Thomas Cook to become ‘online holiday marketplace’

Thomas Cook is reported to be considering a radical overhaul of its business to become an online aggregator.

According to The Telegraph, Thomas Cook held meetings with shareholders last week and is to focus on its website which would allow users to curate their own holiday.

Third-party airlines and hotels as well as excursions would be on offer to create a “pseudo-aggregator” model.

The newspaper said the changes were part of a strategy to become an “asset-light” business.

Podcast: What next for Thomas Cook?

However, Thomas Cook would still push ahead with its own-brand hotel expansion through its hotel fund.

Thomas Cook reported half-year losses of £1.45 billion earlier this month, which was mainly down to a £1.1bn write-down of its MyTravel business it acquired in 2007.

It also warned of more cuts this year following numerous rounds of shop closures.

Earlier in the year Thomas Cook announced it was putting its airline up for sale. It has secured £300m financing from banks to help see it through next winter but this is dependent upon the sale of the airline.

Last week, Thomas Cook received a bid from German-Swedish buy-out firm Triton for its Scandinavian business.