Is there future for the “new” Thomas Cook?
Digital Marketing in Hospitality
— 9 experts shared their view



Professor of Strategy at University of South Australia Business School
Given the scale and market presence of the existing global OTA duopoly, there are precious few contenders that would dare to challenge them. see more

The ability of the "new" Thomas Cook to trade as a purely online business will be improved by not having the added costs of travel retail agencies, maintaining its own airline and operating their own brand of hotels. But will those former customers who booked in the comfort of their local Thomas Cook agency, with the familiar faces of expert travel agents be willing to book online via ThomasCook.com? I hope so, but it's no guarantee. Having a strong offline travel brand doesn't mean they will transfer all of that goodwill (and traffic) to their new travel portal.

Program Director, Master’s Degree in Hospitality Strategy and Digital Transformation at Les Roches Global Hospitality Education
Could Thomas Cook succeed as an OTA? Maybe. Most new OTA ventures lack the global brand recognition with both consumers and travel industry suppliers that Thomas Cook has built. It is unlikely to be enough to prevail where so many others have not, against Expedia and Booking.com, whose loyalty programs compete directly with those of the major airline and hotel brands and distribution agreements reach almost every travel destination on the planet. see more

Adjunct Professor NYU Tisch Center for Hospitality and Hospitality & Online Travel Tech Consultant
I am highly skeptical of Thomas Cook's resurrection as a B2C online travel player i.e. an OTA specializing in selling beach vacations and city breaks, and here is why: see more

Founder at Ghost Works
Venerable brands always have the potential for a renaissance. Of course, success hinges on forgiveness (forgetfulness?) of all those stranded travelers. And the continued focus on "fun in the sun" vacations is a smart way to maintain that differentiation and historical brand promise. see more

I don't think there is a new TC. I think that this was the plan all along. I remember sitting in the UK in 2011/12 reading an article: Britain's Least Admired Companies of 2011 where TC was mentioned. It also let me to look at their share price and saw it tumbled to somewhat below 20c (which for me was surprising)...but then I saw they didn't have a CEO and no-one wanted to take the job since a few month....sinking ship comes to mind. see more

As expected, Fosun is trying to capitalize on the name and relative "fame" of the Thomas Cook brand to milk out as much value as possible from the acquisition. However, simply jumping on the OTA's model without much differentiation from other actors could mean trouble for the "old" newcomer. see more

Founder | CEO | Futurist
As far as we know, the new Thomas Cook will not be an OTA in the classic sense of the term, at least not in Europe. Over here, in fact, TC will pull inventory from a few bedbanks (namely: HotelBeds, Webbeds, and Yalago), while it will build its own inventory in Asia. see more

Growing up in Scotland I have fond memories of going into the local Thomas Cook store as a kid. The travel agents in the store knew each family, their vacation preferences and would be trusted to book the annual summer vacation, most often to the Spanish Islands or somewhere in Greece. see more