First Choice is continuing with the planned expansion of its retail brand Travel Choice despite the controversy over its future due to the Airtours bid.
Travel Choice managing director Gerry Reilly said the doubt hanging over the chain has lifted partially following the decision by the European Commission to hold a full-scale probe into Airtours proposed acquisition of First Choice.
Airtours senior management have admitted that if the deal does go through it will ditch Travel Choice and concentrate on Going Places and Travelworld.
“Whatever cloud was hanging over us has lifted,” said Reilly, who was previously a former operations director with Airtours. “But my job, and the job of the Travel Choice staff, is to build the brand into a major force in the retail sector which is what we are doing. What happens in the future is not our concern at the moment. It is a hypothetical situation.”
Travel Choice is expected to open 144 shops open by the end of the year – 39 of which will be former Inta Travel units. A further 40 Travel Choice Express shops will also be opened.
In total, First Choice will have a chain equivalent to 650 shop by January.