Business travel has changed considerably since the pandemic with many opting to travel only when necessary to save money.
For the retail industry, there have been a number of particular challenges which have made it difficult to meet profit targets. Whether that’s the cost of living crisis to the issues that have arisen as a result of Brexit, the goalposts are constantly shifting back and forth.
For retail businesses looking to travel, smarter solutions within the world of technology are proving effective in streamlining processes and cutting costs. This guide will explore how business travel is changing and how it benefits from the technological advancements that have increased rapidly in recent years.
What are the pain points of corporate travel in 2025?
There are some common pain points found amongst all professionals who travel beyond just those in retail. Identifying these pain points is the first step to understanding what needs to change and how smart solutions improve business travel for those who do it regularly.
A recent survey found that participants reported the biggest pain point of all was the cost of travel. Of course, that’s a common problem for many who travel whether it be for business or pleasure. Travel that is too expensive often prices out those employees who have a limited travel budget to work with.
The same survey found that employee traveler tracking proved difficult without the right software in place, as well as a lack of data and reporting. Having access to travel data is helpful in understanding where potential savings are made and how to improve the experience of the traveler in question.
For retail professionals, travel might be crucial for those who are buyers or responsible for sourcing partnerships and collaborations. Streamlining travel processes and making them more affordable, helps retailers deliver more quality to their customers while also using the profits to leverage the business for further success.
Five smart solutions for retail professionals traveling for business
So what smart solutions are available for retail professionals to use when traveling for business? Whether they’re responsible themselves for booking their own travel, or they have travel managers that do it for them, here are five smart solutions worth implementing into your business travel strategy.
Outsourcing to a business travel agency
One of the easy routes to take as a retail professional looking to make their travel arrangements more efficient is to outsource the workload. For a lot of businesses, this makes more sense than having in-house staff taking on the hefty task. When there are multiple staff requiring travel, a staff member who already has their own workload might find it challenging to take on alone.
With a business travel agency, all of the bookings, whether it be flights or accommodation, are handled via an intuitive platform. The agency negotiates all of the deals to get the best options at a lower rate.
There’s also the flexibility of support, which is usually offered 24/7, something that many businesses wouldn’t be able to do. That comes in handy if an employee suddenly has a flight cancellation or is stranded at their accommodation because the private transfer didn’t show up.
As well as the expertise available, there are often additional services that come with business travel agencies too, so there’s plenty on offer.
Seamless booking systems
Whether it’s attending global meetings with investors, meeting up with suppliers, or heading up a photo shoot in Paris, the logistics of getting your employees there is often a nightmare.
Organizing travel arrangements is challenging and made even more so when booking multiple flights, checking the availability of hotels individually, and all while trying to find the best deals to save the business money.
However, booking all of the travel necessities is made a lot easier thanks to platforms and applications that house all of your booking needs under one roof. Seamless booking systems allow you to pull flight information from several airlines at once to filter your requirements through a database of hotels and accommodations.
Having a booking system that does everything in one place, makes it a lot more manageable for those responsible for doing it all. Not only that but when it comes to last-minute retail events halfway across the world, having a booking system that does it all in one fell swoop, is definitely more beneficial than scrambling across multiple tabs on your browser.
Data-driven insights for improved travel decision-making
Data is a powerful asset for business travel and for retailers, the data received is highly beneficial for understanding where money is spent and how it could be used in ways to make travel better for those doing the traveling.
With high-quality, consistent data, travel managers within the business are able to make more strategic and informed decisions based on any trends and patterns appearing throughout the year.
There are many other benefits of data for the purpose of booking business travel. These include:
- Improves compliance with travel policies
- Increase employee satisfaction when traveling
- Accuracy improves within travel budgets
- Helps to save money by preventing costly mistakes
- Identifies optimal vendors for your business needs
As a retail business, data provides you with a competitive advantage and enables those responsible, to adjust the travel policy accordingly so that it better aligns with the company’s objectives for travel.
Within an industry that has struggled enough through the pandemic, the cost of living, and the complexities that have arisen from Brexit, data proves to be a lifeline for making business travel more affordable and effective.
Climate conscious travel
As many retail professionals will know, the fashion industry contributes a hefty amount of carbon emissions, as well as a lot of waste. For retail companies, it’s imperative that it does everything possible to offset their carbon footprint however they can.
There are now more organizations out there that are helping professionals like those in retail, to make better decisions with their travel arrangements. By designing carbon-neutral trips, smart technology solutions like artificial intelligence are able to make business travel more eco-conscious and in some ways, sustainably driven.
Climate-conscious travel enables retail professionals to travel while minimizing their carbon impact. From choosing greener transport to eco-friendly accommodations, technology is providing professionals with easier access to it all.
You’ve got great organizations like Anthesis, who help clients in their development of sustainable travel policies and in-depth insights into travel emissions in general. All of this is helpful for retail professionals to make more eco-conscious choices in their travel arrangements.
Travel expense applications
A lot of the excessive costs for business travel are through the expenses. With retail businesses needing to find the balance between traveling but doing so in a budget-friendly way, travel expense applications are crucial to use.
While traditionally, they may have been recorded via spreadsheets or once the travelers in question returned with their receipts, a lot of these expenses are recorded online nowadays.
With applications like Expensify or Zoho Expense, these travel expense options are great for managing everyone’s expenses, enabling employees to upload their own expenses quickly and without hassle via the platform.
One of the most valuable features within a business travel expense app is the automated expense tracking. This helps capture and categorize expenses automatically as well as offering receipt scanning for accuracy and tax purposes.
How to make business travel more affordable for retail professionals
There are a few ways to make your retail business travel more affordable. That means smaller businesses with limited budgets are able to make use of the opportunities that come from business travel.
Use data for saving money
Never underestimate the power that data has when it comes to growing the business and making more meaningful decisions. Use the data you have to save money and to prevent costly mistakes from happening.
Create a travel policy that’s realistic and easy to understand
For travel policies, it’s important to make it easy to understand so that every employee knows the parameters that have been set. Use simple language rather than complicated jargon and organize the policy so that employees are able to scan it with ease.
Provide examples and scenarios where applicable to showcase the policy in action and don’t forget to update the policy regularly where it’s needed.
Make use of applications to streamline processes
There are a wealth of applications and tools available for businesses to use across the board and the same goes for business travel too. To streamline travel management processes as well as saving on resources, apps are a great way to do all that and more.
Limit who gets to travel within the company
There will likely be few people that have to travel for the business, so if you’re really struggling for costs, then limit who gets to travel within the company. Those who are bringing in the money or making influential decisions for the growth of the business should be the ones traveling.
Make use of smart solutions for your business travel in 2025
For retail professionals, the use of smart solutions within business travel helps to save time, and money and improves the experience that employees have while traveling the world. Be sure to implement advanced processes and technology for business travel in 2025 and see the difference it makes.
