By Olukayode Kolawole
Jumia Travel Nigeria has celebrated its 3rd year of doing business in the country and also marked the second edition of its awards ceremony at Intercontinental Hotel, Victoria Island today.
A total of 28 Lagos hotels were awarded under five categories namely, Customer Choice, Best Partner Hotel, Best Hotel Partner, Booking Award, and Rising Star Award.
“These hotel awards,” said Kushal Dutta, Jumia Travel Nigeria managing director while explaining the rationale for the awards, “celebrate greatest achievements and relationships that not only set the awardees apart, but also strive to create better service and experience for the guests. The objective is to appreciate outstanding performers while creating a dynamic platform for players to meet and interact.”
Some of the winners of the Customer Choice Award included, Ikoyi Fairview Apartments; Apartment Royale Hotel & Suites; Jeromes Gardens & Suites; Bluespring Hotel; and Epe Resort. Winners of other categories included Ibis Hotel Ikeja; Park Inn by Radisson; Fahrenheit Loft; Eko Hotel & Suites; and Cumberland Hotel.
Speaking on the performance of the company in the last 11 months, Dutta stated that investment in world-class technology that has improved customers’ experience on the company’s portal has been one of the greatest achievements recorded so far.
He made reference to the Web Progressive App (WPA) technology developed by the company which makes customers spend less time searching their hotels of choice.
The technology, according to him, was showcased by Google at the Web Development event recently. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWGU4qLtHEw&feature=youtu.be&t=17101.
“Our monthly traffic grew from 93,000 to 650,000 making Jumia Travel the largest online travel agency in the country,” he revealed.
In the last three years, Jumia Travel has provided an online platform for local hotels, ensuring that both small boutique properties as well as privately owned residences can now enjoy fair display and online presence as with global chains and renowned brands.
Paving and supporting the digitization process of hotels and the adoption of e-commerce has also been at the forefront of objectives set by the company, with 50 percent of its hotel partners making their online debut via the platform.
Among innovative solutions launched by Jumia Travel include WEX virtual payment (a solution which allows hotels to easily receive payment from guests), various mobile-based payments, progressive web extranet, Live Chat, local languages and around-the-clock customer service.
This year marked the third anniversary of Jumia Travel, and the second edition of the company sponsored awards. The event also marks the launch of the ongoing legendary Black Friday sale, which as Kushal explained comes early this year, to ensure travellers are able to make their holiday bookings without the last minute rush.
Olukayode Kolawole is a Head of PR & Marketing at Jumia Travel NG.
Aduragbemi Omiyale