Theme park and attraction ticket specialist Attraction World has announced it has completed a management buyout.
The operator’s senior management team including managing director Paul Stobbs and sales and marketing director Tony Seaman have secured external investment to complete the deal which was finalised last night.
The firm said the move “puts the operator in an excellent position to develop and grow the business in terms of product and IT infrastructure and to now seriously consider European expansion”.
Seaman said: “It’s really encouraging that in the current climate there is still interest from investors outside of the travel industry.
“We selected our investors, Maven, from number of interested parties. The MBO puts Attraction World on a really positive footing to develop going forward and we will be working hard to drive our business and grow our current market share of 92% even further.”
Attraction World was founded in 1996 and has recently changed its business model to become a leading online travel company. Since 2006 it has developed its own e-ticketing system for many partner theme parks.
In 2004, just 5% of sales came via the web, today this figure is 85%. Almost 75% of revenues come from partnerships with the major travel agency chains in the UK.
The operator has exclusive partnerships with Thomson, Thomas Cook, Co-op Travel and First Choice and claims to have a significant share of the independent agent market.
Seaman added: “Our position in the market was clearly appealing to investors. Despite the period of decline in the last couple of years, our sales have increased.
“I believe this is due to the added value and benefits we offer such as e-ticketing, ease of booking on our website and great prices. We provide travel agents with integrated access to most of the major global attractions, improving their customer offering and creating cross-selling opportunities.
“The next year will be very exciting and we will be appointing a chairman in due course. With clear scope for development into overseas markets alongside a strong core UK offering, this MBO will, I am sure, create wealth of exciting opportunities.”