Introduction

The loyalty management market is accelerating. MarketsandMarkets projects that the sector will grow from US$12.89 billion in 2025 to US$20.36 billion by 2030 (9.6% CAGR).  Consumers now prioritise value and choice; Arrivia’s 2024 Travel Loyalty Outlook found that price/value is the top consideration for 37% of travellers when planning trips, yet only 23% of travellers use their miles or points to defray costs .  Program goals have evolved from membership growth toward profitability, with 84% of loyalty programs planning to offer new travel rewards and 84% now enabling direct travel booking on their platforms .  Meanwhile, the experiential travel market exceeds US$3.1 trillion and 74% of travellers say experiences have a moderate to massive impact on trip planning .  The opportunity for loyalty schemes lies in turning points into meaningful travel and lifestyle experiences.

TRAVLR is a white‑label travel commerce platform that powers branded travel stores for telcos, banks, fintechs and media companies.  The platform serves as the merchant of record and offers over two million hotels, hundreds of thousands of experiences, cars and flights through integrations with HBX Group, Hotelbeds, Juniper and others.  This paper outlines why TRAVLR is pursuing the loyalty sector, compares our capabilities against major loyalty technology providers, and explains how we plan to move into airline loyalty technology through gradual integration of flight content.  It is designed as an internal analysis and can be shared as a strategic white paper.

Why TRAVLR Is Uniquely Positioned

Loyalty technology is crowded, yet there is still a gap between systems that manage points and the ability to convert those points into meaningful travel experiences.  TRAVLR positions itself as the “Switzerland of travel commerce”—a neutral platform that works with any loyalty engine or brand to deliver real travel content, payments and fulfilment.  Several factors make TRAVLR uniquely placed to attack this opportunity:

1. Platform built for partners, not competitors.  Unlike loyalty engines that compete for control of member databases, TRAVLR focuses solely on the commerce layer.  It embeds travel into other ecosystems while letting partners maintain control of the loyalty ledger and customer relationship.  This neutrality makes it attractive for banks, telcos and media brands seeking to add travel without ceding customer ownership.

2. Combination of tech, travel and supplier relationships.  The platform aggregates inventory from millions of hotels, over 300 k tours and experiences, car rentals and flights .  By acting as the merchant of record, TRAVLR assumes payment, tax and compliance responsibilities.  Partners avoid negotiating contracts or building integrations across multiple suppliers; they simply plug into TRAVLR’s API and gain access to a global travel marketplace.

3. Deep customisation and branding.  TRAVLR allows partners to design a white‑label travel site that matches their brand identity.  The platform lets you modify the colour palette and typography, choose specific hotels or experiences to spotlight and manage payment options with a few clicks; changes are reflected instantly on the site .  This goes beyond “slapping on a logo” and ensures a seamless brand experience.

4. Global payment and localisation support.  Partners can offer 126+ payment types, multi‑currency pricing and multi‑lingual interfaces .  This means a loyalty program can serve members across markets without building its own payment stack.  A 2025 industry guide notes that white‑label travel portals give businesses brand control, new revenue streams and global reach through multi‑currency and multi‑language support .

5. Rapid deployment and modularity.  White‑label solutions strike a balance between customisation and speed; custom travel portals can take 12–24 months to build, but white‑label engines go live within 2–6 weeks .  TRAVLR embraces this model: partners can launch a complete travel store in weeks with minimal IT resources.  Modules for travel club (closed user group), earn & burn integration, or browser extension can be turned on as needed, supporting multi‑tiered sites and different customer segments.

These strengths make TRAVLR more than a loyalty provider—it is a travel commerce infrastructure that any loyalty platform can plug into.  In a market where non‑travel brands are rushing to offer travel rewards, neutrality and flexibility are key advantages.

Why Pursue Loyalty?

1. Consumer demand for value and flexibility.  The Arrivia report shows that rising travel costs are the biggest concern for 72% of travellers; yet they still aspire to travel and are looking for ways to reduce costs such as redeeming points (46%) or booking discounted travel through program portals (31%) .  TRAVLR’s platform lets loyalty members pay with points, cash or a mixture, providing the flexibility that travellers crave.

