Joe Harvey, Head of New Business Development for Tourvest Inflight Retail Services tells TRBusiness what the British Airways dual contract award win really means to the company and why it has changed who the company is for the better.

As previously reported, in September British Airways awarded Tourvest Inflight Retail Services (Tourvest), the contract to manage the airline’s new short-haul food and beverage service with M&S, while also extending its contract to supply and manage British Airway’s duty free service globally – a contract it has held since January 2012.

Harvey describes the win as ‘momentous’ for the company as it effectively changes who Tourvest is as a company. However, he also maintains that Tourvest will continue to work with the ‘right partners’.

“We can now start talking to airlines about their buy onboard programmes, but we’re not going to be greedy,” he told TRBusiness.

Harvey also talks about Tourvest’s ongoing commitment to Africa – after securing the Ethiopian Airlines contract – and the unfortunate misconceptions drawn about the region at times.

He reassures the industry that Africa remains an essential part of the company’s DNA – permeating every division – and that the region is a ‘growth economy’ which Tourvest has great belief in.