Tourico founder to retire after sale to Spanish company
Tourico Holidays founder Uri Argov has announced his retirement following its sale to Spanish bed bank Hotelbeds Group.
But he will remain a shareholder of the combined company.
Asi Ginio, who has been with Tourico since 1999 and is currently chief operating officer, will now become CEO while the company ‘transitions to full integration’.
Tourico officially joins Hotelbeds as a business unit today (Thursday).
Joan Vila, executive chairman of Hotelbeds Group, said: “This deal expands our footprint in the important North American market and – along with our plans also for GTA to join us – forms part of our strategy to accelerate the growth of our business both organically and via M&A activity.
“Our medium-term objective is to combine our respective best in class technology and distribution expertise for the benefit of both our hotel partners and clients. We will do this in stages and over the coming months will provide partners with further updates on how and when this will happen.”
Ginio added: “We are excited to now officially be part of Hotelbeds Group and are hugely proud to be participating in what amounts to a transformation for the B2B travel industry.
“On behalf of all my colleagues I would like to thank Tourico Holidays’ founder Uri Argov for making this company the great success that it is today. We wish him all the best for the future.”
In April, Palma-based Hotelbeds Group announced it was also buying GTA, a global bedbank with a significant presence in the Asia-Pacific market.
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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