2. Shift in program objectives.  Loyalty program administrators are moving from simple member acquisition to driving profitability through higher tier engagement, increased spend and diversified redemption options.  Between 2021 and 2023 the proportion of programs offering direct travel booking rose from 61% to 84%, and 95% of respondents now offer travel rewards .  TRAVLR addresses this trend by enabling partners to launch travel stores in weeks rather than months.

3. Experiential travel as a differentiator.  The 2025 prediction by iSeatz notes that experiential content is emerging as the key differentiator; 74% of travellers (especially Millennials and Gen Z) prioritise experiences over cost, and loyalty programmes are expected to expand beyond traditional tours to unique combinations like VIP event access or “bravecations” .  TRAVLR’s inventory already includes more than 300 k activities and experiences, positioning us to supply programs with distinctive rewards.

4. Market growth and partner demand.  The loyalty management market’s projected growth to US$20.36 billion by 2030 underscores the commercial potential.  TRAVLR has established partnerships with major brands outside the loyalty-tech sphere, demonstrating demand for a commerce layer that can activate points in real travel.

Landscape of Loyalty Technology Providers

Epsilon (Publicis Groupe)

• Strengths:  Epsilon’s PeopleCloud suite excels at marketing, CRM, identity resolution and loyalty orchestration.  It offers real‑time personalisation and a Value‑Led Loyalty approach that predicts member needs.  The company partnered with Loylogic in April 2024 to allow seamless accrual and redemption across multiple loyalty programs; the collaboration promises personalised rewards and enables customers to earn points toward frequent flier or guest programmes, with real-time data insights improving offer relevance .

• Weaknesses:  Epsilon is not deeply integrated into travel operations (e.g., airline reservation systems) and relies on partners for inventory, payment and booking.  Integration can be complex when extending into full travel stacks.

• Use cases:  Strength in marketing personalisation, customer data platforms, cross‑channel engagement and points accrual/redemption outside core travel.  Ideal for retailers, banks and large loyalty ecosystems.

Loyalty Juggernaut (LJI, GRAVTY® Platform)

• Strengths:  GRAVTY® is a cloud‑native, API-first loyalty platform designed for real-time engagement, AI‑driven personalisation and modular scalability.  It supports dynamic earn and redemption across multiple partners and offers rapid deployment.  In May 2025, Riyadh Air selected GRAVTY® to power its next‑generation digital loyalty programme; the airline cited its ability to deliver real-time engagement, AI personalisation and seamless integration into Riyadh Air’s digital ecosystem .  LJI’s CEO emphasised that the platform aims to elevate loyalty into a strategic growth engine and that the partnership will deliver extraordinary value for guests and partners .

• Weaknesses:  As a newer entrant, LJI may lack deep integration with legacy airline systems (GDS, PSS) and may face scale or edge-case challenges.  Airlines may perceive risk in adopting a platform without a long operational track record.

• Use cases:  Suitable for airlines and digital‑first brands seeking modern loyalty ecosystems with dynamic earn/burn and real-time engagement.

  
  

Comarch (Loyalty Management – Travel Edition)

• Strengths:  A mature provider with deep travel and airline expertise.  Its Travel Edition supports complex frequent‑flyer programs (FFPs), partner accrual/redemption, promotions and retro claims.  JetBlue Airways relaunched its TrueBlue programme using Comarch’s Travel Edition; the solution includes modules for business administration (flexible accrual and redemption rules), contact centre, smart analytics and a member portal .  The implementation allowed JetBlue to support redemptions for any available seat, automatic retro claims, revenue-based point accrual and activity‑based point expiration .  Vietnam Airlines also adopted the Travel Edition (CLM 5); the carrier praised its agility in configuring program parameters, seamless integration and support for large‑scale operations .

• Weaknesses:  Comarch’s platform may lack cutting‑edge personalisation or identity‑resolution features compared with marketing‑centric vendors.  Integrations can be heavy or modular, leading to longer implementation cycles.

• Use cases:  Ideal for airlines and travel operators requiring robust FFPs, partner accrual/redemption, tier benefits and complex rules.  Also used by banks and retailers (BP, Costa Coffee, etc.).

