• Comment: References do not satisfy the requirements of Wikipedia's Notability (organizations and companies) guideline. Coverage of mergers, acquisitions, funding, openings etc. are considered routine in nature and lack the necessary depth of coverage. • Gene93k (talk) 01:13, 14 September 2024 (UTC)


eSky Group is an online travel agency[1] and travel platform operator.[2] It's active in 50 markets across Europe, the Americas, and Africa. [3] The company offers holidays and city breaks dynamic packages[4], as well as stand-alone flights, accommodations, and other travel services.[5]

eSky Group
Company typePrivate
IndustryTourism, Travel, Hospitality
Founded1 July 2004; 20 years ago (1 July 2004)
FounderŁukasz Habaj
Łukasz Kręski
Piotr Stępniewski
Agnieszka Stępniewska
HeadquartersGreen Park, Murckowska 14A Street, Katowice, Poland
Area served
Key people
Łukasz Habaj (CEO)
Andrzej Kozłowski (CFO)
Łukasz Neska (CGO)
Piotr Woś (CTO)
BrandseSky
eDestinos
Thomas Cook Tourism
ServicesPackage holidays and city breaks
Flights
Accommodations
Travel insurance
Car and yacht rentals
Experiences, attractions
Sporting events
RevenueIncrease €801,000,000 (+42% YoY) (2023)
Decrease €18,700,000 (-11% YoY) (2023)
Number of employees
750+ (as of September 2024)
Parent55% stake in eSky Group holds private equity fund MCI Capital
Websiteesky.com

The Group operates under the eSky (Europe, North America, Africa), eDestinos (Latin America) and Thomas Cook brands.[6] It also holds Travel Agent Accreditation of the International Air Transport Association (no. 63210803).[7]

Overview

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eSky Group was founded in 2004, in Poland.[8] Having approx. 550 airlines signed under the agreements in its flight inventory,[9] the company was primarily selling airline tickets via its online platform.[10] In 2014, the company’s owner changed, [11] with MCI Capital listed private equity took a 55% stake in eSky Group.[12]

In 2023, as a result of a business transformation towards a package travel provider,[13] the Polish OTA switched its focus from airline offers aggregation to combining flights and accommodations into city breaks and holidays packages.[14]

The same year, the company reported revenue of more than €800m – an increase of 42% year-on-year – with around 3.3m customers using its services.[15] eSky Group's EBITDA amounted to €18.7m.[3]

International operations

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In April 2024, eSky Group established a partnership with Ryanair, Europe's low-cost carrier, becoming one of the first authorised online travel agencies to provide Ryanair flights, seats, and baggage.[16] The deal guaranteed passengers that their contact and payment information is provided from the travel agent directly to the airline.[17]

At the same time, the travel platform owner started offering package holidays and city breaks in the United Kingdom in April 2024.[18] This followed passing the UK's Civil Aviation Authority approval, and the company covered its packages with the Air Travel Organisers' Licensing (ATOL) protection scheme (no. 12520).[19]

In September 2024, eSky Group acquired Thomas Cook from Hong Kong’s Fosun Tourism Group, excluding its operations in China.[14] The aim was to expand from being an online flight aggregator to a package holidays and city breaks provider, and operates in over 50 countries.[20] The acquisition would pave the way for eSky to grow both in the UK and other Western European markets.[8] Companies announced their intention to combine Thomas Cook's experience in dynamic packaging with eSky's flight inventory and technical capabilities[2] in order to “seize an opportunity for growth in the maturing package holiday sector.”[21]

References

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  1. ^ Percival, Geoff (2024-09-05). "Polish OTA eSky Agrees to Buy Thomas Cook Brand - ittn.ie". ittn.ie. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  2. ^ a b "Thomas Cook finds new home with Poland's eSky Group". www.phocuswire.com. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  3. ^ a b "Recovering firm Thomas Cook acquired by Polish travel group eSky". euronews. 2024-09-06. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  4. ^ Byers, Jim (2024-09-06). "Chinese Group Sells Thomas Cook to Polish Travel Platform". Open Jaw. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  5. ^ "eSky Group: a global travel platform with Polish roots". pressroom.esky.com. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  6. ^ O'Neill, Sean (2024-09-05). "Fosun Sells Thomas Cook to Private Equity-Backed eSky: 8 Takeaways". Skift. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  7. ^ "Check A Code". store.iata.org. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  8. ^ a b Wlodarczak-Semczuk, Anna (2024-09-05). "Polish travel platform eSky to buy Thomas Cook from China's Fosun". www.reuters.com. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  9. ^ Mayling, Samantha. "Thomas Cook acquired by traveltech firm eSky Group". Travel Weekly. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  10. ^ Varley, Len (2024-09-06). "Thomas Cook Returns to European Ownership Under Poland's eSky Travel Group". AviationSource News. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  11. ^ "MCI.EuroVentures will acquire 55% of eSky shares - Grupa MCI". mci.pl. 2022-02-04. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  12. ^ "eSky Group Buys Thomas Cook For £30 Million". 2024-09-05. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  13. ^ Koumelis, Theodore (2024-09-08). "Fosun Tourism Group sells Thomas Cook subsidiary to eSky for £30m". TravelDailyNews Asia & Pacific. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  14. ^ a b Sugiura, Eri. "Thomas Cook acquired by Polish travel group eSky". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  15. ^ Wales, Bethany (2024-09-05). "Thomas Cook snapped up by Polish tech firm in £30m buyout". CityAM. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  16. ^ Percival, Geoff (2024-05-13). "Ryanair Sales Partnership with Polish OTA eSky Officially Goes Live - ittn.ie". ittn.ie. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  17. ^ Whitaker, Greg (2024-04-02). "Sixth OTA joins Ryanair in partnership". Aviation Business News. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  18. ^ "Platforma eSky z licencją na sprzedaż podróży w Wielkiej Brytanii". Rzeczpospolita (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  19. ^ "Search ATOL holders | Civil Aviation Authority". www.caa.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  20. ^ "Thomas Cook acquired by Poland's eSky Group". TTG. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  21. ^ Tamm, Heike (2024-09-06). "eSky to acquire Thomas Cook from China's Fosun". AviTrader Aviation News. Retrieved 2024-09-12.