Carlson Wagonlit Travel today announced the long-awaited acquisition of the Fenton, Mo.-based corporate travel agency owned by Maritz Inc., now being called Maritz Corporate Travel, that for three years has operated as TQ3 Travel Solutions' U.S. partner. TQ3 yesterday said Navigant International would assume that role
(BTNonline, March 18). CWT said the Maritz deal, which it is calling an integration more than an acquisition, "further solidifies CWT's position as the second-largest travel management company in the world and the largest wholly owned global corporate travel network." The transaction does not include Maritz's meeting, event and incentive group travel business, including the Maritz McGettigan subsidiary.
Carlson Wagonlit Travel North America president Robin Schleien said the deal would close within 90 days, following anticipated Federal Trade Commission approval. A thorough integration strategy is expected to be formed within six months. "It's not going to be 'ready, fire, aim,' " said Schleien. MCT will be consolidated within CWT, and MCT president and CEO Jack O'Neill has been named executive vice president and COO for CWT in North America. Details on new roles for other top MCT executives will begin to emerge in the coming days.
Schleien lauded the two firms' technologies, including CWT's Symphonie platform and MCT's ProView traveler profile system, and suggested the new, bigger CWT would operate the best of both. O'Neill spoke to the two companies' complementary cultures.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, although CWT Worldwide president and CEO Herve Gourio said CWT's initial offer was trumped by other bidders, so CWT made a second offer that was accepted. "The negotiating process was a bit too long, to my taste," he joked.
Speaking this afternoon with
Business Travel News, O'Neill and Schleien declined to address specifically provocative comments made yesterday by TQ3 officials, including one claim that Maritz's corporate agency had not been meeting expectations in delivering multinational business to TQ3. Maritz Inc. chief marketing officer Scott Bush did say, however, that corporate travel was not within Maritz's core strategy going forward, even though "we strongly believed in our corporate travel team."