Wyndham Exchange & Rentals(SM) to Acquire Hoseasons
2010年2月22日 - 10:03PM
PRニュース・ワイアー (英語)
PARSIPPANY, N.J., Feb. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Wyndham
Worldwide (NYSE:WYN) today announced that its Exchange &
Rentals business unit, the European leader in exclusive marketing
of independent holiday accommodation, has agreed to acquire
Hoseasons Holdings Ltd, one of the UK's most renowned holiday
brands, from HgCapital and a number of individual parties. The
acquisition price is approximately $60 million, net of estimated
cash acquired. The transaction is subject to the consent of the
Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the UK, which the companies
hope to obtain before the end of the first quarter. Wyndham
Worldwide expects this acquisition to be accretive in 2011.
Hoseasons, with a proud and distinguished 65-year heritage, is one
of the best-known brand names in UK tourism. The company provides a
wide range of holiday offerings in over 15,000 lodges, cottages,
villas, caravans and boats across seven European countries.
Wyndham's European rentals business is the leading provider in
exclusive marketing of independent holiday accommodation across the
continent and has many of Europe's best-known holiday brands
including English Country Cottages, Scottish Country Cottages,
cottages4you, Welcome Cottages, Chez Nous and Canvas Holidays in
the UK, and Landal GreenParks, Novasol, Dansommer and Cuendet
across Northern, Central and Southern Europe. These iconic brands
have a combined portfolio of over 60,000 holiday properties located
in over 20 European countries. "The purchase of Hoseasons is a
great example of how we are deploying a portion of our free cash
flow to supplement organic growth with opportunistic acquisitions,"
said Stephen P. Holmes, chairman and CEO, Wyndham Worldwide.
"Hoseasons offers a strong strategic fit with our European rentals
business and an attractively-priced opportunity to continue to grow
our fee-for-service businesses." "We are delighted that Hoseasons
is joining the Wyndham Exchange & Rentals family," said Geoff
Ballotti, CEO, Wyndham Exchange & Rentals. "Hoseasons has been
providing exceptional holidays at affordable prices for 65 years.
Hoseasons is a highly successful business and a consumer icon in
the UK, complementing Wyndham's existing rentals brands in terms of
product offering, customer service and values. This acquisition
enables us to provide European vacationers with a great selection
of inventory, all backed by Wyndham Worldwide, one of the most
trusted names in vacation rentals." Ian Ailles, Managing Director,
European Rentals, Wyndham Exchange & Rentals said: "The
addition of Hoseasons to our existing portfolio of independent
holiday accommodation brands means we can offer customers the
complete range of holiday experiences in Europe. The addition of
the UK holiday parks completes our suite of holiday offerings; from
caravans to castles, we now have it all!" Wyndham Worldwide
retained Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC as financial advisor
and Kirkland & Ellis LLP for corporate legal services related
to this transaction. About Wyndham European Rentals Wyndham's
European Rentals business, part of Wyndham Exchange & Rentals
and the Wyndham Worldwide family of companies (NYSE:WYN), has the
largest and most diverse collection of vacation rental properties
in the UK and Continental Europe. A combined portfolio of over
60,000 vacation homes - cottages, farmhouses, apartments, villas
and even lighthouses and castles - are available to rent in
geographic regions ranging from the Arctic Circle to the
Mediterranean and from the Atlantic Ocean to the Black Sea.
Wyndham's European Rentals also offer customers a complete range of
vacation experiences, including beach holidays, country cottages,
Tuscan farmhouses, family lodges set in forests, boating holidays,
ski lodges and camping holidays with traditional gypsy roulottes.
Wyndham's European Rentals has some of the most iconic brands in
the European vacation market, including Landal GreenParks, with
more than 60 holiday villages offering 11,000 bungalows and chalets
in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the
Czech Republic. Novasol, which includes specialist brands Cuendet
and Dansommer, is the largest provider of holiday homes for
Continental Europe, both in number of properties offered and in
geographic spread. The Holiday Cottages Group is the number one
provider of holiday homes in the UK and to UK travelers going
abroad, with leading brands including cottages4you, English Country
Cottages, Welcome Cottages, easycottages.com and a portfolio of
Southern European homes with Villas4you. Completing the portfolio,
Canvas Holidays provides a unique outdoor holiday experience for
families with nearly 100 campsites in nine European countries.
About Wyndham Worldwide As one of the world's largest hospitality
companies, Wyndham Worldwide offers individual consumers and
business-to-business customers a broad suite of hospitality
products and services across various accommodation alternatives and
price ranges through its premier portfolio of world-renowned
brands. Wyndham Hotel Group encompasses approximately 7,110
franchised hotels and approximately 597,700 hotel rooms worldwide.
Wyndham Exchange & Rentals offers leisure travelers, including
its 3.8 million members, access to over 65,000 vacation properties
located in approximately 100 countries. Wyndham Vacation Ownership
develops, markets and sells vacation ownership interests and
provides consumer financing to owners through its network of over
155 vacation ownership resorts serving over 820,000 owners
throughout North America, the Caribbean and the South Pacific.
Wyndham Worldwide, headquartered in Parsippany, N.J., employs
approximately 25,000 employees globally. For more information about
Wyndham Worldwide, please visit the Company's web site at
http://www.wyndhamworldwide.com/. Forward-Looking Statements This
press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the
meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, conveying management's expectations for the future,
including, without limitation the information under the "Guidance",
which are based on plans, estimates and projections at the time the
Company makes the statements. Forward-looking statements involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may
cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the
Company to be materially different from any future results,
performance or achievements expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements
contained in this press release include statements related to the
closing of the transaction discussed in this release and the
performance of the acquired business. You are cautioned not to
place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which
speak only as of the date of this press release. Factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those in the
forward-looking statements include general economic conditions, the
economic environment for the hospitality industry, the impact of
war and terrorist activity, operating risks associated with the
vacation rentals business, as well as those described in the
Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the SEC on
February 19, 2010. Except for the Company's ongoing obligations to
disclose material information under the federal securities laws, it
undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to any
forward-looking statements, to report events or to report the
occurrence of unanticipated events. DATASOURCE: Wyndham Worldwide
Corporation CONTACT: Wyndham Exchange & Rentals, Nigel Main,
+44-7960-037241, , or Investors, Margo C. Happer, Senior Vice
President, Investor Relations, Wyndham Worldwide Corporation,
+1-973-753-6472, Web Site: http://www.wyndhamworldwide.com/
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