Lindblad Expeditions has acquired a 60% stake in White Desert, a luxury tour operator specializing in Antarctica, and Echo Charlie, a provider of private plane adventures.
The purchase price is approximately $61 million "plus approximately $6 million for cash on the balance sheet and subject to customary true-up adjustments for working capital, cash and indebtedness," Lindblad stated.
Both brands were founded by Patrick Woodhead, who will remain involved with both companies in leadership positions (chairman of White Desert and CEO of Echo Charlie). He also will join Lindblad Expeditions as strategic innovation advisor.
Woodhead's companies will operate as standalone offerings and maintain their brand identities. Lindblad acquired a 60% stake in each brand under one purchase agreement.
Echo Charlie was previously known as the Dr. Jones Collection, with its new identity reflecting its focus on aviation to remote places.
Lindblad Expeditions CEO Natalya Leahy said the acquisition is the largest in company history and "a powerful partnership between two businesses that have spent decades pushing the boundaries of what experiential travel can be."
Lindblad said there were "significant opportunities to expand White Desert's extraordinary offering, with the development of camps and guest experiences and bolstering their logistical capabilities."
White Desert launched in 2005. Its founder is a polar explorer who completed the fastest horizontal coast-to-coast crossing of Greenland, according to Guinness World Records. White Desert brings guests to an even more remote part of Antarctica than typically accessed, blending luxury and expedition.
"Having spent the last 20 years pioneering tourism in the interior, we are privileged to join forces with people who did exactly the same thing, only 40 years earlier on the coastline of Antarctica. With a shared ethos for small-scale, responsible travel, we are thrilled for what lies ahead," Woodhead said.
The acquisition will also support the growth of Echo Charlie, a reimagined concept of the Dr. Jones Collection that was announced last year with itineraries beyond Antarctica.
The revamped brand is inspired by the golden age of aviation and operates itineraries on a fully restored DC-3, an aircraft that can land on remote airstrips. The itineraries are designed to blend "genuine adventure with accessibility," Woodhead said.
The Echo Charlie itineraries explore destinations like Colombia, Patagonia and Greenland.
"Echo Charlie delivers on what most of us only read about in childhood stories -- flying to hidden places, uncovering the secrets of ancient cultures and experiencing the breathtakingly diverse landscapes," Leahy said.