Independent holiday company Hays Travel has snapped up homeworking franchise company Explorer Travel after its owner sought new business interests.
The Sunderland based business, the largest independent travel firm in the 海角视频, said the acquisition is an ideal fit with its homeworking model, which has seen many people progress to become successful independent businesses as part of the Hays Travel Independence Group.
The deal, secured for an undisclosed sum, sees Explorer’s 70 franchisees join the group.
Steve Wood, owner of the St Helens, Merseyside business, is leaving the travel industry to pursue other interests but wanted to place the business he created in good hands, so approached Hays Travel a few weeks ago.
Hays Travel currently has over 350 colleagues working in its homeworking division, and Dame Irene Hays, owner of Hays Travel, said the Explorer franchise model provides an excellent stepping stone between the traditional homeworking model and an Independence Group member.
She said: “John and I always thought Explorer was a great business and I was delighted when Steve approach me once he decided to leave travel to do other things.
“We have had a very good first meeting with the franchisees and we’re looking forward to helping them grow their businesses and to recruiting more people into our latest franchise model in due course.
“It’s a very different approach and I am very very excited about it filling a gap between our Premier Telesales Homeworking and Personal Travel Consultants and the Independence Group, opening up new opportunities for our existing colleagues.
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“It’s also allowing many more people to join who enjoy homeworking and are looking for the chance to earn a good living at home and eventually perhaps build their own business.”
Mr Wood added: “I am delighted to have handed over Explorer Travel to Hays Travel.
“I have admired John and Irene’s business ethos over the years and feel, now that I’d like to move on, that Hays offers the best place for Explorer’s franchisees to help their businesses grow.”
The move marks positive expansion for Hays Travel, which closed 89 shops across the 海角视频 at the start of the year, after the Covid-19 pandemic devastated the travel industry.
The company made the closures after accelerating a planned review of its retail portfolio, which it was due to carry out following its acquisition of 550 Thomas Cook stores in 2019.