Stella confirms it is in the final stages of buying the UK’s Travelbag.
Aussie travel services and hospitality company Stella Group today confirmed it is the final stages of purchasing the leading UK-based long haul travel retailer Travelbag, with Stella expecting to be in a position to release confirmation and further details of the acquisition by early next week.
Stella Group Managing Director Rolf Krecklenberg he was confident of announcing final terms shortly, saying, “We have previously indicated that we had identified an opportunity to expand our presence in the UK with a strategic acquisition.”
“Travelbag provides the opportunity for Stella to continue its path towards becoming a fully-integrated, international travel company and will significantly enhance our distribution capabilities in the UK market.”
The Travelbag shops are located across England in London (Strand), Alton, Winchester, Birmingham, Cheltenham, Manchester, Brighton and Nottingham. And the company is owned by international travel group Travelport, with Travelbag regarded as an expert in Australasian and Asian travel markets, further enhanceing Stella’s distribution network for its Australian, New Zealand and African hotels and resorts.
Stella Group’s existing Australian and New Zealand portfolio comprises approximately 15,000 rooms under the brands Mantra, Peppers, BreakFree and Saville and a further 9,000 rooms were added with the recent settlement of the $255 million acquisition of Africa’s Protea Hotels.
Stella Travel Services already owns in Australia and New Zealand Harvey World Travel, Travelscene American Express, Gullivers and Transonic.
Stella announced in late June it had completed the first stage of a restructuring, including the refinancing of all corporate debt into a single $1.2 billion facility.
The facility also allowed $30 million to fund the acquisition of Travelbag and the management and letting rights for the Circle on Cavill Skyrise Tower in Surfers Paradise, Queensland.
Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
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