Decoding India's corporate travel sector
Market insights and traveller preferences
The Indian travel industry has been integral to India's growth narrative. Fuelled by a burgeoning population, rising per capita incomes, and an inherent curiosity to explore the world, it has thrived amidst geopolitical shifts and technological advancements.
Introduction
The introduction of Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) and Travel Management Companies (TMCs) has ushered in an era of heightened transparency, triggering fierce competition to cater to the discerning needs of business travellers.
Our report aims to provide a comprehensive view of the business travel market in India. We delve into the opportunities, growth drivers, industry dynamics and evolving expectations of Indian corporate travellers. The report additionally explores the factors influencing corporate travel spending and identifies emerging innovations that have the potential to disrupt the market. We have also provided recommendations to help corporates optimise their travel management
Industries such as IT services, BFSI (banking, financial services, and insurance), engineering, aviation, oil and gas, pharma, diversified, metals, and FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) and auto emerged as the top contributors to travel expenditure. These industries collectively represent 86 percent 83 of the total travel spend of the top 100 firms. Industries allocating over 1 percent of their net income to corporate travel include IT services, pharma, aviation, and engineering.
Corporate travel anchors: Analysing industries driving travel demand
The Indian travel industry is expected to continue its upsurge and grow at ~9 percent CAGR to US$97 billion104 (in constant currency terms) by FY2030, the corporate travel segment is expected to contribute around US$18–23 billion (in constant currency terms), with base case estimated to be around US$20.8 billion, indicating a CAGR growth of ~10.1 percent
Outlook ahead
The next few decades hold the promise of significant growth for India. If tapped properly, the travel sector in India can reach its potential by significantly contributing about US$3 trillion to India’s GDP by 2047.
Key players in alternate channels (OTAs, TMCs, etc.) will look to increase their customer base, trying to reach the underserved SME segment as well as provide value-added services to cater to the complex travel needs of large enterprises. Finally, the emerging start-up ecosystem will have to use emerging technologies, such as Generative AI, AI/ML and IOT 4.0, among others, to support the complex needs of travellers, suppliers, travel managers, and TMCs. This will enable the corporate travel segment to significantly contribute to the growth of the overall travel and tourism sector.
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