Silver Voyages Acquired by Privilèges Voyages


Silver Voyages racheté par Privilèges Voyages

CroisiEurope


On August 18, Jean-Pierre Garbaccio, the CEO of Silver Voyages, passed away.

His family then decided to put the travel agency up for sale, located at 30 Rue Washington, in Paris’s 8th arrondissement.

While the operation needed to be completed swiftly to ensure the company’s continuity, it should not be done at any price. It was a matter of transferring a client base, but above all a know-how, a team and a certain conception of the trade.

Three main criteria were highlighted by Bruno Garbaccio, Jean-Pierre’s son, in selecting the potential buyer namely preserving employment and the future of the staff, but also maintaining the quality and personalization of the relationship with clients.


Third acquisition in three years for Privilèges Voyages

Finally, it was also necessary to ensure that Silver Voyages remains tied to the Manor ecosystem, while being able to guarantee its continuity and development.

They were nearly ten to position themselves, and ultimately four takeover dossiers were submitted.

The operation took rather little time, as we have just learned of Silver Voyages being acquired by the Privilèges Voyages group. The handover was facilitated by Manor.

“It was not about simply seeking the best bid, but about identifying the project in which the DNA of Silver Voyages could continue to live and create value“, explained Bruno Garbaccio.

The arguments in favor of Privilèges Voyages in this takeover were the company’s human scale and family spirit, as well as the particular attention paid to the teams, to the clients, and to the continuity of the business.

Thus, it is the third acquisition in three years for the group led by Morgane Benhamou. There was first Actuels Voyages, in 2024, then Intermonde last year.

To read : Privileges Voyages relies on external growth

“Our aim is not to transform Silver Voyages, but to continue its story, by relying on its teams, its expertise and the relationship built for decades with its clients.

We immediately found ourselves in the same mindset: loyal teams, with long tenures, true experts in their craft, with the will to do things well, simply
“, commented Morgane Benhamou, CEO of Privilèges Voyages.

Amex GBT Acquired by Long Lake, AI Specialist


Amex GBT rachetée par Long Lake, spécialisée dans l'IA - Depositphotos.com Auteur ViewApart

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American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT) a finalisé son acquisition par Long Lake Management dans le cadre d’une transaction entièrement en numéraire valorisant l’entreprise à environ 6,3 milliards de dollars.

Annoncée le 4 mai 2026 et approuvée par les actionnaires le 3 août, l’opération entraîne le retrait d’Amex GBT de la Bourse de New York.

Les actionnaires ont reçu 9,50 dollars par action, soit une prime de 65,1 % par rapport au VWAP sur 30 jours à la date de l’accord. Amex GBT poursuit désormais ses activités en tant que société privée.

Le financement de l’acquisition repose sur des fonds propres apportés par les investisseurs existants de Long Lake et Koch Equity Development, ainsi que sur un financement par emprunt.


Long Lake prévoit d’intégrer ses équipes d’ingénierie IA aux équipes d’Amex GBT

This acquisition is expected to bolster Amex GBT’s artificial intelligence capabilities. Long Lake plans to merge its AI engineering teams with Amex GBT’s engineering workforce.

“Tools for agents and AI-assisted travel advisors; clients can look forward to ongoing innovation,” explains Paul Abbott, chief executive officer of Amex GBT.

For Alex Taubman, co‑founder and CEO of Long Lake, the deal should enable us to “push the boundaries of artificial intelligence in the travel sector.”


Qui est Long Lake ?

Founded in 2023, Long Lake Management is an investment firm that positions itself as specializing in transforming service-oriented companies through artificial intelligence.

Its model involves acquiring or taking stakes in established service businesses, then deploying its own technology platform, named Nexus, to accelerate growth and enhance the customer experience.

Long Lake says it has already acquired or formed partnerships with dozens of companies. The firm is backed in particular by investors such as General Catalyst, Alpha Wave, Elad Gil, D1 and Thrive.

The acquisition of Amex GBT thus represents a major milestone for this young company, which intends to apply its AI-driven transformation approach to one of the world’s leading players in business travel.

Manawa Acquired by Austrian CheckYeti to Create a European Outdoor Activities Giant


Manawa a été rachetée par Checkyeti, marketplace autrichienne dédiée aux expériences de plein air et de nature - DepositPhotos.com, lightpoet

CroisiEurope


Manawa scales up.

The French platform specializing in booking outdoor activities joins Checkyeti, the Austrian marketplace dedicated to outdoor and nature experiences.

The new entity provides access to more than 27,000 activities offered by more than 8,000 providers across Europe.

The operation marks a new step in the consolidation of the European outdoor activities market.

“”Rather than simply getting bigger, the transaction combines geographic strengths, product portfolios, technologies and established relationships with providers” , the two companies say in their press release.

For Manawa, this operation should notably bring “the size, technology and resources needed” to accelerate its development. “Together, we share the ambition to build the first European platform dedicated to outdoor and nature experiences“, declares Timothée de Roux, its chief executive.


A project launched with the support of the Banque des Territoires

Behind this operation lies a project launched amid the health crisis.

In 2021, Alentour was officially created as part of the tourism recovery plan, with the support of the Banque des Territoires, and in partnership with Amadeus and Dawex.

The aim was then to digitalise the offering of leisure activities in France and to better connect local providers with hoteliers and tourism institutions.

Hotels, campsites, tourism offices and other players can thus offer their clients locally bookable activities online. The platform should also enable small and medium-sized enterprises in the sector to gain visibility and access a new distribution channel.

At launch, Alentour offered more than 2,500 activities bookable in nearly 200 hotels, mainly on the Côte d’Azur.

The project was then to be progressively rolled out in other territories.


The shift toward outdoor experiences

The strategy evolves in 2022 with the acquisition of Manawa.com, a platform specialized in outdoor and adventure activities. In 2024, Alentour ultimately adopts the name Manawa and concentrates its development on this market.

Canyoning, paragliding, diving, canoe-kayaking, boat trips, mountain activities or even unusual experiences gradually enrich the catalog.

The company then set ambitious goals. It targets more than 10,000 activities connected by the end of 2024 and a turnover of €100 million by 2027-2028.

Growth is indeed on track. Revenue rises from €10,000 in 2022 to €81,000 in 2023, then to €2.28 million in 2024. Yet accounts remain loss-making. Net income stands at -€9.56 million in 2022, -€4.07 million in 2023 and -€3.79 million in 2024. EBITDA also stays negative in 2024, at -€2.92 million.

The trend clearly improves, but at this stage the company has not yet achieved a profit.

The strong growth of activity continues to be accompanied by , as Manawa pursues its investments and expansion.


“A new step” for the Bank of Terrritoires

With the Checkyeti deal, Manawa enters a new phase of its development.

Alentour SAS becomes an operating company of the Checkyeti group, while the Manawa brand is retained and continues to be led by its current team.

The Banque des Territoires remains a minority shareholder of the new entity.

For Camille Rives, head of tourism at the Banque des Territoires, this operation constitutes “a new step in the company’s development“. “By remaining a shareholder, we continue to support its long-term growth and the emergence of a leading European platform dedicated to outdoor and nature experiences“, she adds.

The new group now aims to accelerate its investments in digital distribution, artificial intelligence, and automation. The stated objective is to better support the thousands of independent providers in the sector, still largely under-digitized.


Amelia Brille Published by Amelia Brille TourMaG.com Editor
See all articles by Amelia Brille

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