Tzell Travel Group and Travel Acquisitions Group last month announced a merger through which Tzell will operate as a stand-alone unit within the TAG portfolio, with Tzell executives assuming TAG's operational leadership.
Tzell president and CEO Barry Liben is now CEO of TAG and Mike Batt, who was CEO, retains the role of TAG chairman and will focus on the franchisee business, Liben said. Other Tzell executives, including senior vice president Jerry Behrens who will manage vendor agreements, vice president of sales and business development David Holyoke and CFO Willie Lynch, now hold similar roles in the broader organization.
Details of the merger agreement were not disclosed. Liben said JPMorgan Chase's private equity investment firm One Equity Partners, co-owner of Carlson Wagonlit Travel and a Travelport investor, has a stake in the deal.
TAG's business units include leisure divisions, franchisor operations under the Travel Franchise Group banner, which includes Travel Leaders—the rebranded Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates—and ProQuest Travel Group, which houses some corporate travel management operations.
In March, TAG—formerly Carlson Leisure Group—acquired Coral Gables, Fla.-based TMC TraveLeaders and began an aggressive shift toward corporate travel through technology investment and M&A activity
(BTNonline, May 12).The combined organizations handle about $2 billion in sales. Company-owned and franchise operations have nearly $7 billion in annual sales.
BTN's
2008 Business Travel Survey shows New York-based Tzell processed 648,949 ARC air transactions worth $531.1 million in sales in 2007. The super regional Tzell acquired 11 U.S. agencies in 2007 and several others in 2006.
Last summer, Tzell's management bought out the company from Irish travel holding company CNG Travel.
Tzell's new relationship will open international doors. The company launched a U.K. office earlier this year and has 35 U.S. branch locations. "We have a bigger appetite now," Liben said. "Certainly, we are going to be much more active in an area where we stayed away from beforehand."
Regarding agency partnerships, Liben said, "We are looking for more than affiliations in the future. We'll be looking to put our own flag in three or four other cities." At least one will be in Europe and Asia each by early 2009.