Thomas Cook brand sold for ‘paltry’ sum
Former Thomas Cook staff, unions and others in the industry have expressed their dismay that the historic Thomas Cook brand has been sold for £11 million to Fosun Tourism.
Manuel Cortes, general secretary of the transport union TSSA, said it was a ‘paltry’ amount.
"Frankly, Fosun must think Christmas has come early," he said.
"They are now the proprietors of a longstanding and much-loved high street brand name that they have got for a paltry £11 million
"Remember this comes after they were prepared to plough in £450 million to keep the company afloat – only for the Tories’ dead hand to consciously kill that bird."
The £11 million covers the Thomas Cook brand, along with the Casa Cook and Cook’s Club hotel brands.
The Chinese travel giant, which also owns Club Med, said it had always believed in Thomas Cook’s brand value.
Chairman Qian Jiannong said: "The acquisition of the Thomas Cook brand will enable the group to expand its tourism business building on the extensive brand awareness of Thomas Cook and the robust growth momentum of Chinese outbound tourism.
"After the acquisition of certain Thomas Cook related brands, the overseas acquisition related to Thomas Cook will come to an end for the time being. Following the acquisition, the Group will focus on business expansion, using the newly acquired Thomas Cook brands to create synergies with the existing businesses of the Group."
Fosun, Thomas Cook’s largest shareholder, had agreed to pump £450 million into Thomas Cook as part of a £900 million rescue deal.
But the deal fell through when lenders demanded an extra £200 million which could not be secured.
Thomas Cook went into liquidation on September 23.
Hays Travel has since bought the 555 Thomas Cook high street stores in the UK for £6 million.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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