An ex-Expedia executive has been drafted in to run Hoseasons’ owner European Vacation Rentals.
Henrik Kjellberg, former president at Expedia Asia, becomes group chief executive of the business acquired by Platinum Equity from Wyndham Worldwide for $1.3 billion in February.
A rebrand is planned within the coming months to “redefine the group’s identity”, alongside ongoing investment in its existing consumer-facing brands.
The next phase of the group’s growth plan will see major investment in technology innovation.
The business is the largest manager of holiday rentals in Europe, operating 110,000 units in more than 600 destinations across 25 countries through its local brands. These include Novasol, Cottages.com, Hoseasons, James Villa Holidays, Landal GreenParks and Friendly Rentals.
Kjellberg has spent more than 20 years working in global positions for travel and technology brands, including serving as president of Hotwire and Expedia Group’s affiliate network (EAN), where he was responsible for Expedia Group’s global affiliate and partnership deals.
He also served as president of Expedia Asia, and was chairman of the Chinese travel company eLong.
Kjellberg said: “I have always admired the success of the European Vacation Rentals business established by Wyndham Worldwide Corporation. The group and its local brands have a long-standing heritage of delivering unrivalled experiences across Europe.
“Under the new ownership, I’m looking forward to working with the leadership teams within each of the brands to capitalise on our success to date and the tremendous growth opportunities available, and to continue to deliver the kind of experiences and services our guests, homeowners and partners have come to expect from our family of brands.”
Daniel Madden, principal and head of portfolio operations at Platinum Equity in Europe, added: “Amongst other areas, Henrik brings a wealth of experience in product, technology, customer and partner service, innovation and distribution.
“As an investor we will support the organic as well as acquisitive growth ambitions of the business and we look forward to partnering with Henrik on this journey.”