Kuoni parent snaps up family-run villa specialist Solmar
Harry KembleKuoni parent Der Touristik UK has acquired family-run villa specialist Solmar with a view to making the firm’s portfolio of 1,600-plus villas available for its high street stores to sell – and a vow to turn Solmar into the UK market leader.
The 30-year-old villa specialist will join brands such as Kuoni, Carrier, CV Villas, Kirker, Jules Verne and Journey Latin America within the Der Touristik UK group.
Owner Julie Blake, daughter of Solmar’s founders John and Maria Tayler, will remain in her position as managing director of the brand, reporting into Der Touristik UK chief executive Francis Torrilla.
Torrilla pledged to protect Solmar’s values, which he said had made it “so successful”, as well as invest in the specialist “with the ambition to grow it into the largest villa operator out of the UK”.
Staff at both Solmar and Der Touristik UK have been told the new ownership will bring growth and “extra jobs”.
Der Touristik UK plans to make Solmar Villas product available to book through all 27 of Kuoni’s UK stores. It will also continue working with the UK travel trade, a Der Touristik spokesperson confirmed to TTG.
Solmar has more than 1,600 private villas in its property portfolio, around 1,000 of which are exclusive. The portfolio includes villas in Spain, Portugal, Cyprus, Greece, France, Turkey, Italy, Croatia and the US.
“Solmar Villas has seen phenomenal success with a real drive for growth and quality," said Torrilla. “The acquisition enhances and complements our existing portfolio of independently managed businesses, enabling us to drive substantial growth in the villa market.”
He added the acquisition meant that the group would in future have “a broader range of price points across our specialist brands”, making them “relevant to more customers”.
“We can bring investment opportunities to continue to grow Solmar Villa into the market leader villa provider and further develop its range and distribution,” he said.
Blake said: “The success of Solmar Villas has been driven by a team with a united aim of providing high-quality villas combined with excellent customer service.
“Our strength is the relationships we have with our villa owners, suppliers, employees and clients, and this will continue to be the driving motivation behind us.
“I am very proud of the business my family started and I’m equally thrilled to work with Francis and the wider team at Der Touristik to drive awareness and growth of this amazing brand.”
She added: “We have some ambitious plans and, with the support of the group, I am excited to be part of Solmar’s next steps.”
Solmar recently hired Michelle Thake as its new senior trade sales manager, who has previously held positions with Not in the Guidebooks, Ocean Holidays, Jet2holidays and Ras AI Khaimah Tourism Development Authority, and has also run her own travel retail business.
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