42% of corporates forecast to spend more in FY25 as business travel soars: Landmark State of the Market Survey

In the first of its kind, a landmark global State of the Market* Survey for Flight Centre Corporate has revealed that 40 per cent of businesses plan to increase their travel in FY25 (July to June), while 42 per cent of customers intend to increase their travel spend versus last year.

Utilising the innovative Qualtrics platform to survey its customers directly, the business received a random sample of more than 500 responses from flagship brands FCM Travel and Corporate Traveller spanning the globe, providing a true reflection of travel intentions worldwide.

Overall, 10 per cent of customers surveyed intend to travel more than 20 per cent more, 30 per cent plan to increase by up to 20 per cent more, 35 per cent believe the amount of travel will be the same, with only 10 per cent anticipating a reduction.

As for intention to spend, six per cent of customers surveyed plan on spending over 20 per cent more on their travel, 36 per cent intend to increase by up to 20 per cent more, 31 per cent believe the amount spent will be similar versus last year, while only 11 per cent anticipate reducing.

Steve Norris, EMEA Managing Director, Flight Centre Travel Group said: “Out of all the regions globally,  EMEA is seeing the strongest increase in intentions to travel for business, which really highlights the opportunities that are in front of us as an industry. 46 per cent of EMEA based businesses plan to increase their travel over the next year, with 15 per cent of those surveyed planning to increase their number of business trips by more than 20 per cent.

“Even more encouraging, is that over 50 per cent of our EMEA customers across our corporate brands, FCM Travel and Corporate Traveller, plan to increase their travel spend in the coming year with 9 per cent looking at increasing their travel spend by more than 20 per cent.

“The results of this survey illustrate that business travel is absolutely a non-discretionary spend for corporations. We can see from our clients, which range from SMEs to larger multinational organisations, that business travel is a vital component to help drive growth, build relationships, and seize opportunities.

“But the benefits of business travel go beyond just opportunities for corporates. As we enter the busy travel season, the rise in business travel will have knock-on-benefits for local economies, cities and communities as people continue to utilise the ‘bleisure’ trend of adding on a holiday to the beginning or end of their trips.

“Last month we announced our record full year results, which highlighted how our corporate travel brands, FCM Travel and Corporate Traveller, are driving growth in our business. We’re confident we can continue to build on our already strong foundation and capitalize on the opportunity that is in front of us, while continuing to partner with our clients to navigate the complex travel landscape”

*The State of the Market survey was conducted online between Monday 3 June 2024 to Thursday 11 July 2024. The target respondents were Corporate Traveller and FCM Travel customers, specifically decision-makers, travel managers, and authorised travel bookers. All Corporate Traveller and FCM Travel regions were included. A random sample of 562 responses were obtained.