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Travel agency merger and cooperation schemes promoted
Monday, July 12, 1999
Strong international competition forces Greek travel agents to consider cooperation agreements, merger<.>s and consortiums, according to the Hellenic Association of Travel and Tourism Agents (HATTA<.>). At a recent meeting of the association, members authorized its board to seek government incentives for cooperation and merger agreements.
Incentives, said members, could center on tax concessions and funds for coop advertising, and funds for modernization of office equipment. In the meantime, the association approved a budget for a study on the best way to initiate travel agency cooperation.
According to Takis Antoniou, the association`s president, a small number of financial giants control Europe`s tour operation marketplace. Within four years, he said, Europe`s tourism market will be under the control of six tourism organizations.
Spyros Kokotos, president of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises, spoke a similar line during the association`s recent general assembly. We need to create large-scale tourism enterprises, through buyouts and mergers or cooperation agreements, in order to confront international competition.
And like Mr. Antoniou, he said government could initiate a series of incentives to help promote such a strategy.
Meanwhile, Greeks tend to concentrate on consortium-type cooperation. The latest is one called Epathlon, which was created to bid for the handling of traffic and ground services for the Athens 2004 Olympic Games.
Eight Greek companies joined to form a tourism consortium with initial capital of 100 million drachmas, but now consider increasing that to one billion drachmas. The companies the Kyriakou, Konstantakopoulou & Laniti groups, Bold-Asseti, Goldair, Airtour Greece (TUI), Aktina, Afea Travel and GS Travel.
A similar consortium, with travel sector heavy hitters such as Travel Plan, Plotin and Triaena, was formed last year. It also hopes to provide all tourism products required for the Athens 2004 Games.
A third consortium is on the planning board. This group will be made up of travel agencies from throughout Greece as the consortium`s members will come from within the loosely-held consortium of Greek travel agents, Octopus.
All three consortiums, however, will be geared strictly for the 2004 Games.
Incentives, said members, could center on tax concessions and funds for coop advertising, and funds for modernization of office equipment. In the meantime, the association approved a budget for a study on the best way to initiate travel agency cooperation.
According to Takis Antoniou, the association`s president, a small number of financial giants control Europe`s tour operation marketplace. Within four years, he said, Europe`s tourism market will be under the control of six tourism organizations.
Spyros Kokotos, president of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises, spoke a similar line during the association`s recent general assembly. We need to create large-scale tourism enterprises, through buyouts and mergers or cooperation agreements, in order to confront international competition.
And like Mr. Antoniou, he said government could initiate a series of incentives to help promote such a strategy.
Meanwhile, Greeks tend to concentrate on consortium-type cooperation. The latest is one called Epathlon, which was created to bid for the handling of traffic and ground services for the Athens 2004 Olympic Games.
Eight Greek companies joined to form a tourism consortium with initial capital of 100 million drachmas, but now consider increasing that to one billion drachmas. The companies the Kyriakou, Konstantakopoulou & Laniti groups, Bold-Asseti, Goldair, Airtour Greece (TUI), Aktina, Afea Travel and GS Travel.
A similar consortium, with travel sector heavy hitters such as Travel Plan, Plotin and Triaena, was formed last year. It also hopes to provide all tourism products required for the Athens 2004 Games.
A third consortium is on the planning board. This group will be made up of travel agencies from throughout Greece as the consortium`s members will come from within the loosely-held consortium of Greek travel agents, Octopus.
All three consortiums, however, will be geared strictly for the 2004 Games.
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