The UK-based travel company, Thomas Cook, has reported that its recent financial procedures are currently having a positive impact on its bottom line.
The company, which until recently, was under severe financial strain, has implemented several financial initiatives to improve its revenues and control costs, and is pleased to report that its efforts are bearing fruit.
Harriet Green, the new group chief executive, said, ‘I have spent my first two months reviewing the business, learning about our customers and meeting our people across the world.
Working together with the management team, my priority has been to ensure a renewed focus on delivering to our plans for the current financial year, reviewing our approach for the forthcoming year and developing our objectives to grow and strengthen the business for the future.’
However, the company’s recent sales continue to register a negative growth, with sales of typical breaks falling by 9 percent in the 2012 summer season, compared to the same period in 2011, with an 11 percent fall in the number of holidays offered.
The company has reported that late bookings on holidays to Turkey, Spain and Greece have given it a boost, and the brand is feeling confident about riding out the financial crisis once the annual results are compiled.
Previously, the company closed the sale of its 51 percent ownership stake in Hoteles Y Clubs De Vacaciones (HCV), to a consortium led by Iberostar Hoteles y Apartamentos SL, for €72.2 million in cash. The company has also sold its 77 percent interest in Thomas Cook (India) Limited (TCIL), its Indian subsidiary, to Fairbridge Capital (Mauritius) Limited, a subsidiary of Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited, for gross proceeds of around £94m, to help meet its financial obligations.
