Blue Cube Travel has been acquired by Israeli group Talma Travel Solutions.
Talma has been on an acquisition trail in the UK and US, buying Hampshire-based Norad in March 2022 and taking a controlling stake in Brickell Travel in the US.
It also acquired a controlling stake in online booking engine Alice and hotel booking platform Arbitrip.
Its CEO Iya Magen said it was continuing to pursue overseas mergers and acquisitions and confirmed that another US deal was already in the pipeline.
“The UK is a key market for Talma due to its dynamic travel landscape,” she said.
“We’re excited about the acquisition of Blue Cube and see it as an important milestone for Talma in the UK market. Our strategy involves identifying and pursuing additional TMC acquisitions that align with our vision and values, particularly those that emphasise innovation and exceptional client service.”
She said Blue Cube stood out “not just for its strong market presence, but also for its dedicated team and commitment to delivering tailored travel solutions”.
“We believe that together, we can enhance our offerings and create even greater value for our clients,” she added.
Looking ahead, plans for both Norad and Blue Cube involve “integrating our strengths to foster growth and collaboration”.
Mel Phaure and Kenny Stirling, founders of London-based Blue Cube, will remain with the TMC, which will continue to operate as separate brand.
They will also be shareholders in the now combined business of Norad and Blue Cube.
The pair issued a joint statement, which said: “We are delighted to be merging with Talma and Norad, which will increase our UK market share and extend our global reach, as well as allow us to further develop our technology offering, and expand our high touch concierge service to future clients.”
Speaking to The Business Travel Magazine after breaking the news to the team, Phaure added: “After very little sleep myself and Kenny were finally able to break the news to everyone here at Blue Cube.
“Yet again our staff are right behind us and are as excited as we are for the next step in this great adventure.
“We believe we now have a bigger, stronger, future-proof business that can continue to compete in today’s and tomorrow’s market. People were key to this deal going ahead and we feel we have merged with our perfect match.”
She said initial talks with Talma began two years ago but unfortunately had to be put on hold.
“We were not in a rush to merge the business and decided to wait until the time was right to reignite and forge ahead with our plans,” she said.
“Talma/Norad run off a very similar ethos to us and once we met them there was really nobody else that we felt would come close to being that perfect match for us.”
She thanked Deborah Potts and Gaby Marcon from Summit Advisory for putting the two companies together in the first instance.
“We still plan to work with the high end, high touch SME market but with an advance suite of technological add ons that will allow us to provide an even better more competitive service,” Phaure added.
Talma operates 15 offices worldwide, employs around 500 people, and generates an annual turnover of approximately $700 million.
The total value of the group’s transactions to date is estimated at $100 million.
