Stewart Travel buys stake in Miles Morgan Travel

Stewart Travel has agreed to buy 20% of Miles Away as part of a strategic partnership between the two travel agency chains.

The Scottish-based Stewart Travel, a subsidiary wholly owned by the Minoan Group, has been looking for a partnership in England.

The companies said that Stewart Travel and Miles Away, trading as Miles Morgan Travel, have ‘complementary businesses, operating within a similar target customer demographic and offering similar products’.

They believe a combination of buying power with key suppliers will both strengthen relationships and enhance commercial terms.

Minoan did not provide any financial details on the acquisition of the stake by Stewart, but said the combined total transaction value of the two companies – similar to joint turnover – in the coming financial year is expected to be around £100 million.

Miles Morgan, formerly sales and marketing director for Thomson, founded Miles Morgan Travel in 2006, feeling that travel customers should get a better holiday service on the high street than was currently available.

In 2013 the agency, with 12 stores in Wales, Gloucestershire and South-West England, won the Travel Agent of the Year award for the whole of the UK.

Duncan Wilson, managing director of Minoan, said: "Stewart has already built up a strong presence in Scotland and it is well known that we have been interested for quite some time in having a presence south of the border.

"The first and most important aspect of beginning a partnership for the company is that the ethos, culture and future vision for travel distribution has to be a shared one.

"We believe that in Miles Away as a business, and in Miles as a person, we have the perfect match for our first step into England."

Miles Morgan, founder and managing director of Miles Away, said: "Duncan and I have been talking about a prospective way forward for some months. Having taken that time and looked at both entities I am confident that this will add immediate value to both parties, and allow us both to further succeed in our chosen markets.

" I have no doubt that this strategic investment from Stewart will be good for Miles Away and all the staff.

"We have some exciting opportunities to grow Miles Away and I am aware of some of the other plans that Duncan and his team are working on. I look forward to what should be an exciting time for us all."