Hays Travel

Hays Travel Limited is an independent travel agent chain headquartered in Sunderland, England. As of 2023, the company has the largest number of retail travel shops in the United Kingdom.[2]

Hays Travel Limited
Hays Travel
TypePrivate
IndustryHospitality, tourism
PredecessorThomas Cook Group
(450+ branches)
Founded1980 (1980)
FounderJohn Hays
Headquarters
Sunderland
,
England
Number of locations
471[1]
Area served
United Kingdom
Key people
Dame Irene Hays (Chairman)
Jonathon Woodall (Chief Operating Officer)
ProductsCharter and scheduled passenger airlines, package holidays, cruise lines, hotels and resorts
BrandsHays Cruise
Hays Faraway
OwnerDame Irene Hays (100%)
Websitewww.haystravel.co.uk
A Thomas Cook branch in Denton, Greater Manchester taken over by Hays Travel. Pictured in December 2019 the former branding is visible beneath the temporary Hays Travel signage.

History

Hays Travel was founded in 1980 by John Hays in Seaham, Durham. Hays initially opened a small retail store behind his mother's clothing store.[3] Since May 2018, Hays Travel reached sales of over £1 billion.[4] The company's turnover increased by £42 million over 2017, when pre-tax profit was up slightly to £10.1 million. At the time, the company had around 1,500 employees.[5]

Expansion

On 9 October 2019, Hays Travel announced that it had purchased all stores from the travel agency Thomas Cook Group, another large travel group headquartered in the UK, which were assumed to be closed due to the business entering liquidation during previous months. The company took over 550 retail locations across the United Kingdom. News reports at the time indicated that Hays would almost treble the number of existing stores and double its workforce.[6]

By the end of November 2019, Hays stated that it would hire an extra 1,500 staff, in addition to its 2,330 who previously worked for Thomas Cook. The total number of Hays Travel employees would total 5,700 people, after the planned hirings.[7] In March 2020, following the purchase of Thomas Cook, Hays Travel was named as one of the Top 100 Employers in the United Kingdom.[8]

On 3 August 2020, Hays Travel announced up to 878 members of its retail staff would be made redundant. This was mainly due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.[9]

On 5 September 2020, Hays Travel acquired Tailor Made Travel, a Welsh chain of travel agencies with approximately 100 employees, then announced the closure of 11 of the 19 shops a month later.[10][11]

References
  1. "About - Overview | Hays Travel Careers". www.haystravel.co.uk.
  2. "Leading travel agencies in the United Kingdom (UK) as of January 2023, by number of travel shops". Statista. 27 January 2023. Archived from the original on 6 March 2023.
  3. "Meet the couple behind Hays Travel as they offer hope to thousands of Thomas Cook staff". Chronicle Live. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  4. "Hays Travel passes £1bn sales mark". Travely Weekly. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  5. "Hays Travel Increases Sales Beyond £1bn". Insider Media. 25 February 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  6. "Rival buys all 555 Thomas Cook stores". BBC News. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
  7. "Thomas Cook's new owner creates 1,500 new jobs". BBC News. 21 November 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  8. "Hays Travel recognised as one of the UKs Top Employers". Sunderland Vibe. 6 March 2020. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  9. "Hays Travel starts consultation with 878 staff". Travely Weekly. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  10. "Hays Travel acquires Tailor Made Travel". Travely Weekly. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  11. "Hays Travel to close 11 ex-Tailor Made Travel branches". Travely Weekly. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
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