John Van den Heuvel Appointed as President of Corporate Traveler USA

Corporate Traveler USA, the flagship SME division of the Flight Centre Travel Group (ASX:FLT), is pleased to announce the appointment of John Van den Heuvel as President of the business – with ambitious plans to support “the backbone of the US economy.”

John will be responsible for driving strategic growth initiatives country-wide, while also ensuring the continuation of exceptional service delivery to corporate clients across the United States. John has just relocated to New York and will lead operations from Corporate Traveler’s new HQ in Bryant Park.

John brings lengthy experience and a strong track record of success to his new position. Prior to his promotion, he served as President of GOGO Vacations, where he made big contributions to the company's expansion, and redesigned it as a digital-first seller of wholesale travel products.

With his extensive industry knowledge and proven leadership capabilities, John is well-positioned to lead Corporate Traveler USA to new heights, with lofty ambitions for expansion and growth.

This is particularly exciting as John started his travel career with Flight Centre Travel Group 21 years ago, and initially joined the Corporate Traveler brand in 2008, before transitioning to the President of GOGO Vacations in 2015.

“Spending on global business surged 47 per cent in 2022, finishing the year at $1.03 trillion, and it is expected that global business travel will recover to its pre-pandemic total of $1.4 trillion in 2024, and grow to nearly $1.8 trillion by the end of 2027,” said John.

“SMEs are the backbone of the US economy and it’s critically important, especially in economically uncertain times, that the sector keeps traveling at both home and abroad to retain staff and win new business to ensure they can survive and thrive."

“We’re driving towards 6,000 customers and 450 employees while also maintaining our incredible customer retention rate. These, along with winning significant amounts of new business, will propel us forward to our goal of $2 billion Total Transaction Value.”

Recent statistics released by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce* revealed there are 33.2 million small businesses in America, which combined, account for 99.9 percent of all US businesses. Small businesses are also credited with just under two-thirds of the new jobs created from 1995 to 2021.

“Over the next year, we’ll be strengthening our sales, customer success, and operational teams in our current three key regions of East, West, and Midwest by strategically growing our footprint of dedicated teams in our current core markets of Boston, New York City, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Orange County CA, and Denver,” John continued.

“Our Rising markets of Seattle, San Diego, DC, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Nashville, and Miami will see us moving into five regions in the next two years and we’ll continue to grow our team of strong, skilled consultants and sales professionals who are specialized in dedicated travel services of Start-Up, Mid-Market, and SME customers.

“We’ll continue to lead the way in the tech space, with all customers having access to our innovative proprietary booking platform, Melon, and we’ll also continue to expand our after hours, chat, and emergency service offering with skilled consultants available coast-to-coast. It’s an incredibly exciting time to be in the SME and travel industries right now.”

Charlene Leiss, Managing Director of the Americas for the Flight Centre Travel Group, expressed her excitement about John's appointment.

“We’re thrilled to have John return to Corporate Traveler USA, now as its new President. With his deep understanding of the industry and his passion for delivering exceptional travel experiences, we’re confident that John will steer our team towards continued success,” said Leiss.

“Brightness of future and creating the best possible culture are ingrained in our business and the fact John has decided to return some 14 years after first working for Corporate Traveler USA is testament to how good a business this is to work for.”

*U.S. Chamber of Commerce – The State of Small Business Now.