Chairman and founder Bill Munro told TTG he expected the transaction announced yesterday (February 1) to be finalised “imminently”, adding: “It is the end of an era but the beginning of brighter things as well, full of new challenges with many exciting things ahead.”
Speaking following confirmation of the sale of Barrhead on Thursday for an undisclosed sum, Munro described how a deal had been in the offing for “more than a year” and despite the Scottish agency having spoken to other parties, Travel Leaders “really stood out to us”.
“It’s a very good fit and we both have similar cultures and the same sort of ethos so it should be absolutely fine. We were very careful about joining with a company who shared our values and could bring something to the table that the staff and customers could benefit from,” he said.
Munro confirmed there would be no redundancies as part of the takeover and both he and Barrhead chief executive Sharon Munro would remain in their current roles in the company.
He added that he hoped the deal would allow Barrhead “to be able to recruit the best talent that there is in the UK”.
The Barrhead founder explained how a growing amount of consolidation within the travel sector had prompted its senior management team to look for a partner.
“We thought it should be someone based outside of the UK if possible, which should be a travel company rather than an institutional investor who didn’t know the business and who would want to milk it in two or three years’ time.”
Once the transaction is finalised, Travel Leaders UK portfolio will include Barrhead, Colletts Travel, Protravel International UK and Tzell UK.
Munro said he believed the backing of Travel Leaders would help “give us more street-cred” among larger corporate travel firms, adding: “I think you should definitely expect us to expand in the corporate market.”
He also emphasised Barrhead’s desire to create larger ‘experience stores’, such as its newly announced unit at Fort Kinnaird Retail Park in Edinburgh and bring more tour operators and cruise partners into its stores to have their own spaces.
Asked how the acquisition would fuel the agency’s continued growth of its retail network, Munro said: “We definitely have ideas about where next to go. There’s nothing I can confirm now," he added, "but we have identified some of our next areas."
