Sunday, Aug 30, 2009
Dubai: Travco Group, a Egypt-based hotel and tour operator, has acquired a 99.6 per cent stake in a European hotel chain, Steigenberger Hotels AG, for an undisclosed amount.
Steigenberger operates 82 hotels with 14,890 rooms employing 6,780 professionals, achieving an annual turnover of 500 million euros. It started its journey in 1930 when Albert Steigenberger, a businessman from Lower Bavaria, bought the founding hotel in Baden-Baden, the Hotel Europ?ischer Hof. The Steigenberger family remained the main shareholder of the corporation till Travco's acquisition.
"After a period of consolidation of the hotel portfolio, international expansion is the next strategic stage for the Steigenberger Hotel Group.
"The Steigenberger family, the previous owner, is convinced that this key element of the initiated strategy, as well as an improved brand awareness and quality leadership, can be realised easier with a strong international partner," the company said in a statement.
Andr Witschi, chief executive of Steigenberger, said, "We want to secure Steigenberger's future in the long run. The international hotel and travel services of Travco enable us to offer our guests a new world of travel destinations. The enlarged hotel network creates new experiences and career opportunities for our employees."
Travco Group, which owns 50 per cent of the TUI Group, Europe's largest and most experienced tour operator, has a strong foothold in the UAE. Travco Dubai is a leading in-bound tour operator. The company is owned by Hamad Al Chiaty and his family.
"This is a very important strategic step on our long-lasting and continuous course for growth, which positions us as a global player in the tourism and hospitality industries and allows us to offer an even greater and more appealing value proposition to our customers," says Hamad Al Chiaty, chairman and chief executive of Travco.
Travco Group has assets of more than 1.25 billion euros. In 2008 it posted consolidated revenues of 600 million euros and employs 18,000 people.
Osama Bushra, Chief Operating Officer of Travco, said his company will expand Steigenberger globally, including the brand's penetration in the Middle East.
"We will open Steigenberger and InterCityHotels in the region including the UAE," he told Gulf News.
Travco's portfolio of 43 hotels with a capacity exceeding 10,500 rooms is operated by Travco's hospitality brands Jaz, Iberotel and Soly Mar in Egypt and the UAE where it operates the Miramar Al Aqah, Fujairah, a five-star resort that comprises 321 rooms. It has 9 hotels in the pipeline, including two with investments of about $170 million.
The company's portfolio also includes the largest fleet in the Nile Cruises comprising 22 ships and over 1,300 cabins managed by the group's own Travcotels, Jaz and Iberotel.
Steigenberger operates hotels under InterCityHotel and Steigenberger brands, which have been established especially in German speaking regions.
"Steigenberger is the stepping-stone of Travco's worldwide presence, as well as its entry into the city hotel business, particularly in the German, Austrian and Swiss markets, and will further strengthen the company's positioning in the quality segment," Bushra said.
"The mostly complementary businesses of both companies will allow for cross-selling opportunities across the brands and further economies of scale," he added.
By Saifur Rahman, Business Editor
Gulf News 2009. All rights reserved.
Dubai: Travco Group, a Egypt-based hotel and tour operator, has acquired a 99.6 per cent stake in a European hotel chain, Steigenberger Hotels AG, for an undisclosed amount.
Steigenberger operates 82 hotels with 14,890 rooms employing 6,780 professionals, achieving an annual turnover of 500 million euros. It started its journey in 1930 when Albert Steigenberger, a businessman from Lower Bavaria, bought the founding hotel in Baden-Baden, the Hotel Europ?ischer Hof. The Steigenberger family remained the main shareholder of the corporation till Travco's acquisition.
"After a period of consolidation of the hotel portfolio, international expansion is the next strategic stage for the Steigenberger Hotel Group.
"The Steigenberger family, the previous owner, is convinced that this key element of the initiated strategy, as well as an improved brand awareness and quality leadership, can be realised easier with a strong international partner," the company said in a statement.
Andr Witschi, chief executive of Steigenberger, said, "We want to secure Steigenberger's future in the long run. The international hotel and travel services of Travco enable us to offer our guests a new world of travel destinations. The enlarged hotel network creates new experiences and career opportunities for our employees."
Travco Group, which owns 50 per cent of the TUI Group, Europe's largest and most experienced tour operator, has a strong foothold in the UAE. Travco Dubai is a leading in-bound tour operator. The company is owned by Hamad Al Chiaty and his family.
"This is a very important strategic step on our long-lasting and continuous course for growth, which positions us as a global player in the tourism and hospitality industries and allows us to offer an even greater and more appealing value proposition to our customers," says Hamad Al Chiaty, chairman and chief executive of Travco.
Travco Group has assets of more than 1.25 billion euros. In 2008 it posted consolidated revenues of 600 million euros and employs 18,000 people.
Osama Bushra, Chief Operating Officer of Travco, said his company will expand Steigenberger globally, including the brand's penetration in the Middle East.
"We will open Steigenberger and InterCityHotels in the region including the UAE," he told Gulf News.
Travco's portfolio of 43 hotels with a capacity exceeding 10,500 rooms is operated by Travco's hospitality brands Jaz, Iberotel and Soly Mar in Egypt and the UAE where it operates the Miramar Al Aqah, Fujairah, a five-star resort that comprises 321 rooms. It has 9 hotels in the pipeline, including two with investments of about $170 million.
The company's portfolio also includes the largest fleet in the Nile Cruises comprising 22 ships and over 1,300 cabins managed by the group's own Travcotels, Jaz and Iberotel.
Steigenberger operates hotels under InterCityHotel and Steigenberger brands, which have been established especially in German speaking regions.
"Steigenberger is the stepping-stone of Travco's worldwide presence, as well as its entry into the city hotel business, particularly in the German, Austrian and Swiss markets, and will further strengthen the company's positioning in the quality segment," Bushra said.
"The mostly complementary businesses of both companies will allow for cross-selling opportunities across the brands and further economies of scale," he added.
By Saifur Rahman, Business Editor
Gulf News 2009. All rights reserved.
