The dismantling of Thomas Cook, with the sale of all 555 UK stores to a smaller rival of the collapsed holiday giant.
Thomas Cook, which went bankrupt overnight last month, was the biggest holiday company in Britain with both a tour operator and airline division.
Travel agent Hays Travel, which is mostly based in northern England, announced in statement that it has acquired the branch portfolio from the official liquidator for an undisclosed sum.
The official receiver added Wednesday that Hays has already recruited 421 former Thomas Cook staff.
Hays added in a separate release that it could potentially save up to 2,500 jobs and would seek to reopen some shops as soon as Thursday.
And it also expects to create another 100 jobs at its headquarters in the city of Sunderland, northeastern England, as a result of the transaction. The independent travel firm was formed 40 years ago by husband and wife team Irene and John Hays.
It has since expanded to 190 branches and employs 1,900 staff with annual sales of more than USD 1.2 billion.
“We are looking to employ as many Thomas Cook staff as possible and we are reaching out to them,” said John Hays.
He also confirmed the Thomas Cook brand would disappear from the British high street and will be replaced by Hays.
“The agreement will see Hays Travel acquire a total of 555 stores around the UK, providing re-employment opportunities for a significant number of former employees of Thomas Cook’s retail operations who were made redundant,” the statement added. Wednesday’s announcement was welcomed by the British government and travel industry trade union the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA).
And it offers hope to the 9,000 UK staff who were made unemployed overnight when the group collapsed due to funding shortage.
The collapsed company’s notable assets include 100 aircraft at its airline division, and 200 hotels and hotels clubs that are based around the world.