Alistair Callender - From frequent business traveler to ‘Chief Bag Carrier’
Play • 1 hr 15 min

Alistair Callender is the founder and CEO of Gate8, a modular cabin luggage manufacturing and retail company founded in 2006. Originally training as an engineer, and with over 20 years’ experience working for large corporations, Alistair found himself spending many hours each month stuck at luggage check-in points and paying excess baggage fees. He needed a solution.

Taking inspiration from the boarding gate he found himself frequenting the most, he decided to create a range of travel luggage that would be universally accepted by all airlines as hand luggage. He explains how after a period of steady growth, the 'Swiss-army knife' brand of luggage began to be used by many popular airlines, helping them to expand from just B2C to include B2B sales.

We also discuss how the business has navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. From manufacturing PPE for airline clients, to creating travel kits for consumers, the business has been pivoted in order to cope with the loss in luggage sales.

International expansion of the company is in progress, and after many lessons learnt from the attempt to break into the US market, Alistair is working on securing distribution partners in other countries.

Gate8 website: https://www.gate8-luggage.co.uk/

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