Sabre offloads lastminute.com in fire sale

Wednesday, 17 Dec, 2014 0

Travel technology group Sabre is braced for a big hit on its 2005 investment in UK travel website lastminute.com, when it sells the business to Swiss travel firm Bravofly Rumbo Group.

The binding deal values lastminute.com at $120 million, about a tenth of the price Sabre paid for it in 2005.

Sabre had been trying to offload lastminute for several months as it plans to focus on its core technology B2B businesses.

The agreement is for all lastminute.com’s operations in the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy.

It would continue to use the Sabre global distribution system.

"We believe in the value and strength of lastminute.com’s iconic brand, which is recognized by more than 90% of European consumers," Bravofly chairman Fabio Cannavale said in a statement.

"Its business complements and expands our offering in Europe and, with its strong presence in the hotel and vacation sector, diversifies our product revenue streams."

Bravofly Rumbo owns several travel brands including Volagratis, JetCost, Crocierissime, Viaggiare and Viajar.

In the late 1990’s, lastminute.com became the poster child of the dotcom bubble in the UK, with companies such as Starwood Hotels, priceline.com and Sony Music Entertainment investing in the startup.



 

profileimage

TravelMole Editorial Team

Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.



Most Read

Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know

Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham

Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago

Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research

Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact

Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference

Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role

Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal

Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination

Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness

Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future

Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
TRAINING & COMPETITION
Skip to toolbar
Clearing CSS/JS assets' cache... Please wait until this notice disappears...
Updating... Please wait...