Trade Bytes

Reliance partners with TAFI to boost telecom products

Andrea Lopez - Mumbai

Reliance telecommunications has partnered with TAFI to offer special packages for all its members wherein travel agents will receive commissions on billing if they avail of these card services, as well as when the agent's customers avail of the calling card services. "Our co-branding with Reliance gives us great mileage; moreover this is the first time that an association has partnered with a telecommunications company to design packages such as these, and the packages will be very beneficial to travel agents," said Vasuki Sundaram, secretary, western chapter of the Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI).

In addition, TAFI is planning to involve its members more actively in areas apart from the traditional ticketing. Says Sundaram, "We want our members to benefit from interacting with direct suppliers - thus, we are working closely with the tourism boards of different countries and mobilising our agents through roadshows. The main concern, as of now, is to make known the problems encountered by an agent selling a particular destination to the direct supplier. We are therefore focussing on facilitating better interaction between the trade and the suppliers." Currently, the western region wing of TAFI comprises 370 members.