The second largest European tour operator, Thomas Cook, announced on Thursday that it will join forces with the Russian travel agency Intourist as part of its efforts to penetrate the rapidly growing Russian market for travel arrangements.
The British company will acquire a 50.1% stake in Intourist and will invest up to $45 million in the joint project, of which $10 million will be in cash and $35 million in its shares. This transaction will enable the company to meet the significant Russian demand for family and summer arrangements, particularly in Turkey and Egypt, Thomas Cook stated.
The company, along with its rival TUI Travel, which is majority-owned by the German TUI, the largest European travel agency, is increasingly turning to emerging markets such as Russia and China in search of new business opportunities due to the saturation of the British and German markets and reduced possibilities for further significant cost savings.
Intourist was founded in 1929 and had a monopoly on providing travel services during the Soviet era. It was then acquired in 1994 by the Russian holding company Sistema. After a comprehensive restructuring in 2005, it became the largest Russian operator for the mass market. Thomas Cook will have the option to purchase the remaining stake in the Russian company, which will be led for the next five years by Intourist’s president Alexander Artjunov. (H)
