British Airways Gives NY Area Entrepreneurs Opportunity of a Lifetime

Close to 300 New York City area business owners and entrepreneurs will fly to London and points beyond today courtesy of British Airways as part of the airline's "Face-to-Face" campaign. Boris Johnson, Mayor of London bade the winners of the special flight farewell during an address at JFK International Airport where he underscored the importance of revitalizing the economy through in-person meetings.

The Mayor was joined by airline representatives at a ceremony marking the inaugural flight of this campaign; future flights are scheduled to depart from Los Angeles and Chicago this Fall.

"We strongly believe that face-to-face meetings are crucial for businesses to remain competitive. This campaign represents a commitment to rewarding and stimulating entrepreneurship and bringing relationship-building back to the center of business," said Simon Talling-Smith, Executive Vice President, Americas, British Airways.

To help reinforce the idea that in-person meetings do drive business, British Airways commissioned a survey of Harvard Business Review readers to gauge perceptions within the international business community about the importance of face-to-face meetings. In a time when business travel has been severely cut, the study aimed to uncover the impact that virtual meetings have had on business growth and relationship building. Results from the survey of over 2,300 Harvard Business Review readers concluded that 95 percent of businesspeople said they believe that face-to-face meetings are key to success in building long term relationships, and 89 percent agree face-to-face meetings are essential for "sealing the deal."

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: "Successful businesses are based on strong personal relationships, and face-to-face meetings play a crucial part in building trust and securing deals. Indeed, how would history have recounted the end of the Civil War had generals Grant and Lee exchanged letters rather than sitting down at Appomattox? How would the Civil Rights Movement have been remembered had the inspirational Doctor King sent a telegram to the crowds at the Lincoln memorial, rather than turning up in person to tell them about his dream?

"Maintaining New York and London's business relationship is vital in keeping both of our global positions as top destinations to invest and do business in. In these challenging economic times it has never been so important to do all we can to support competitiveness and I look forward to welcoming many more aspiring business people to London."

British Consul-General and Director General of UK Trade & Investment USA Sir Alan Collins said: "Businesses in the US and UK have much to gain by working together, especially during the global downturn. This initiative is not only exciting and extremely valuable, but demonstrates how British companies are being creative and innovative in these difficult times. Face-to-face meetings provide an invaluable opportunity to brainstorm, work on solutions and sign the deal. I congratulate the winners of the British Airways Face-to Face competition and hope they have productive and fruitful meetings in the UK."

The "Face-to-Face" competition by British Airways invited U.S. business people to make their case for an unmet business travel need and win free travel to London, or anywhere in the world that British Airways flies, to attend a crucial meeting. Competition winners not only receive a trip overseas, but they will also have the opportunity to connect with other business people traveling on special British Airways flights and forge relationships that can further their own business objectives. In addition to the flight scheduled from JFK International Airport on September 15, close to 600 competition winners will depart from Los Angeles International Airport on October 13 and Chicago O'Hare International Airport on November 17 also bound for London and beyond. With more than 1,000 passengers from all over the U.S. on board these planes, it is only fitting to call this experience a networking, or salon, event at 38,000 feet.

Events surrounding the departure and arrival of these special flights will also serve to underscore the importance of relationships in business. Business leaders and senior government officials in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and London will address winners at "power networking" events.

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR 100 COMPANIES

On August 24, 2009, British Airways launched the second phase of the "Face-to-Face" campaign. Business Opportunity Grants invite U.S. businesses to make their case for an unmet business travel need and win free travel for one year to anywhere in the world that British Airways flies, to attend crucial meetings. The grants will allow each of the businesses 10 roundtrip transatlantic Club World business class tickets to be used at their discretion in 2010. Whether it's a sit-down appointment with a potential client, vendor, investor or a check-in on an office that has not been visited because of budget cuts, the program is designed to help budget-conscious businesses get where they need to go, physically and financially. In addition to British Airways, sponsors of the program include: The Regus Group, British Airways World Cargo, Canon USA, Inc. and Courtyard by Marriott.

Businesses interested in entering the competition should visit www.ba.com/facetoface by September 30 to complete the entry form telling British Airways about their business objectives in 2010 and how a Grant would benefit their business.

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