The leading data and analytics company notes that due to more consumers shifting to e-commerce, if players fail to invest in a robust digital strategy, they will allow their competitors to take a greater share of the market.

GlobalData’s latest thematic report, ‘Thematic Research: Online Travel (2022)’, reveals that intermediaries are increasingly shifting from a high street presence towards an asset-light, online-only operation to meet changes in consumer demand and keep operating costs low. The pandemic has heightened the need to reduce physical contact and as a result consumer behaviour has changed with customers now more likely to carry out their transactions online.

This trend was confirmed in a recent GlobalData survey, with 78 percent of consumers reporting to be ‘extremely’, ‘quite’ or ‘slightly’ concerned about visiting shops because of the COVID-19 risk.

Hannah Free, travel and tourism analyst, GlobalData, commented, “Due to the changing needs and demands of the modern traveller, travel intermediation has evolved from traditional high street stores with in-person travel agents to a highly fragmented online marketplace.”

According to GlobalData’s latest survey, 24 percent of consumers used an online travel agent (OTA) the last time they booked a holiday, with just seven percent of consumers using an in-store face-to-face travel agent.