cheapflights.co.uk

In this, one of the hottest sectors of the internet Cheapflights are the leading comparison sites for cheap flights and travel deals in the UK and its Cheapflights.com site is carving out a respectable leading position in the US.

We caught up with their CEO David Soskin, to find out more about him and his company.

Company name: Cheapflights Limited

Websites:

www.cheapflights.co.uk

www.cheapholidaydeals.co.uk

www.cheapaccommodation.com

www.cheapflights.com

Your company / website vision statement / goal:

To be the No. 1 independent travel price comparison guide in the UK and other territories the company targets; to provide the easiest and fastest navigation for consumers on our sites to provide the broadest range of up-to-date choice and comparison on our sites; to provide the cheapest and most cost effective advertising for the travel industry.

What you sell / services you offer (brief description of your company):

Founded in 1996, and profitable since launch, Cheapflights.co.uk pioneered the travel price comparison model in the U.K. Each day, Cheapflights displays over one million fares on flights, holidays, short breaks and accommodation, from over 700 travel partners. This makes Cheapflights the most comprehensive directory of travel deals available and a natural starting point for travel.

Leading online measurement company Hitwise describes Cheapflights.co.uk as ‘the UK’s favorite travel comparison site’; and the Company’s unique user numbers support this, reaching over 2,000,000 unique users in August 2004 (source: WebTrends).

The company estimates that it will generate travel product sales of over £525 million for its more than 700 UK partners this year. And these advertisers read like a Who’s Who of the travel world – ranging from British Airways, Thomson and Lastminute.com to specialist operators like Barwell Travel, Santaland and Serenity Holidays.

Additionally, Cheapflights is one of the few British Internet Companies successfully to establish an operation in the USA with Cheapflights.com.

Launched in May 2003, it is already in the top 25 US travel sites (source: Hitwise USA, Travel Agents Category) and heading for similar popularity.

The company also operates the highly successful global accommodation website Cheapaccommodation.com and launched a similar site for the package holiday market – Cheapholidaydeals.co.uk – in January 2004. Cheapholidaydeals, the only major UK internet travel site to launching 2004, won the WebUser Gold Award and was runner-up in the travel category for New Media Age effectiveness awards.

In 2004 Cheapflights won The National Business Award, South East Region, for the “best growth strategy” category. Cheapflights was also included in The Sunday Times Microsoft 100 League of UK Fastest Growing Technology Companies.

Have you always wanted to run your own business? what were some of your previous jobs / companies?

Yes …

Commenced with Chemical Bank, Boston Consulting Group; Bain & Co and onto Redland PLC (a FTSE 100 company) as Director of Corporate Planning and Business Development (1984-1989).

Was then a Co-Founder, Chairman and MD of one of the fastest growing and profitable 1990’s companies, Asquith Court Schools Ltd – the market leader in nursery and independent day school education provision (1989 – 2001). In 1995, David’s entrepreneurial achievements were honored by the European Foundation for Entrepreneurial Research when he was named as one of Europe’s 500 most dynamic entrepreneurs. He became a non-executive director of Asquith Court in 1994 and remained on the board until the company’s $100 million sale to West Deutsche Landesbank Private Equity in 2001. During this time (1991) he also co-coordinated the White Rose Television bid for the Yorkshire Television Franchise which, apart from the incumbent, was the only other bid to pass the ITC ‘quality threshold’ test.

In 1994 David was appointed to the Prime Minister’s Policy Unit, 10 Downing Street, where he remained until 1997, developing domestic policies for Her Majesty’s Government. In 1997, he joined ABN Amro Corporate Finance as Global Head of Mergers and Acquisitions within the media sector.

Have you got any qualifications? Please tell me about yourself academically.

David Soskin, Senior Scholar at St. Pauls School, graduated from Magdalen College Oxford (First Class Honors in Modern History, President of the Oxford Union) and an MBA from the Harvard

Business School (Harkenss Fellow). Resident Tutor, Lowell House, Harvard University.

How / when did the idea of your website / company come about?

When working at ABN Amro, I was approached to see if I would be interested in Cheapflights which had been founded by John Hatt, the much respected Travel Editor of Harpers & Queen. The business model was so unique and unusual I had it checked out by Spectrum, a leading internet consultancy, who came to the conclusion that John had found a “killer application” for the internet in using it for travel advertising rather than as a booking engine as everybody else was doing. I liked it so much I bought the company with other private investors.

If you could give readers of this book one piece of advice, what would it be?

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