Travel Counsellors is in the process of exiting the Australian market.
The group will migrate the local Aussie TC franchisee businesses across to Australian travel brand, Express Travel Group (ETG), early in 2021. The move will have no impact on South African operations, confirms Travel Counsellors SA.
ETG ceo, Tom Manwaring, has welcomed the Australian Travel Counsellors, telling Travel Daily that ETG had a long and proud history of supporting and promoting independent agencies. He also confirmed that ETG would provide a new division for its mobile members, powered by Express Tickets and Aeronology NDC-capable technology.
Travel Counsellors ceo, Steve Byrne, was quoted saying Travel Counsellors was embarking on a package of measures to support its long-term strategy and future growth, which had led to this transition decision.
“Our aim in this has been to find an elegant and caring way forward for our people, and support as many of our franchisees as possible to transition their business to ETG,” he added.
“This process is specific to our business in Australia and it has no impact on our operations in South Africa or any of our other markets. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, our company has consciously considered operational and financial measures to support our long-term strategy and future-growth. At the heart of this is ensuring best outcomes for our Travel Counsellors, our staff and our clients in each market. In Australia, that led to partnering with ETG, with whom we share core values,” said gm of Travel Counsellors South Africa, Mladen Lukic.
Mladen added that Travel Counsellors South Africa had adapted exceptionally well to challenging conditions in 2020, saying that the business was seeing strong recovery and potential for growth.
“Despite the challenges, we are confident about our future in this market and have already grown our local Travel Counsellors base in excess of 15%,” he added.