The launch of an off-site ‘bag drop’ service now means travellers, flying from Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International, no longer have to drop their baggage at the traditional check-in counter.
The newly established BagPortr will collect the passenger’s bag from their home, hotel or any preferred point of collection (initially only within Johannesburg) within the terms of the service, before delivering it to OR Tambo International for loading on to the traveller’s flight.
Founded by Juan van Rensburg, a travel and airline industry veteran of 35 years, BagPortr was established with the purpose of elevating the travel experience of passengers.
“The passenger’s booking experience has evolved into the online space. However, the passenger’s bag check-in process has remained the missing piece of the puzzle. Bag drop queues have become longer than the check-in queue and passengers are in need of a better solution. The ‘mobile check-in and bag drop’ if you like, where passengers merely collect their bag at their destination, offers the convenience and peace of mind,” explains Juan.
The company offers a boutique baggage collection service to Air France and KLM travellers, as an alternative to standing in the bag drop queue at the airport. Once the passenger has completed their online check-in process, the bag collection is ordered online and collected up to four hours prior to their departure. The bag will be collected, security sealed, and transported under strict security conditions, in line with the airline, Civil Aviation and airport security guidelines.
Travellers will pay approximately R350 per bag, depending on the time of collection. Any additional bags on the same booking will be 50% less of the cost of the first bag, collected from the same address. Bags can be collected from any address up to a 60km radius of the airport.
“We are exploring partnerships with various airlines and airports continuously. These partners recognise that this alternative way of checking bags could be a massive value-added and customer-friendly service within their range of product offerings. We are excited to launch the service with these partners in November 2019,” says Juan.
Air France KLM General Manager in Southern Africa, Wouter Vermeulen, says “We are very pleased to offer a bag collection service to our passengers through BagPortr. The service BagPortr provides will be a great added value for all our Air France and KLM customers,” says Wouter.
BagPortr’s IT and back-office is powered by Nacelle, a new player in the Aerotech industry, which provides pioneering digital solutions aimed at delivering a seamless passenger experience.
Nacelle, the software developer, the spokesperson says: “We are very proud to be associated with and involved in the incubation of BagPortr. Nacelle is providing all the necessary IT and support services to ensure that BagPortr is an attractive offering to the travel market and enhances the customer experience by offering a viable alternative to baggage check-in.”
