Business travel specialist Redfern Travel has been taken over by Australian travel provider Corporate Travel Management.
The acquisition of the Bradford-based independent travel management company for an undisclosed sum will make CTM one of the top seven TMCs in the UK.
CTM managing director Jamie Pherous said the Redfern Travel transaction is expected to take its consolidated European total transactional value to £500-£550 million in the next financial year.
“Redfern Travel’s key competitive advantage is its proprietary, automated end-to-end system, which processes more than 95 per cent of all transactions online, creating highly scalable operation,” Pherous said.
“After working with their management team through this process it became very clear that Redfern are a complementary business to CTM in the region; they possess a highly experienced and passionate management team, an innovative culture that has created some of the best end-to-end automation I have ever seen in our industry, and together we will create new opportunities to grow in the UK and European markets.”
Redfern Travel chief executive Mark Bowers said the partnership was a natural fit, as CTM’s focus on innovation aligned with Redfern’s strategic vision, and would help to accelerate the development of its technology.
“We have had many suitors for Redfern over the years, so it is refreshing to be working with a like-minded company who value innovation and customer service as much as we do,” Bowers said.
“Our new relationship with CTM will provide us with the resources to accelerate the development of our technology, products and services, as well as the opportunity to leverage CTM’s increased buying power and scale in our core markets.”
Collectively, the Redfern Travel and newly-acquired Australian-based Andrew Jones Travel are expected to contribute approximately A$7 million EBITDA from February to June, 2017.
Redfern Travel and Andrew Jones Travel would contribute A$17 million or approximately £10.1 million to CTM on an annualised basis.