Monday, October 19, 2009

Gnome Speaks: Sam Gilliland Interviewed in Dallas News

With Travelocity private and execs being very quiet of late, is has proven harder and harder to find out what is going on at the land of the gnome. The Dallas News has a two part interview from Sabre Holdings CEO Sam Gilliland. Highlights from the interview are:
  • On sales to forecast: "...in terms of our planning we've come out basically even" - meaning leisure travel sales growth has offsett steeper declines in corporate travel;
  • On marketing: "...I'm imagining we'll spend up" - meaning that he doesn't have to disclose how much he spends on marketing but will tell us that he is spending more than last year;
  • On 2010 plans: "We're investing a lot in the hotel sector" - meaning that the airline sales business continues to be only borderline profitable
  • On private vs public future (ie IPO): "It will depend a lot on where the market is and where the economy is, but I do also think that we'll be looking for revenue growth before we do it," - means no timetable or immediate plans
thanks to B Tal over at flickr for the gnome shot

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Travelocity is supporting the declining Sabre IT side which is loosing business everywhere to Amadeus.