Sudipta Dev – Mumbai
The recent announcement by FCM Travel Solutions regarding the acquisition of the Rs 750 crore Travel Tours Group (TTG), positions the company as a Rs 3000 crore enterprise. FCM Travel Solutions, the India division of leading global travel company, the Australia – headquartered Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG) has been operating in India since three decades. “We have a long-term commitment to growth in India. The acquisition of TTG strengthens our product portfolio and gives us a stronger national footprint,” said Rakshit Desai, managing director, FCM Travel Solutions.
Pointing out that FCM Travel Solutions is currently the second largest corporate travel management company in India, Desai stated, “This partnership propels us into the top three players in all the core travel segments we operate in, as well as the second largest leisure travel player by volume.” He revealed that the partnership will help FCM’s leisure business become significantly larger. “Travel Tours Group has a strong presence in South India, which will bolster our distribution strength in this market. The acquisition also enables us to enter new leisure segments like wholesale,” mentioned Desai.
Elaborating on the integration planned, in terms of operations and human resources, Desai stated, “The businesses will start realising strategic benefits within a 12 month period. Both the organisations will combine to form a strong talent pool of 1,600 travel professionals across 44 locations in 16 cities. We will be bringing together synergies of both businesses with the intent to enhance efficiency and productivity.”
Being a part of a global conglomerate brings many benefits to the customers in India. “Spread over 90 countries, FCM Travel Solutions brings the buying power of our global network to enable our India businesses offer significant savings to customers,” said Desai, adding that the brand promise assures a consistent consumer experience across markets as global best practices are integrated across regions.