West Country agency C The World to open branch in London

West Country agency C The World is to expand into London – a year after the business was acquired by industry veteran Matt Purser.

The three-branch chain will open its fourth outlet, in a former children’s toy store in Blackheath, southeast London, in the autumn.

Owner and managing director Purser, who is also managing director of Africa & Beyond and Ski Gems, said the expansion was opportunity driven, initially by the closure of Baldwins Travel in Kent.

Speaking for the first time since acquiring C The World in September 2024, he said: “The fourth branch was never really in the plan, but what started to stir it up for me was what happened with Baldwins. I knew they had some good branches, and I was having conversations with them, but nothing came to fruition.

“Then a shop came up that  was local to me and it ticked all the boxes. It is in an affluent area with the right demographic and no other local agents.”

The shop will mirror C The World’s existing branches in Bath, Bristol and Thornbury in South Gloucestershire. Three staff have already been recruited.

Since the acquisition – which did not include the company’s specialist golf tour operation Tee The World – almost a year ago, Purser has reopened the Thornbury agency, which closed during Covid and restarted in the house of former owner Carolyn Park. 

Three staff have been taken on in the past year, bringing the total to nine across the three shops. A new salary and commission structure has also been introduced.

Purser, who was a founder of Travel Trade Consultancy before becoming a director of specialist travel growth consultancy The Firebird Partnership, said trading 
was buoyant.

“It’s going really well,” he said. “Every branch is up on last year. We are probably lower in terms of the number of bookings, but revenue 
and profit are up.”

Purser said there were no current plans for further expansion, adding: “I don’t want to open shops for the sake of it.”