Transat A.T. Inc., through Consultour Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Transat, announced that it has acquired a controlling interest in Travel Superstore Inc., based in Hamilton, Ontario, which operates 10 travel agencies and a travel Web site under the tripcentral.ca.

tripcentral.ca has developed a new and dynamic approach to marketing vacation travel services by leveraging synergies between the Internet, a call centre with several sales outlets, and the skills of its travel consultants. The new partners plan to further develop and expand this business model in the coming years.

Philippe Sureau, President of Consultour, said: “This investment supports our desire to maintain a growth strategy in the travel distribution business with our existing Travel Plus, Club Voyages and Voyages en Liberté banners, and now with tripcentral.ca, which occupies a very specific niche in the Canadian market. tripcentral.ca, its management team and all of its employees have developed an original and attractive formula that promises to bring big successes, and we plan to help them implement their business plan.”

Richard Vanderlubbe, President of tripcentral.ca, said: “This partnership with Transat will allow us to maintain — and even accelerate — the development of our business vision, which is built on the experience of our employees and the power of Web-based marketing technologies. We will continue to offer consumers a very wide range of products, while enhancing our relationship with Transat’s tour operators.”

Consultour Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Transat A.T. Inc., is a travel agency operator and franchisor with more than 200 sales outlets in Canada. Its mission is to establish individual relationships with customers by providing them with a personalized buying experience through many easily accessible points of sale with quality travel products and competitive prices.

Transat A.T. Inc., with its head office in Montreal, is an integrated company specializing in the organization, marketing, and distribution of holiday travel. The core of its business consists of tour operators in Canada and France. Transat is also involved in air transportation, value-added services at travel destinations, as well as in distribution through travel agency networks. Transat is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:TRZ.B; TRZ.RV.A).