Formerly | Carlson Wagonlit Travel |
---|---|
Company type | Privately held company |
Industry | Travel management company |
Founded | 1994 |
Headquarters | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States |
Area served | 145 countries |
Key people | Patrick Andersen, President & CEO |
Services | Corporate travel management, Event management |
Revenue | US$1.5 billion |
Number of employees | 18,000 |
Website | www |
Footnotes /references [1] |
CWT (formerly Carlson Wagonlit Travel) is a travel management company that manages business travel, meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions, and handles event management.
Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the company reported US$23 billion in total transaction volume in 2018. [1] It is ranked 5th on the list of top earning travel companies published by Travel Weekly. [2]
CWT has existed in its present form since 1994, the result of a 50%/50% merger of two large travel agencies: the Ask Mr. Foster Travel Agency chain, later called Carlson Travel Network, and the travel agency of Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits (literally sleeping car ), founded by Georges Nagelmackers in 1872 in Belgium and later acquired by Accor. [3]
On April 27, 2006, Accor announced the sale of its 50% interest in CWT: 5% to Carlson and 45% to One Equity Partners, an affiliate of JP Morgan Chase. [4]
On June 22, 2014, Carlson, which owned a 55% stake in CWT, agreed to acquire the 45% interest in CWT held by JPMorgan Chase. [5] [6] [7]
In July 2017, the company launched RoomIt by CWT, dedicated to hotel distribution. [8] [9]
On February 18, 2019, the company announced that it was rebranding as CWT. [10]
On July 31, 2020, the Register reported that CWT was the victim of a ransomware incident a week earlier, in which they paid US$4.5 million. [11]
In 2022, CWT had a capital injection which resulted in Carlson becoming a minority shareholder. [12]
On march 25th 2024 rival AMEX GBT announced it is to buy CWT. [13]
Radisson Hotels is a multi-brand hotel chain with a worldwide presence. Its brands include several using the Radisson name, as well as other brands like Park Plaza Hotels & Resorts and Country Inn & Suites.
Carlson is an American privately held company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, United States. Its primary subsidiary is Carlson Private Capital Partners, a family office that manages the owners' wealth. It previously held interests in hotels, including Radisson Hotels, and restaurants, including TGI Fridays. The company is owned by Barbara Carlson Gage and Marilyn Carlson Nelson, daughters of the founder, Curt Carlson.
Accor S.A. is a French multinational hospitality company that owns, manages and franchises hotels, resorts and vacation properties. It is the largest hospitality company in Europe, and the sixth largest hospitality company worldwide.
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Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits is a Belgian-founded French company known for providing and operating luxury trains with sleepers and dining cars during the late 19th and the 20th centuries, most notably the Orient Express. Founded by Georges Nagelmackers in 1872, CIWL developed an international network of trains beginning in Europe, and later expanding to Asia and Africa. The trains provided luxury and comfort at a time when travelling was still rough and dangerous. The Armistice with Germany was signed in a CIWL train carriage, the Compiègne Wagon, on November 11, 1918.
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Regent Hotels & Resorts is a British-American luxury hospitality brand, founded by hotelier Robert H. Burns in 1970. After passing through different owners since foundation, it is currently jointly owned by IHG Hotels & Resorts and Formosa International Hotels Corporation since July 2018, with hotels and resorts in Asia and Europe.
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Park Plaza Hotels & Resorts, formerly Park Plaza International Hotels, Inns and Resorts and commonly known as just Park Plaza, is a hotel chain which runs several hotel groups as franchises. It was established in 1986 as a company and acquired by Olympus Real Estate in 1997. In year 2000, Carlson acquired the Park Plaza Hotels & Resorts as well as sister brand Park Inn. As of 2019, the brands were owned by Radisson Hotel Group.
STR, Inc. is a subsidiary of CoStar Group that provides market data on the hotel industry worldwide, including supply and demand and market share data. The company has a corporate headquarters in Hendersonville, Tennessee, an international headquarters in London, England and offices in Italy, Dubai, Brazil, Singapore, Tokyo, Jakarta, Sydney, and Beijing.
Edenred, formerly known as Accor Services, is an international payment service provider.
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