Barely a month after Thomas Cook India announced its purchase of Kuoni Global Travel Services’ DMC network in Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas, JTB Corporation today announced its acquisition of all shares of Kuoni Global Travel Services for an undisclosed price.

The Kuoni Global Travel Services acquisition is a move to bolster JTB Corporation’s ambitions to become a top global DMC, as the partnership is expected to strengthen the inbound business services and increase the market share in Europe.

It will also support the expansion and strengthening of the global MICE services in Europe and the US markets, which is complementary to existing JTB MICE business, the company said in a statement.

Thomas Cook’s acquisition does not include Kuoni Destination Management Europe and Kuoni Destination Management US, which remain in the portfolio of Kuoni Global Travel Services.

Reto Wilhelm, CEO of Kuoni Global Travel Services, said: “JTB is one of the biggest and most respected market players in our industry. Joining JTB provides our company with the best positioned owner, which will help us realise the full potential of Kuoni Global Travel Services.”

Eijiro Yamakita, president & CEO of the European regional headquarters of JTB, said: “Kuoni Global Travel Services is one of the world’s leading travel companies with an important presence especially in Asian leisure and corporate groups visiting Europe. The acquisition offers an excellent opportunity to be a unique operator by gathering the network and knowledge. It enables the provision of detailed services to meet each customer’s needs with high added-value and the expansion of the inbound business.”

In the past few years, JTB has been expanding the inbound travel business to Europe, a major destination for travellers. By 2020, it is forecasted that foreign visitors to Europe will reach approximately 620 million (a 150 million increase from 2010), driven especially by China and Asian markets.

In addition to the Japan market, JTB has enhanced the outbound travel business from growing markets. In February, JTB also bought a 40 per cent share of Panorama Tours Indonesia to grow its Indonesian outbound business and inbound business into Japan.
The acquisition is subject to approval by the relevant competition a1uthorities and compliance with any other local legal requirements.

Kuoni Global Travel Services in a statement says it will continue efforts to be a neutral land operator to work with many companies other than JTB, paying full attention on the protection of any sensitive information.

IJM Perennial Development, the developer of the Penang Waterfront Convention & Exhibition Centre (PWCC), is looking for an international venue operator to undertake sales, marketing, operations, catering and facilities management.

The PWCC is a flexible and multi-purpose integrated venue located on the eastern coastline of Penang, Malaysia. Its facilities include a 7,000m² exhibition hall; plenary seating options of 700, 1,200 and 4,500; banquet capacity of up to 4,000 persons; a grand ballroom accommodating 800 people; and 15 meeting rooms of various sizes.

The Light City

The PWCC is part of a mixed development project, The Light City, which includes retail and dining, and is connected to two on-site international standard hotels that offer a total of 745 rooms.

The deadline to submit proposals is 16.00 on July 10, 2017, Kuala Lumpur time. For more information, please contact Richa Kansal at richa@gainingedge.com.

Three of Hertz Global Holdings’ car rental brands – Hertz, Dollar and Thrifty – are now operating in Sri Lanka’s capital of Colombo, following the signing of a multi-brand partnership agreement with local franchise partner Andrew The Car Rental Company.

Mahen Kariyawasan, managing director, Hertz, Dollar and Thrifty Sri Lanka, said: “We intend to expand to the Colombo international airport and another downtown location by early 2018.”

Kariyawasan expressed optimism citing the country’s “booming tourism, growth in expatriate relocations and an increase in international investments”.

Rental options in Sri Lanka vary between short- and long-term, self- and chauffeur-drive options, with vehicles including compact, wagon/state, luxury cars, SUV and minibuses.

All international customers renting with Hertz in Sri Lanka will receive a free SIM card and gift coupons while supplies last.

Eventbrite, a ticketing and event technology platform, and Entegy, an Australian event suite, have teamed up to create an end-to-end event management solution.

The integration, which can be accessed through Eventbrite’s open API platform, Eventbrite Spectrum, will launch first in Australia and New Zealand.

It allows event organisers to create an event on Eventbrite and, using Eventbrite Spectrum connect it to an account in Entegy’s core operating system to transfer attendee data in real-time. Attendee data drawn from Eventbrite is seamlessly fed across the Entegy Suite, which includes best-in-class event apps, social and networking functions, live audience polling, Q&A and discussion, multi-session attendance tracking, digital exhibitor lead generation, and touchscreen kiosks for self-serve onsite name badge printing.

The collaboration will provide opportunity for conference and exhibition event professionals to streamline communications, drive stronger engagement, and simplify the logistics of running an event – all from their event dashboard.

Phil Silverstone, general manager of Eventbrite Australia and New Zealand, said: “Through our partnership with Entegy, we now enable event organisers to take the contact data generated through our system and deliver the next level of event experience. We believe the collaboration will assist more event organisers to maximise the outstanding technologies available to support events and improve attendee experiences.”

Three of Hertz Global Holdings’ car rental brands – Hertz, Dollar and Thrifty – are now operating in Sri Lanka’s capital of Colombo, following the signing of a multi-brand partnership agreement with local franchise partner Andrew The Car Rental Company.

Mahen Kariyawasan, managing director, Hertz, Dollar and Thrifty Sri Lanka, said: “We intend to expand to the Colombo international airport and another downtown location by early 2018.”

Kariyawasan expressed optimism citing the country’s “booming tourism, growth in expatriate relocations and an increase in international investments”.

Rental options in Sri Lanka vary between short- and long-term, self- and chauffeur-drive options, with vehicles including compact, wagon/state, luxury cars, SUV and minibuses.

All international customers renting with Hertz in Sri Lanka will receive a free SIM card and gift coupons while supplies last.

Stephen Tan will retire from his position as chairman of UBM SES with effect from June 30, a role he has held since January 2015.

Tan joined the company in 1984 as joint deputy CEO and became chief executive in 1989. He relinquished the position in 2015.

Under his decisive leadership and deep experiences across the industry, UBM SES has grown from strength to strength and is now one of the largest and most successful trade exhibition organisers in Asia.

“I am grateful and honoured for the opportunity to be at the helm for 26 out of the 33 years spent with the company. To say that it has been a memorable journey would be a great understatement. I am very proud of what we have accomplished through the years, as individuals, as teams and as a company,” said Tan in a media statement.

“UBM plc brings to the table sound corporate vision, dynamic leadership and a deep pool of industry knowledge and best practices. There is no better time than now to announce my retirement. I have no doubt that with the joint forces of two strong entities, the future of UBM SES will be well paved for many years to come,” he added.

Earlier in April, the company announced a new chief executive.