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IBS Software (iLoyal)

• Strengths:  IBS’s iLoyal is a SaaS-based loyalty solution built for the travel industry.  The platform uses a modular architecture and open API framework to enable real-time personalisation, faster partner integration and flexible program design.  In September 2025, Emirates Skywards went live with iLoyal; the partnership was designed to modernise the programme for its 35 million members.  IBS highlighted that iLoyal is a catalyst for transforming how airlines engage with customers and noted that its modular architecture and API-first design empower operators to integrate over 100 brand partners while responding to evolving member expectations .  The platform also offers fraud prevention and compliance features.

• Weaknesses:  IBS, while strong in travel operations, may have less breadth in marketing personalisation or identity resolution compared with cross‑industry CRM vendors.  Integration with non‑travel systems may require bespoke work.

• Use cases:  Airlines, hotel groups and cruise lines seeking configurable loyalty platforms with real‑time personalisation and partner integration.

Market Dynamics, Risks and Trade‑offs

System Latency and Synchronisation

Airline and travel systems often operate on batch processes; delays can create reconciliation issues or inconsistent point balances.  Loyalty platforms must support real-time earn and burn and provide fallback strategies for failures.  GRAVTY® and iLoyal emphasise real-time personalisation ; Comarch provides automatic retro claims to address lag in point posting .

Complex Accrual and Redemption Logic

Frequent‑flyer programmes involve multi‑segment itineraries, dynamic pricing, codeshares, partner airlines, elite bonuses and retro claims.  Comarch’s Travel Edition supports any-seat redemptions and revenue-based accrual with retro claim automation .  iLoyal and GRAVTY® are designed to handle dynamic earn and redemption but may require customisation for unusual fare structures.

Partner Integration and Ecosystem Scale

Loyalty schemes increasingly integrate hotels, car rentals, activities and co‑branded cards.  The ability to onboard partners quickly via APIs is vital.  Epsilon’s partnership with Loylogic expands cross‑program redemption .  Comarch and IBS provide built‑in partner modules; GRAVTY® emphasises modular integration .  TRAVLR’s API layer connects to HBX Group’s inventory and offers merchant‑of‑record services for travel, making partner onboarding easier.

Identity, Segmentation and Personalisation

Advanced loyalty programs need unified customer profiles and AI‑driven offers.  Epsilon’s value lies in its identity graph and real-time personalisation across channels .  GRAVTY® and iLoyal incorporate AI-driven personalisation; Comarch relies more on partner marketing platforms.

Fraud, Leakage and Liability Control

Points can leak through abuse or errors.  Platforms must include fraud detection, liability management and auditing.  iLoyal highlights compliance and fraud prevention features .  Comarch offers fraud prevention as part of its suite (but not detailed in the case study).  TRAVLR manages transaction risk as the merchant of record and implements PCI‑DSS compliant payments.

Scalability and Architecture

Cloud‑native, microservices architectures enable scaling across markets.  GRAVTY® and iLoyal emphasise modular, API-first design for rapid deployment and scalability .  Comarch’s Travel Edition is robust but may be more monolithic; Epsilon is horizontally scalable but not built for travel operations.  TRAVLR’s platform is multi‑tenant and cloud hosted, enabling partners to scale quickly.

Benchmark: TRAVLR vs. Major Loyalty Tech Providers

Strategy: Focusing on Non‑Loyalty‑Tech Companies First

TRAVLR’s initial growth has come from sectors like telco, fintech, media and retail rather than from loyalty technology providers.  This deliberate choice reflects several insights:

• Untapped demand.  Many consumer‑facing brands operate membership or rewards schemes but lack sophisticated loyalty technology.  They seek to offer travel benefits but do not want to negotiate hotel contracts, manage bookings or handle travel compliance.  TRAVLR fills that gap by delivering a turnkey travel store and share of revenue.

• Proof of concept through traction.  By partnering with non loyalty tech companies, TRAVLR demonstrates the viability of its model.  These partnerships show that non‑loyalty‑tech companies can launch travel offerings quickly and generate margin without heavy investment.  Successful case studies provide credibility when approaching larger loyalty platforms.

