When we talk to TMCs about NDC, the name Atriis is on everyone’s lips. These travel tech pros from the Israeli city of Tiberias seem to be doing a lot right. And now there is also a bidirectional profile data interface between Umbrella and Atriis.
We spoke to the company’s CEO Alon Meisels to find out more about the technology and vision that drive Atriis’ impressive growth.
It is both! Our online booking tool and the agent desktop are just two different frontends to the same backend. This concept enables legacy TMCs to transform into modern digital TMCs.
What is the main problem that you solve for a TMC?
Atriis’ mission is to provide the TMC and its corporate clients with the largest business travel inventory possible. Atriis.GTP is a meta aggregator. We combine content of other aggregators with direct content from providers and enable the TMC to operate dynamic business rules on it.
You keep mentioning the term “OTMC”. What is that?
OTMC stands for Online TMC. I strongly believe that absolutely every TMC needs to become a provider of digital services – and quickly so. The main threat to the legacy TMCs comes from companies like TripActions and Travel Perk.
Both are well funded, next generation digital TMCs. What is so different about these new kinds of TMCs is that they offer travel services platform based on advanced technology. They are raising big money in order to do exactly what Atriis.GTP already does.
Atriis enables each TMC to become a next generation TMC without having to invest any money.
How will Atriis GTP integrate into a TMC’s existing travel technology?
We understand well how complex TMC tech eco-systems are. To evolve into an OTMC, you must have an open system which integrates with other tech providers through set of standard APIs.
Atriis has of course a full integration with Umbrella profiles and Midoco’s mid-office.
Clean and comprehensive profiles are absolutely essential for consistent and high-quality service, as well as for the automation behind it. Umbrella is far ahead of other solutions, both functionally and conceptually. It is a system-agnostic profile tool that is also technologically cutting-edge.
How and when was Atriis founded?
Originally, Atriis was a spin-off of Amsalem Travel, a leading global TMC based in Israel. In its current form, Atriis was created in 2013 as a joint venture of Amsalem and Portman Travel in the UK.
Due to our origins, we are very well aware of the pain points and real needs of TMCs.
Who are your clients?
We are very well represented in the UK and Ireland. Our clients include the largest Irish travel agency, Clubtravel, and Grey Dawes in England as well as members of the Focus Advantage Travel partnership. We have also built a solid sales network in other European markets, the US and Australia.
Among the most exciting projects for Atriis is the creation of a central sales platform for Lufthansa City Center International called Lucy.
Please tell us more about Tiberias, where you come from.
Tiberias is situated in northern Israel on the Sea of Galilee. We have a lot of history there. The city is a holy place for both Christians and Jews.
The company Amsalem is deeply rooted here and therefore, the majority of our employees work in Tiberias. But we also have an offshoot in Tel Aviv to be closer to relevant corporate clients.
What has been your most impressive travel experience to date?
That was an unbelievable, wonderful trip with off-road Jeeps in Turkey. For eight days, we travelled off main roads from Mersin on the south coast to Cappadocia and then to Ankara.
Alon, thank you so much for your time and insight!