Swiss travel conglomerate Kuoni on Wednesday announced that
it is exiting the tour operator business, and will sell that segment of the
company.
Kuoni’s tour activities are primarily focused on
European and Asian source markets through FIT and group travel brands. The
company also owns several U.S.-based brands, including New York-based Travel
Bound and AlliedTPro, the latter of which launched an experiential tour
company, Brite Spokes, in 2013.
“Kuoni’s outbound business faces increasing challenges from
changing market conditions,” Kuoni said in a statement about the move.
Kuoni’s board of directors and executive board have decided
to focus on its other businesses, including visa processing, corporate travel
management, groups and meetings, and destination management.
The exit from the tour business includes offices in
Switzerland, U.K., Benelux, Hong Kong/China and India as well as operations in
Scandinavia and Finland. It affects approximately 3,800 employees.
The company’s tour business had $2.16 billion in
revenue in 2014.
“Kuoni firmly believes that the outbound business can be
better developed under new ownership,” the company stated.
Kuoni said that its decision will not have any impact on customers’ existing or future tour
bookings. All units will continue to operate as normal. Kuoni intends to
find new owners in 2015, the company stated.