| DUBAI, U.A.E., 28 May, 2008 – Dnata Contact Centres, a member of leading Dubai-based contact centre operator, Dnata, has acquired a 49% share holding in Mindpearl Group. This acquisition will give Dnata access to contact centre operations in Barcelona, Brisbane and Cape Town, with the development of a new facility in the South Pacific due to come onstream in 2009. Together with the current Dnata Contact Centres operating in Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Abu Dhabi, this geographical spread of operations will give the company true ‘follow the sun’ 24/7 capabilities, and a projected total capacity of more than 3,000 seats within the next 4 years. The new strategic partnership will have no direct effect on the day-to-day trading of Mindpearl. The decision has been made to continue the partnership under the Mindpearl brand with its almost 10 year track record across the globe. Established in 1999, Mindpearl became an independently owned global contact centre outsource organisation in 2006 and now provides services to American Airlines, Delta Airlines, Swiss International Airlines and Singapore Airlines, among others. These airlines all have extensive experience of working with Dnata, which is the general sales agent in the UAE for more than 40 airlines. Dnata operates the ground handling at Dubai International Airport for more than 120 international airlines. One of the factors which will distinguish Mindpearl from similar organisations in the marketplace is the multiple nationalities and diverse cultural capabilities of employees within the group. With the ability to operate in more than 20 spoken languages, Mindpearl will ensure customers are dealt with in their native language. Head of Contact Centres, Dnata, Steve Davies said: “One of the concerns, with any outsourcing of contact centre services, has been the perception that calls would be handled by agents who don’t speak the customer’s native language, don’t understand their concerns and share little empathy or cultural alignment with the marketplace in which they operate. At Dnata we are committed to recruiting staff from a wide range of backgrounds from all over the world and training them to ensure these problems don’t arise. By acquiring the stake in the Mindpearl Group, Dnata is gaining an international contact centre infrastructure, world-class telephony and service delivery models, together with expertise in training and additional travel and leisure products and services. These locations - Cape Town, Brisbane, Barcelona and the South Pacific, are perfect for us because each one offers a pool of high quality local talent, enabling us to expand our operations, without compromising on our very high quality and standards.” Mindpearl, CEO, William Pattison, has more than 20 years’ experience in the contact centre industry and is an aviation industry specialist. “We are very excited about the new partnership with Dnata Contact Centres. Dnata has an unrivalled reputation in the travel industry and we see this strategic alliance as a way of expanding operations from our traditional customer base of airlines. At the same time, Dnata’s experience in the travel industry in the Middle East will be of particular interest to airlines wishing to actively enter the market in this region. Dnata’s commitment to training and investment in the best staff and technology available are key factors for success in the contact centre outsourcing and offshoring markets. We anticipate the joining of the two global players will prove to complement one another and benefit the industry globally,” says Pattison. Although much of the early business is expected to come from airlines and the wider travel industry, Mr. Davies from Dnata, who himself has a background in the UK financial services contact centre industry, does not see the company as being limited to that sector. “The contact centre outsourcing and offshoring services are growing tremendously in many industry sectors. Once companies realise the quality of service and efficiencies of cost offered through the combined strengths of Dnata and Mindpearl, I am sure we will see interest from companies operating in a range of markets,” he said. Released on behalf of Mindpearl by Affinity Strategic Communication. For further information please contact:
Marlene Schreuder
Affinity Strategic Communication
Tel: +27 21 914 2821
Mobile +27 83 228 6426
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New board of Directors 
The new Mindpearl Board of Directors will comprise representatives from both companies:
Iain Andrew, Divisional Senior Vice President, Dnata Travel Services;
Steve Davies, Head of CRM and Contact Centres, Dnata Travel Services;
William Pattison, Chief Executive Officer, Mindpearl;
Alan Graham, Chief Commercial Officer, Mindpearl;
Stefan Burri, Chief Financial Officer, Mindpearl and
David Masso, Director, Mindpearl.
Brief company profiles: MINDPEARL Mindpearl was established in 1999, with the specific objective of providing full contact centre facilities and services to a consortium of 11 airlines, flying globally to over 400 destinations across all time zones. After the successful delivery of these fully operational contact centres, Mindpearl became independently owned in 2006 with the vision to provide the finest customer care solutions globally to leading brands. With this change Mindpearl not only started operating autonomously but also offered complete contact service solutions on a fully outsourced basis. This made Mindpearl unique in the airline and travel industry as contact centres operating in this space are almost always captive operations and do not provide true 24 x 7 multi lingual coverage.
Combining state-of-the-art equipment and industry expertise, Mindpearl implemented "follow-the-sun" technology to ensure customers could be assisted in their native tongue 24/7/365. This intelligent call routing platform not only allows Mindpearl to route every incoming call to a native speaker at one of its contact centres across the globe, it also increases the overall efficiency and cost effectiveness of providing a true global service. In 2001 service delivery to one of the world's largest airlines resulted in Mindpearl's presence in the South African market. Mindpearl's location in Cape Town, South Africa, enables them to operate a competitive cost base whilst maintaining outstanding customer services. With additional facilities in Brisbane and Barcelona, Mindpearl has become a serious global player in the industry.
www.mindpearl.com.
DNATA Dnata began operations in Dubai nearly 50 years ago and, considering not many companies in the UAE can boast that sort of long heritage, it really can claim to have pioneered the Dubai travel industry. Dnata encompasses several different operational arms – Dnata Travel Services, Dnata Airport Operations, Dnata Cargo and Dnata International – thereby providing a One-Stop-Shop of travel solutions. Dnata Travel Services encompasses divisions which address every aspect of the travel industry, including corporate travel management, government travel services, luxury holidays, airline and hotel representation, event marketing and management, group and incentive packages and marine services, in addition to general retail travel services. With more than 100 outlets across the region, covering UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and Afghanistan, Dnata plans to continue extending the network. Dnata Travel Services comprises several distinct areas, including: · Airline Affairs is the General Sales Agency (GSA) for more than 40 international carriers and provides an essential link between the airlines and local travel agents. Dnata’s clients range from full service airlines, to no frills and business only carriers. · Dnata Contact Centre is the largest facility dedicated to travel in Dubai, operating 24-hours a day, and 365 days a year. Professional travel consultants transact business in 15 languages, backed by state-of-the-art travel systems.
www.dnata.com
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