Thomas Cook India to acquire 24 pct stake in Mumbai-based travel-tech startup TravelJunkie Solutions

Travel services firm Thomas Cook India Friday said its board has given nod for the acquisition of a 24 per cent stake in Mumbai-based travel tech start-up 'TravelJunkie Solutions' by its arm TC Tours Ltd.

The board of the company has approved the acquisition of a 24 per cent strategic stake in TravelJunkie Solutions Pvt Ltd, via its wholly owned subsidiary TC Tours Ltd, Thomas Cook India said in a filing to the BSE.

The company, however, did not provide any financial details about the stake acquisition.

TravelJunkie Solutions has developed Ithaka, a chat-based mobile application, serving individual travellers by recommending authentic local experiences for different destinations and helping plan their trip and book activities, hotels and flights, it added.

Commenting on the development, Thomas Cook India Group Chairman Madhavan Menon said: "We are very excited with this strategic investment that also marks our first investment in the exciting travel tech space."

For Thomas Cook, the partnership with Ithaka creates a new channel that reaches and serves millennials, while for Ithaka, the partnership delivers an end-to-end, bookable experience, he added.

"The business model also resonates perfectly with the hybrid technology plus personalisation approach of the Thomas Cook Group in our constant endeavour to innovate and deliver a seamless customer experience to new age travellers," Menon said.

Shares of Thomas Cook India today closed at Rs 205.20 per scrip on BSE, down 3.98 per cent from its previous close.

(With inputs from agencies.)