CEO Monthly August 2017

24 CEO MONTHLY / AUGUST 2017 , Cars gave me the confidence to go it alone and set up my own company, drawing on the experiences I had had both at Worldwide Cars and Holiday Autos.” Proud of the customer service that Affordable Car Hire provides, Angela details the procedure that the firm undertakes when approaching a new project. She explains how she ensures that staff get it right from the start and that the outcome meets the needs of everyone involved. Offering incentives in the travel trade is one way that the company guarantees it can sell its products. The live chat system implemented by Affordable ensures that staff are able to help with any queries at all times and these calls are recorded and used to train staff should any similar questions arise again. Maintaining client relationships is vital to Affordable and is one of the incentives as to why the company provide such great customer service. “Just as we aim to offer the full transparency of a quality product, I aim to be fully transparent with new clients – in our case travel agents and car rental suppliers- about what they are looking to achieve and how we can help them do that. The travel trade is Affordable Car Hire has become the UK’s leading car rental broker specialising in the B2B sector. We spoke to CEO, Angela Day to find out more about the company and also herself with regard to her awards - Automotive Hire CEO of the Year – UK and Best Woman-Owned Car Rental Company – UK. From A to B at a Price You Can Afford Affordable Car Hire came from humble beginnings. CEO Angela Day talks us through how the company was started and how it has become the successful company that it is today, listing the sacrifices that were made and how far the firm has spread globally. Angela also talks about the quality at the firm, both internally and externally as well as the company’s focus and where its loyalties lie. “In 2004, I started Affordable Car Hire from our garage, having re-mortgaged our house, cashed in our savings, sold our car and extended our credit cards. I joined forces with my husband James Moore – now chairman – and a small team and Affordable Car Hire was created. The concept was quite simple – offer the full transparency of a quality product with a quality plus one service. “It is not often than we really have a chance to look back and think about how far we have come, but we now work with over 500 car rental partners in 192 countries and across more than 30,000 worldwide locations. We have a multilingual website, which we have recently launched in Australia, New Zealand, UAE and appointed global sales agents in Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark. We work with the highest quality car rental companies, delivering a premium service with affordable prices at all times. Angela tells us how it feels to win these awards and what she attributes to her success. She also predicts what difference winning the awards will make in terms of future business for her company. A lot of business may come through word of mouth and so Angela is delighted at winning the award as it may give prospective clients the push they need to come and work with the firm. “I’m delighted and humbled to receive this award. We are all so focused on the day-to-day aspects of running Affordable Car Hire and working closely with our partners that it’s nice to look up now and then and see that your hard work is being recognised. The award is a clear validation that we are offering a good product and excellent customer service, and it will hopefully give new clients the confidence they need to work with us.” Having started working in travel, Angela talks us through her previous roles and how she came to achieve her position as CEO. We asked her whether she draws on her past experiences when making decisions in her current role. Angela is very complimentary of the time she spent as a sales executive at a previous company and working her way up, stating that this experience gave her the confidence to start up her own company. “I started working in travel in 1987 as a trainee reservations consultant for P&O Travel. I was there for quite a few years, developing the ‘down under’ club, leaning how to do all the back-to- back ticketing, using Galileo, and it was a great way to start. From there I went to Holiday Autos in 1992 starting out as a Sales Executive, working my way up to Sales Manager before joining Worldwide Cars in 1998 after taking a year out to travel. “Before eventually becoming Deputy Managing Director, I was at Worldwide Cars for six years and helped to build the business from five locations to 4000, and boosting turnover from £90,000 a year to £12m. My dedication at Worldwide Cars helped me to become recognised as a leading authority in the industry. The years I spent at Worldwide 1707CE03