Minoan Group acquires Classic Travel as buying spree continues

The Minoan Group has bought Classic Travel Limited for £600,000 as part of its ‘rigorous’ acquisition trail.

Trading as Classic4Travel, which also incorporates gay travel agency brand Lotus Travel, the retailer is based in Scotland having been established for 30 years and has two offices, in Uddingston and Helensburgh.

However it also boasts a growing network of home based travel professionals affiliated with the business operating from London, Leeds, Lisburn, Edinburgh, Belfast and Falkirk and is strong in the leisure and business sectors.

The deal is subject to regulatory approval and the exact amount paid will depend on targets being met over the next two years.

It will help the Minoan group put their footprint on the UK – with previous acquisitions being in Scotland – ahead of the launch of its kiosks in sub-post offices around the country.

The first 50 are expected to go live in December starting in the Midlands region to capitalise on the post-Christmas booking boom. It follows a deal with the National Federation of Sub Postmasters.

The Minoan group raised £1 million in August to invest in acquisitions and more purchases are expected. The company is targeting distribution channels with a mixture of head offices and homeworkers.

Classic will be integrated into Minoan’s rapidly-growing travel portfolio, which includes King World Travel, John Semple Travel, which has over 26 years of experience in the travel market and Stewart Travel, which this year celebrated 40 years in the travel business.

Minoan has also acquired the Golf Concierge, a tour operator specialising in world-class golfing breaks to both UK inbound and outbound tourists, offering more than 50 courses and associated resorts across 17 countries.

Duncan Wilson, CEO of Minoan, said: "Adding an award-winning business such as Classic to our rapidly expanding travel portfolio significantly increases the range of travel services we offer, and enhances our presence in the business travel market, where Classic is particularly strong with its client list of multinational companies and organisations.

"Our golf division, which is trading very well, will also reap additional benefits from the acquisition of the full service Golf Concierge brand.

"This is in line with our strategy of offering attractive niche businesses as well as growing through larger acquisitions. Whilst we continue to pursue opportunities, we are delighted to be rolling out our first 50 travel kiosks across Sub Post Office stores."