Thomas Cook to expand in the east

The travel agent and tour operator, Thomas Cook, are looking to expand their market growth into Russia and China. The company owned by TUI is said to be in advanced talks with some businesses in the two markets. The chief executive of Thomas Cook, Manny Fontenla-Novoa, confirmed earlier this week that they are close to finalising a deal with a Russian company and he is confident that they will tie up the loose ends on a deal with a Chinese firm in the early part of next year.

Mr Fontenla-Novoa said that the Russians have been largely travelling to Turkey and Egypt recently and these two places are some of the top destinations that Thomas Cook have dealings with. The Chinese holiday market has also started to expand in recent years with residents who have just celebrated 60-years of being the People’s Republic of China, being more adventurous in their holiday destinations. Many still stick to the Far East, but there is a growing trend to explore Europe.

For now Mr Fontenla-Novoa will not reveal the identities of the firms involved, but said that they would buy a controlling share in the companies and carry on working with the current owners for two or three years until the earn-out agreement is reached. Thomas Cook have enjoyed a flourish to the end of summer sales with many people choosing last minute bookings because of the dull summer. They had just about sold out of their holiday packages, down 10 per cent on last year but in line with predictions.