Thomas Cook eyes overseas buyouts

Thomas Cook India (TCIL) is aggressively eyeing overseas and domestic acquisitions. The acquisitions will be in the areas of holiday packages, foreign exchange, travel, and travel insurance, said Madhavan Menon, executive director of Thomas Cook India. He is set to take over as managing director in place of Ashwini Kakkar.

The company has set its eyes on West Asia and other parts of Asia as the immediate market for acquisition and office expansion.

TCIL has become more aggressive after it was taken over by Dubai Financial LLC from the parent Thomas Cook AG of Germany said Menon.

"There will be no internal restructuring in the company after the recent change in management. We will be continuing with our existing infrastructure and employees. We would like our business to double or triple in the next 2-3 years and inorganic expansion is one of the ways to achieve that. From our existing network of 45 branches across 19 cities, we plan to expand to 150 cities in another three years," said Menon.

Besides its Indian operations, TCIL also operates in Sri Lanka and Mauritius, where the company handles businesses like inbound holiday business, ground handling at the airports, ticketing and foreign exchange.

TCIL will continue to partner with its erstwhile parent Thomas Cook AG.

"India is a growing market for tourists from Europe. We would like to continue tapping this potential using Thomas Cook AG's base in Europe," he said.

The Dubai firm acquired 60 per cent in TCIL in early 2006 for an estimated consideration of Rs 423 crore ($ 92 million) and the remaining 20 per cent was later on acquired for Rs 161 crore ($ 35 million) through an open offer of the company.

Dubai Financial LLC is a subsidiary of Dubai Investment Group.

TCIL will be celebrating its 125th year in India through a variety of events and programmes.

TCIL has reported a total income of Rs 121.78 crore for the year ended October 30, 2005, a decline of 2.27 per cent compared to Rs 124.62 crore in the previous year.

The company has reported a net profit of Rs 26.86 for the year ended October 30, 2005, a 2.18 per cent decline compared to Rs 27.46 crore reported in the previous corresponding year.