Barrhead US-based owner buys Yorkshire business travel firm

Travel Leaders Group has acquired Halifax-based full-service event provider Your Event Solutions (YES).

Travel Leaders, which recently acquired Barrhead Travel, said the addition of YES would complement its growing presence in the meetings and incentive marketplace, and provide both firms with additional geographic reach and meetings expertise.

YES provides a range of corporate event solutions from venue sourcing, meetings and training events, to executive conferences, large-scale exhibitions, product launches and incentive travel programmes in locations around the world.

The firm also assists in client outsource planning for annual meetings, calendar training programmess and fulfillment. Its latest accounts show it made a profit for the financial year ended March 2018 of £6.07 million.

Sue Gill, founder and CEO, will remain in her current role and YES will retain its brand. No major operating changes are anticipated at the company following the acquisition by Travel Leaders.

"Bringing YES into the Travel Leaders Group family creates some exciting new prospects for both enterprises," said Travel Leaders Group CEO Ninan Chacko. "Sue and her team at YES are innovative, enthusiastic and place a high priority on personalised service."

With an estimated $20 billion in annual gross travel volume worldwide, Travel Leaders Group is one of the fastest-growing travel retail companies and service providers in both the US and the UK.

YES, founded 18 years ago, has teams in London, Yorkshire, Switzerland, France, Eastern Europe, Brazil and the Middle East.

"We are so excited YES has been identified as the perfect partner to expand Travel Leaders Group’s MICE offering globally," said Gill.

"Becoming part of Travel Leaders Group gives us a broader platform of service offerings to provide to our existing and new clients including technology solutions, as well as corporate, entertainment and leisure travel offerings and expertise. Our team is excited about the opportunity to share expertise and to expand on the YES brand’s reputation in North America and beyond."

Travel Leaders Group said its key focus has been to expand its MICE business. "As demand for travel continues and inventory tightens, it’s critical for businesses to take advantage of the services of an event planning firm. When people are coming from different countries, logistics are an even greater priority," said Chacko. "YES has experience in a variety of sought-after meetings destinations which will serve our clients well."

Travel Leaders’ UK portfolio will now include YES, Barrhead Travel, Colletts Travel, Protravel International UK, Tzell UK and ALTOUR.