• Avoiding direct competition.  Entering the market as a loyalty platform competitor would pit TRAVLR against incumbents like Epsilon, Comarch and IBS.  Instead, positioning as a complementary commerce layer allows TRAVLR to plug into existing loyalty ecosystems and provide value without cannibalising the core platform.

• Building a partner-friendly API model.  Focusing on brands outside the loyalty-tech space has forced TRAVLR to build flexible APIs for earn/burn and partner integration.  This readiness is essential when engaging with mature loyalty providers that expect high integration standards.

Gradual Move into the Airline Loyalty Tech Space

Step 1 – Expand Flight Content and Integrations

While TRAVLR’s platform already offers hotel and activity inventory at scale, flight content is limited to a handful of partners.  Moving into airline loyalty requires deeper connectivity to multiple GDSs and direct airline APIs.  The plan is to build a custom flight module that aggregates inventory from carriers and consolidators while enabling dynamic pricing and seat selection.  This module will support points redemption, cash+points and ancillary upsell.

Step 2 – Offer Airline-Branded Travel Stores

Once flight content is robust, TRAVLR can approach airlines that lack a white‑label travel portal.  Airlines can use TRAVLR to power “holidays” or “vacations” sites selling flight+hotel or flight+experience packages.  This provides ancillary revenue and engages members beyond flights. 

Step 3 – Integrate with Loyalty Platforms as a Redemption Engine

After establishing airline partnerships, TRAVLR can integrate its flight and non‑flight inventory with loyalty engines like Comarch, iLoyal or GRAVTY®.  The loyalty platform continues to manage the member ledger, rules and tiering, while TRAVLR handles search, booking, payment and travel fulfilment.  This mirrors the Epsilon–Loylogic partnership model, where a loyalty engine joins forces with a commerce provider to enable seamless redemption .

Step 4 – Position as the Partner of Choice for Loyalty Tech Providers

When TRAVLR has proven itself with several airlines and non‑loyalty brands, we will approach loyalty technology providers not as competitors but as value‑adding partners.  We will emphasise:

• Complementarity:  TRAVLR does not replace loyalty engines; it activates points through real travel content.  Customers still use the loyalty platform for points logic, segmentation and marketing.

• Speed and flexibility:  Integration with TRAVLR shortens deployment timelines for loyalty providers and expands their redemption catalogue.  Our multi‑tenant architecture enables them to offer travel without building or buying an OTA.

• Merchant of record capability:  TRAVLR assumes payment and compliance risk, protecting loyalty platforms and their clients.

By showcasing proven traction and a robust flight module, TRAVLR can secure strategic alliances with Epsilon, Comarch, IBS or LJI.

How TRAVLR Differentiates Itself

• Travel commerce, not loyalty orchestration.  TRAVLR is the booking layer under loyalty platforms.  It manages search, booking, payment and supplier settlement, while partners manage points and customers.  This avoids direct competition with the likes of Epsilon or Comarch.

• Comprehensive content and merchant services.  The platform offers millions of hotels and hundreds of thousands of experiences, plus flights.  TRAVLR is the merchant of record, handling taxes, refunds and support.  Loyalty platforms do not do this.

• Rapid deployment and flexibility.  Partners can launch a customised travel store in weeks with minimal IT resources.  APIs allow integration of specific content or a full site.  This agility contrasts with the long implementation cycles typical of loyalty systems.

• Data enrichment.  TRAVLR captures real-time travel intent data (searches, baskets, destinations) that can feed into a partner’s CDP.  This complements the first‑party data that loyalty systems already collect, enabling better personalisation.

• SaaS commercial model.  Fees are tied to usage and revenue.  There is no need for large upfront investment in technology or content contracts.

Conclusion

The loyalty market is entering a new phase where members expect choice, flexibility and experiential rewards.  Program administrators are shifting from simple points accrual to strategies focused on profitability, engagement and differentiated experiences.  TRAVLR sits at the intersection of travel commerce and loyalty, offering a modular platform that can instantly convert points into real travel.  By first partnering with non‑loyalty‑tech companies, TRAVLR has proven that its model drives revenue and customer engagement.

