M&A activity within travel is brisk, especially at small and midsize agencies: Travel Weekly travelweekly.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from travelweekly.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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From left, Kimberly Wilson Wetty, Jennifer Wilson-Buttigieg, Brian Buttigieg, Valerie Wilson, Richard Leibman, Lara Leibman and Bryan Leibman.
Consolidation among travel agencies was heating up even before the pandemic. And now, more than a year into the Covid-19 crisis, with margins stretched thin, cash in short supply and buyers and sellers both looking to strengthen their competitive positions through mergers, it has become an active marketplace for agencies that have the capital and drive to grow through acquisitions.
Last week, two major acquisitions were announced. Frosch International Travel (No. 14 on Travel Weekly s 2020 Power List) acquired Valerie Wilson Travel (No. 36). Additionally, American Express Global Business Travel (GBT, No. 3) said it plans to acquire Egencia, the corporate-travel arm of No. 1 Expedia Group, pending regulatory approvals.
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Attempts to lure advisors away from competitors is a practice that has been around as long as travel agencies have existed.
Agencies, franchisers and consortia have always welcomed new, experienced members who have worked for the competition. But it appears to have ratcheted up considerably during the pandemic.
Historically, it happened on familiarization trips, ship launches or at conferences. But during the pandemic, tactics have gone virtual, and some say recruiting efforts have reached never-before-seen levels with controversial tactics. What I am seeing at a higher level than I ve ever seen in the industry is, frankly, poaching other [group s] independent contractors and employees, said Robert Joselyn, CEO of Joselyn Consulting Group.