Services at American Express. A total of 71 per cent of business travellers said they would leave their role if their employer didn't prioritise their wellbeing during their trips, with 42 per cent stating they prefer when they can blend business travel with leisure time
The research was carried out amongst 500 business travellers and 500 senior business travel decision-makers from smaller and larger businesses in the UK.