In this paper we’ve shown that TRAVLR is more than a travel portal: it is a neutral commerce engine that integrates with any loyalty platform, combines global travel supply with a merchant‑of‑record model, and provides a level of customisation and segmentation unmatched in the industry.  Its Price Beat Browser Extension is an example of innovation tailored to loyalty—it follows consumers across OTAs and surfaces better prices from the partner’s travel club, reducing leakage and making the programme top of mind.

The next phase involves building deeper flight integrations, launching airline holiday portals and working hand‑in‑hand with loyalty technology providers to become their travel redemption engine.  With the loyalty management market projected to grow at nearly 10% annually and non‑travel brands increasingly embedding travel rewards , TRAVLR’s combination of neutrality, flexibility and innovation positions it as the preferred travel partner for loyalty ecosystems.

Price Beat Browser Extension: An Always‑On Travel Buddy

Most browser extensions in the loyalty space focus on general shopping; for example, Wildfire’s white‑label platform offers shopping companions that deliver cashback rewards and coupons across tens of thousands of online stores .  Cartera (Rakuten) provides white‑label extensions for loyalty programs that remind members to activate rewards and automatically apply coupons at checkout.  These tools are valuable, but they cater to generic retail and do not address travel-specific leakage.

TRAVLR’s Price Beat Browser Extension is purpose‑built for travel.  It integrates into the consumer’s browser and operates quietly in the background.  When a user browses an online travel agency (OTA) or hotel site, the extension compares competitor pricing in real time and instantly alerts the user if a better rate is available through their loyalty partner’s travel club.  Described as an “embedded travel tool,” it captures users at the moment of intent, minimising leakage to competing OTAs and guiding them back to book within the partner’s ecosystem .  Key capabilities include:

• Real‑time competitive price alerts.  The extension continuously tracks competitor prices and surfaces savings and exclusive discounts as soon as they appear .

• Seamless redirection and higher conversions.  When a cheaper rate is found, the extension redirects the user back to the partner’s travel club with one click, reducing friction and boosting bookings .

• Leakage prevention and retention.  By following consumers as they browse travel sites, the extension reduces slippage to mainstream OTAs and keeps members within the loyalty programme .

• Always‑on and non‑intrusive.  The tool runs quietly without spamming the user’s inbox; it acts as a personal travel assistant that only intervenes when it can genuinely save money .

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Because the Price Beat Extension is white‑labelled, it can be branded for any partner and tailored to specific customer tiers.  For retailers or loyalty programmes, it serves as a travel buddy that reinforces brand awareness whenever users plan trips.  This feature is rare in the travel space and gives TRAVLR a powerful tool to differentiate from generic shopping extensions.

Deep Customisation and Segmentation

One of TRAVLR’s biggest advantages is its ability to customise every element of the travel experience for different partners and customer segments.  While many loyalty platforms offer a one‑size‑fits‑all portal, TRAVLR enables partners to:

• Tailor site design and inventory.  Partners can adjust colours and typography, select which hotels, experiences or suppliers to feature and manage payment options with just a few clicks .  Each partner’s site updates instantly, ensuring brand cohesion across different markets or tiers.

• Offer different payment and reward modes.  Programmes can run earn‑only (cash back or points on spend), burn‑only (redemption portals), hybrid earn/burn or pure travel clubs.  The platform supports 126+ payment types, multi‑currency pricing and multi‑lingual content , so partners can customise payment flows for each tier or region.

• Build multi‑tiered and closed‑user groups.  TRAVLR powers travel clubs (closed user group sites), earn‑and‑burn portals and multi‑tiered sites that display different offers for silver, gold or platinum members.  Partners can set differential discounts or point earn rates per tier, supporting complex segmentation.

• Curate experiences for specific segments.  Because the platform aggregates millions of hotels and hundreds of thousands of experiences , partners can build bespoke catalogues for premium members (e.g., luxury resorts and private tours) while offering value‑driven options to entry‑level members.  The ability to feature certain products and hide others ensures that each segment sees relevant content.

This level of customisation transforms loyalty programmes from static catalogues into dynamic, segmented marketplaces.  Partners can experiment with new earning models, create bespoke packages and adjust offers in real time without heavy IT investment.  The flexibility complements existing loyalty engines and helps programmes differentiate themselves through tailored travel experiences.