"Biblio-Globus" officially announced the acquisition of the company by the British tour operator Thomas Cook. The corresponding announcement was published on the website "Biblio-Globus" on Friday, March 22.
"For the tour operator "Biblio-Globus", with its own "With flight programs on Russia's leading airline, Rossiya Airlines, the best in tourist destinations, and exclusive contracts with the most popular hotels, this agreement represents an opportunity to reach an even higher global level, while for Thomas Cook Group plc. it will strengthen its position in the constantly evolving Russian market, gain additional flight capacity, and expand its customer base. As a result of the transaction, Thomas Cook Group plc. will receive a 1,001% stake in the tour operator Biblio-Globus," the statement reads.
It also notes that the management and staff of the tour operator Biblio-Globus remain the same.
"The deal between Biblio-Globus and Thomas Cook Group plc. will strengthen the tour operator's ties with its international partners, relationships with whom have always been based on mutual understanding and trust, and will also provide growth potential, which will undoubtedly have a positive impact on Russian consumers of tourism services," the company emphasized.
In turn, the British company's statement noted that Thomas Cook Group is establishing a joint venture with Ionic Invest for the acquisition of Biblio-Globus. "Under the terms of the agreement, the joint venture owns 100% shares of the tour operator Biblio-Globus for an initial consideration of US$10 million. Thomas Cook Group will hold a minority stake of 30% of the joint venture after contributing US$3 million. The existing management team of Biblio-Globus will continue to operate the business. A further tranche of US$10 million will be made by the joint venture in January 2020. The transaction will include operating profits related to the achievement of three-year performance targets. The total maximum cash consideration payable by the joint venture, including the initial consideration, may be up to US$150 million. “The payments will be made from the new joint venture’s own generated cash,” Thomas Cook Group explained.
As a reminder, news that Thomas Cook plans to buy Biblio-Globus appeared last week.
"If someone is willing to pay for your business, you should sell it. That means you've achieved very good results. I see Thomas Cook as a response to the actions of tour operator TUI, which expanded significantly last year and has serious plans for this year. The battle for market share, traditional for all countries where these leaders are present, has begun," leading tourism industry expert Igor Kozlov told TRN at the time.
Source: trn-news.ru
