Travelers working from any one of Regus’ 1,200 business centers can earn extra miles

Regus and American Airlines announced an agreement that gives members of the American Airlines AAdvantage® loyalty program the opportunity to earn AAdvantage® miles when booking Regus’ full-service and virtual offices, meeting rooms or Businessworld services anywhere in the world.

“One of the best features of the AAdvantage program is the ability for members to earn miles through everyday activities – including work”

Under the new agreement, AAdvantage® members will earn seven miles per dollar spent on new virtual office or Businessworld sales and on day office, meeting room or video communications bookings. Five AAdvantage® miles will be awarded to members per dollar spent on new full-time office agreements at any Regus location.

The global footprints of both organizations (Regus & American Airlines) enable AAdvantage® members to easily locate and work from any one of Regus’ fully equipped and staffed business centers across the world. (Have you expanded your business operations abroad? click here to find out why you should, especially now that both Regus and American Airlines have made it easier)

As an added benefit of the new agreement, American Airlines will provide AAdvantage® elite status members with a Regus Businessworld Gold card. The membership program grants them unlimited access to Regus’ global network of business lounges.

“We are very excited to launch our partnership with American Airlines and will continue to look for innovative ways for AAdvantage® members to earn more miles with Regus”

“Many of Regus’ customers are already AAdvantage® members and are familiar with our services. This new agreement will make business travel a seamless experience for American Airlines’ passengers because they can now tap into our network anywhere in the world and be guaranteed a proper place to work or conduct meetings.”

—Regus Director of Partnerships Michael Haas.

Have you recently flown with American Airlines and worked at a Regus center at your destination? Let us know your story

For more information on Regus click here

For more information and a listing of AAdvantage program participating companies, visit www.aa.com/aadvantage

Photo Credit:

First Image by Deanster1983 via Flickr

Regus business lounge opens at Shell motorway station, an innovative pilot for mobile workers.

Shell and Regus announce the trial of a joint programme that could see Regus business lounges open at Shell petrol forecourts on motorways across Europe. The business lounges are designed specifically to meet the needs of a growing number of mobile workers.

The first business lounge has opened at a Shell station just south-west of Paris, on the A10 autoroute, at the Limours-Janvry service station. Drivers can drop into the lounge to:

• use reliable high-speed internet;
• scan, copy or fax documents;
• print from their laptop, smartphone, Blackberry or tablet;
• get help from a virtual concierge;
• arrange courier deliveries; and,
• combine stopping for fuel, food or forecourt services with using professional work facilities.

To access the Regus business lounge, they simply buy a day pass at the Shell checkout or swipe a Regus Businessworld card. The Businessworld programme offers members drop-in access to more than 1,200 Regus business centres around the world.

The lounge will be an addition to the existing range of high quality fuels and lubricants and other forecourt services such as the shop.

“This alliance allows Shell and Regus as market leaders in their respective fields to come together to better serve our customers. We know that many of our customers are working on the move and are excited to explore offering them accessible and innovative working options as part of our existing network.

—Istvan Kapitany, Vice President Shell Retail Europe

“Research shows there are around 1 billion mobile workers globally. Though they communicate and work using smartphones, tablets and laptops, they miss access to a professional place to work, meet or think where there is easy access to state of the art business facilities. By opening Regus business lounges at motorway stations, Shell and Regus are bringing vibrant business hubs right to the roadside. As a result, many people will be able to work more productively in a professional business environment while on the move.”

—Mark Dixon, CEO of Regus

Have you tried one of our business lounges at a Shell motorway station?

For more information on Regus in France, click here

By Dirk van Dijl from Enterprise Britain

Sitting in the airport lounge, I’m waiting for a plane, thus opens the Airport Song by Magna Carta and I am following their lead. I am in the lounge of Gatwick South terminal doing a Richard Lambert as, like him, I am waiting for an EasyJet flight. So far so good but I am not on the thing yet.

Security has moved on quite a bit since I last came through an airport. You scan your pre-printed boarding card, undress in front of a vast array of conveyor belts, unpack your bag (shaving cream in the bin) and then reverse the process after the portal, all with the encouragement of the most miserable staff imaginable. In fact so miserable it feels quite uncomfortable, but it was 6:30 in the morning.

But this is put aside as I have two interesting business propositions I am working on at the moment. One is slightly more traditional than the other, but both ‘have legs’ so to speak. In fact there is a good chance both will come about which would be nice for the entrepreneurs behind them. There is a major difference between them though and that is the way the entrepreneurs want to develop their companies.

Allow me to illustrate.

The first wants to take over one of my ‘traditional’ businesses and then expand it with a small (for him, not for me) capital injection. I think this would be brilliant as it would allow the business to make a quantum leap forwards.

He wants to set up a London office, get a big name Chairman with great City connections but who knows nothing about the business we are in and has already gathered a band of eight people, none of whom will actually contribute anything to the business itself.

The second entrepreneur is not based in the UK and is looking to build a very exciting business on a social media model. He is looking to establish something on the ground in each country to get it going, but no offices and no ‘hangers on’.

I am hopeful that I can get both businesses to move. I am a wholehearted supporter of the ‘distributed company’ model (I used to refer to virtual companies but I have been informed that this term is now considered uncool). In both cases we will need a London address – hold on Regus, here we come! – but that is it. No office!

The London telephone number we already have and it can be picked up anywhere in the world. Getting a nice email address is fiendishly easy and I simply add it to my growing collection on Gmail. I already have calendars integrated with various people so all systems are go there. But an office with people arriving some time around 9 and leaving around 5? Makes me go weak at the knees just thinking about it.

So, sitting in my airport lounge I can work almost as well as in the office, though I cannot get onto the internet – where are you BT Openzone– this does not make sense. I have spoken with friends, colleagues and contacts in 3 countries so far this morning and when I get to my destination my handy dandy Regus card will get me a local office.  Doing business the ‘distributed’ way is fantastic.

This post was orginally wirtten by Drik van Dijl for for his blog on Enterprise Britain

Photo Credit: Image by adactio on flickr

Business Lounges from Regus [VIDEO]

Get the peace, support and dedicated resources that coffee shops and hotels simply don’t provide. A Regus Business Lounge is ideal for staying productive whilst on the move and between meetings, or simply for those who don’t need a fixed workspace.

Set in city locations, transport centres and modern business parks, you’ll always find our lounges in the places you need them.

For more information on our business lounges click here

For a list of all our business lounges worldwide click here