TTE 2017: New Comtec parent Inspiretec to tout group’s full service offer

Inspiretec, the new masterbrand for the group of Cardiff-based technology companies including Comtec, is giving it an advantage when tendering for work, its founder claims. Continue reading →

Inspiretec, the new masterbrand for the group of Cardiff-based technology companies including Comtec, is giving it an advantage when tendering for work, its founder claims.

Simon Powell, the Comtec founder who sold the business and then bought it back two years ago, brought Eysys, Sequence and Clarius under the single brand last November at WTM.

The new full-service technology solution will be showcased at Travel Technology Europe in February, Powell saying he expects it will attract more clients.

“We’re already seeing in tender processes that this gives us a real differential,” said Powell. “We believe clients will like the end-to-end solution but each module can be licensed individually still.”

Powell said although all four firms will provide a full solution and work closely together sharing resources, clients will be able to take individual technology modules.

He said: “What this means is that we now have a full-service travel technology business where we’re putting our clients’ customers first during the entire booking process – from the creative all the way through to the back end transactional engine.”

Comtec currently powers established reservations systems, Eysys offers CRM technology and predictive personalisation, Sequence, which Powell acquired in October last year, designs and creatives websites, and Clarius provides financial services and management information.

Powell, Inspiretec chief executive, said: “Previously, we offered a reservation platform which consultants went straight into but now they can use CRM to start the journey, so if a repeat customer has been looking at availability on a client’s website or rich content, the consultant will now know what a client has been doing/searching before they make the call.”

He added most of the firm’s 110 staff would still be focused on delivering a specific module but said some functions would now operate across all four.

“We will have one support desk and one sales and account management team, led by group sales and marketing director Richard Baker, formerly managing director of Sequence,” Powell said.

Inspiretec’s turnover, with the four businesses combined would be in excess of £9 million, compared to Comtec’s £4.5 million. The business will continue to be run from Cardiff.