In this exclusive interaction with TTJ, Thomas Drechsler, COO Tourism, AVIAREPS, shares how the company is deepening its footprint in India and globally through innovation, diversification, and strategic expansion. From representing top US destinations to tapping into cruise tourism and leveraging digital platforms, AVIAREPS is aligning its global network to meet the evolving demands of source markets like India with agility and vision.
As India emerges as one of the world’s fastest-growing outbound markets, AVIAREPS is sharpening its focus on building deeper trade ties, creating tailored campaigns, and identifying niche opportunities. The company’s India office is now playing a pivotal role in translating global strategies into local success stories.
Strengthening the India Connect
AVIAREPS has long maintained a strong presence in India, recognising it as a key growth market. Over the years, the company has steadily expanded its role, from representing airlines, destinations, luxury hotel brands, attractions, shopping outlets, and car rentals to evolving into a full-service sales, marketing, and PR hub. Today, the AVIAREPS India office bridges global clients with Indian trade and travellers through a robust, multi-channel strategy.
The team leads integrated campaigns that combine influencer marketing, FIT, and MICE outreach, targeted sales initiatives, media engagement, and digital storytelling. As an extension of its destination clients, AVIAREPS India executes localised branding strategies tailored to India’s fast-growing outbound market, which is projected to become the world’s fifth-largest by 2027.
“We are very proud of the success our India office achieves year after year, not just in terms of growing our client portfolio, but also through diversification and expansion into new business verticals,” said Drechsler.
Setting the Stage for New Tourism Collaborations
At AVIAREPS India, the team has consistently strengthened its presence in the US travel segment through longstanding representation of the Utah Office of Tourism and an ongoing collaboration with the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau. Beyond these anchor partnerships, the India team is actively engaged in projects with other S. states that have shown growing interest in the Indian outbound market.
When asked about upcoming partnerships or destination representations in the pipeline, Drechsler shared, “While no additional US destination mandates have been officially disclosed yet, our ongoing engagement in trade shows, roadshows, B2B missions, influencer collaborations, and consumer activations reflects a clear intent to expand our US destination portfolio in India. With AVIAREPS’ global footprint, including representation of Brand USA, New York City Tourism & Conventions, Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority, and multiple state tourism boards, AVIAREPS India is ideally positioned to identify and capitalise on emerging US destination partnerships, ensuring that we continue to bring new opportunities and experiences to Indian travel trade and consumers.”
Scaling Global Presence
AVIAREPS currently operates 76 of its own offices across 71 countries, with an ambitious goal of surpassing 100 offices globally by 2030. The company has long maintained a strong footprint with US clients, representing major names such as Avis Budget Car Rental, Marriott Hotels, and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, and leading US destinations like Brand USA, Visit California, Visit Florida, Visit Orlando, New York City Tourism + Conventions, and the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority.
Many of these clients are represented across multiple markets. For example, AVIAREPS holds a global mandate for Visit Orlando, representing the destination across LATAM and Europe, and is currently supporting its expansion into new source markets in the Asia-Pacific region.
“When I started developing the tourism vertical at AVIAREPS, I had the pleasure of travelling across Europe with Fred Dixon, now President and CEO of Brand USA, and supporting him and NYC & Company (today New York City Tourism + Conventions) in establishing their first international representation offices. We are most proud when we grow alongside our clients, and our global network of owned offices is our key differentiator in making that growth possible,” informed Drechsler.
Cruising Ahead into India’s Untapped Cruise Market
AVIAREPS has recently expanded its global service portfolio with a strategic focus on the cruise segment, including the appointment of a dedicated Global Head of Cruise. This move reflects the company’s broader vision to support every sector of the travel ecosystem, from aviation and destination marketing to hospitality and now, more actively than ever, cruise tourism.
“The expansion of our cruise division is a natural extension of AVIAREPS’ broader tourism strategy. Appointing a Global Head of Cruise allows us to bring more focus, structure, and a global approach to this segment,” said Drechsler.
As cruise tourism enters a new phase of global growth, AVIAREPS sees significant potential in emerging markets, such as India. With more ships entering service and itineraries becoming increasingly diverse, India’s growing outbound travel market, especially among younger, experience-seeking travellers and multi-generational families, presents a promising opportunity for cruise operators.
The company also sees potential for regional cruise development closer to home, offering Indian travellers both international and domestic cruising options. “With our strong local presence in India and global cruise expertise, we are well-positioned to connect cruise lines with the Indian market in a strategic and targeted way. Our experience in trade education, marketing, media partnerships, and trade fair representation further reinforces our commitment to helping our tourism partners grow globally,” added Drechsler.
Reinforcing Commitment to India
As COO of AVIAREPS’ global tourism business, Drechsler emphasises the company’s long-standing commitment to India and its dynamic outbound market. With over 15 years of presence in the country, AVIAREPS was the first tourism representation company to establish offices across the BRIC nations. Today, the India operation alone employs more than 50 professionals, contributing to a global workforce of nearly 1,000.
“India is a growing success story for us, and I cannot thank our General Manager, Ellona Pereira, enough for her outstanding leadership in scaling our India operations year after year,” mentioned Drechsler.
AVIAREPS is expanding not just in size but also through innovation. A key strategic asset is the company’s proprietary AVIAREPS Ecosystem, a digital benchmarking and engagement platform that enables clients to connect with the global travel trade at any time, utilising a suite of efficient and data-driven tools. This platform has become especially useful for long-haul destinations like the US and Europe, looking to “test the waters” and access India in a scalable, cost-effective manner.
As AVIAREPS continues to diversify its portfolio by tapping into high-potential verticals such as cruise tourism, food and beverage, and mobility, the company sees significant long-term opportunity in India across these segments and is positioning itself as a strategic growth enabler.
