INDEPENDENT tour operator French Life has been bought by a team led by
the former European marketing director of Eurocamp.
Martin Leppard, previously managing director of both Trafalgar Tours and
Resort Parks International, a subsidiary of RCI Europe, led the management
buy-in, backed by Barclays Private Equity. Leppard succeeds Rod Moseley as
managing director.
Former owner Warren Sandral is continuing in his role as ABTOF chairman
and as a director on the board of ABTA on behalf of French Life, but has no
official job title in the new set up.
Agents have been assured there are no plans to turn
the company into an exclusively direct sell operator under the new management,
even though around one-third of sales are direct sell and the rest are through
agents.