Since the first departure of BILLA Reisen customers to Crete and Mallorca in 1999, not only has a lot happened in terms of travelling itself, but the tour operator has also developed considerably. Today, as part of DERTOUR Austria, BILLA Reisen is number two on the Austrian travel market. To mark its 25th anniversary, we take stock - together with managing director Martin Fast.
The starting signal was given in the spring of 1999, when the first passengers of the newly founded "ITS Billa Reisen" took off on holiday to Crete and Mallorca. A direct travel marketer publishing catalogues in supermarkets - an absolute novelty and a big stir in the market.
And so it started in 1999
Martin Fast is now managing directors at the tour operator, and he was already on board when "ITS Billa Reisen" was founded. The company started the summer season with a catalogue for air travel, followed by car holidays in the winter of 1999/2000, focusing on inexpensive, high-performance holiday offers with 3- and 4-star hotels.
"Many people didn't believe that there was room for a different type of marketing alongside traditional travel agency sales. In the beginning, we had to fight for every seat on the aircraft. But our success soon proved us legal and we were able to work with very good prices on the market. The fact that we displayed our catalogues in the BILLA stores was also an absolute novelty and attracted a lot of attention," recalls Martin Fast.
The ambitious goal at the start of BILLA Reisen: 300 million schillings in revenue. Today, the company (DERTOUR Austria) achieves annual revenues of just under 300 million euros.
An absolute novelty in Austria at the time: the catalogues were available in BILLA stores.
First travel destinations - even then at a low price
"Our top destinations were all in the Mediterranean region. We didn't offer long-haul holidays at the beginning, but we did offer car holidays with your own journey within Austria, to Italy, Croatia and Slovenia. We travelled to Greece, Bulgaria, Tunisia, Turkey and the Spanish islands. These are still some of the most popular holiday destinations for BILLA Reisen today," says the current managing director of DERTOUR Austria GmbH, to which the BILLA Reisen brand belongs.
Prices were also a major issue in 1999: "BILLA Reisen was and is always attractively priced. That was already the idea when the company was founded, which is why there was already a low price guarantee. We were and still are able to score additional points with great early booking offers. The exception was the last few years: it was difficult to plan holidays during the pandemic, so last-minute offers were more popular. Today, BILLA Reisen goes one step further and offers a low price guarantee on over 10,000 holiday offers - for flight packages, cruises and round trips," explains Fast.
The special service from 1999: German-speaking travel guides and support that starts at the airport.
Customer perception then and now
Unlike today, online booking was hardly an issue in 1999; our buying habits have changed dramatically as a result of digitalisation. Martin Fast explains: "In 1999, the most important way to go on holiday was to go to a travel agency. We were still represented there until 2023, but today we are only a direct tour operator with BILLA Reisen. This allows us to offer our customers the full portfolio online at favourable prices, but we are still available in the background with top customer service to answer any questions. Even though we are now all used to using our smartphones when it comes to planning holidays in foreign countries, we still prefer to deal with people in person. Our customers honour this and over 80 percent of them are happy to recommend us today."
DERTOUR Austria started with 14 colleagues in 1999 and now has 75.
While the majority of bookings in 1999 were made by telephone, fax or through travel agencies, today 80 percent of bookings are made online, with only around 20 percent of customers using the BILLA Reisen call centre. During the pandemic, the ratio was the other way round and was due to the higher consulting effort.
Travel trends then and now
The most important holiday destination for BILLA Reisen was and is the Mediterranean region. Even the first flight to Crete set the tone here: Greece is and was one of the most important holiday destinations for the company. The full diversity of the Aegean is on offer here: from unspoilt islands such as Thassos to the classics of Crete and Rhodes, there are hundreds of hotels and resorts to suit every taste and budget.
Destinations that were already popular in 1999 are still popular today: Spain, Tunisia, Cyprus. These were gradually joined by Turkey and Egypt as well as long-haul destinations such as the USA, Mexico, Mauritius, the Dominican Republic and, in recent years, increasingly the Maldives and the United Arab Emirates.
There have been changes in travel behaviour during the pandemic: The Maldives became one of the main travel destinations - partly due to its perfect pandemic management - and a year-round destination. Countries such as Thailand and the USA had severe travel restrictions and are only slowly returning to the list of top travel destinations.
The most popular destinations in summer 2024: Greece, Maldives, Turkey, Spain, Tunisia, Mauritius, Thailand, Egypt, Dominican Republic, Cyprus, United Arab Emirates
Martin Fast © DERTOUR Austria/Robert Polster
one: Mr Fast, the 25th anniversary of BILLA Reisen is certainly particularly emotional for you - after all, you've been with us from the very beginning. How does that feel?
Martin Fast: It feels very good and it's been a great journey so far! Twenty-five years ago, I would never have imagined how it would all develop and that I would still be involved a quarter of a century later. But success is motivating and you can achieve a lot with a great product and a great company. The hard work has paid off and I am proud of my wonderful team that supports me and challenges me time and time again. The fact that we have such good results today is not least down to this: teamwork makes the dream work!
one: Your personal review of 25 years of BILLA Reisen: What is your highlight?
Martin Fast: There are several: On the one hand, there was the start, which I experienced as the very first employee. I still remember exactly when the first guests travelled to our two destinations Crete and Mallorca: We personally saw them off on holiday at the airport. I am also proud of the fact that we helped to develop destinations that were not in the focus of ITS at the time - the island of Zakynthos, for example. And more recently, it was the change of business model, namely positioning BILLA Reisen as a pure direct marketer, that was very successful.
one: Which event has had the biggest impact on you?
Martin Fast: Certainly the pandemic and, above all, the first lockdown that was imposed on Austria on 16 March 2020. But also 9/11, which changed the travel industry forever.
one: If you compare the German and Austrian travel markets: What is your summary?
Martin Fast: The ratio is 1:10 - literally. We are smaller, more cosy. But I would say that the travel behaviour is similar, the destination behaviour is different. Greece has been a hit with BILLA Reisen since 1999. The Austrian and Greek souls seem to have a special bond.
one: Your outlook for the next 25 years: where will the journey take you - in tourism in general, and for BILLA Reisen in particular?
Martin Fast: Sustainability will influence our business activities as part of economic necessity. But this also harbours many opportunities. I still see great growth potential for BILLA Reisen. With the REWE retail company BILLA in particular, we have a very well-known and solid "mother" and will be able to leverage many synergies.