CWT (company)

Last updated
CWT
FormerlyCarlson Wagonlit Travel
Company type Privately held company
Industry Travel management company
Founded1994;30 years ago (1994)
Headquarters Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
Area served
145 countries
Key people
Patrick Andersen, President & CEO
Services Corporate travel management, Event management
RevenueUS$1.5 billion
Number of employees
18,000
Website www.mycwt.com
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.

Contents

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]

History

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]

Related Research Articles

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carlson (company)</span> American privately held company

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.

Sabre Corporation, a travel technology company headquartered in Southlake, Texas, is the largest global distribution systems (GDS) provider for air bookings. The company's primary product, the Sabre Global Distribution System, and others like it, act as neutral intermediaries, connecting travel suppliers like airlines and hotels with travel sellers like agencies. They offer real-time availability and pricing, making them important for corporate travel management.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits</span> French railway car company

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amadeus IT Group</span> Spanish travel technology company

Amadeus IT Group, S.A. is a major Spanish multinational technology company that provides software for the global travel and tourism industry. It is the world's leading provider of travel technology that focus on developing software for airlines, hotels, travel agencies, and other travel-related businesses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rezidor Hotel Group</span>

Rezidor Hotel Group AB, originally SAS International Hotels A/S and then Rezidor SAS Hospitality A/S, Rezidor SAS Hospitality Group AB (publ), was a listed hotel group company. Originally founded by Scandinavian conglomerate SAS Group as a hotel in 1960, it became a listed company in 2006. The global headquarters of Rezidor relocated to Brussels, Belgium, circa 1989. The listed company managed hotel chains under brands such as Radisson SAS (now Radisson Blu), Park Inn, and Country Inns & Suites. The brands were franchised from American hospitality and travel conglomerate Carlson Companies from 1994 (the Radisson brand) and 2002 (the other brands) respectively. In 2005, Carlson Companies acquired 25% of the shares of Rezidor Hotel Group from SAS Group. In 2007, SAS Group ceased to be a shareholder of the company.

Travel + Leisure Co. is an American timeshare company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. It develops, sells, and manages timeshare properties under several vacation ownership clubs, including Club Wyndham, WorldMark by Wyndham, Margaritaville Vacation Club, and Accor Vacation Club. The company also provides timeshare exchange services, primarily through RCI, and travel clubs including Travel + Leisure GO.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hogg Robinson Group</span>

Hogg Robinson Group was a business active in the insurance and latterly the corporate travel management sectors. It was acquired by American Express Global Business Travel in July 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CWT Kaleva Travel</span> Travel management company in Finland

CWT Kaleva Travel is the largest travel management company in Finland. It is a division of CWT, owned by Carlson, which acquired the company in February 2011.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">STR, Inc.</span> Division of CoStar Group that provides market data on the hotel industry worldwide

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edenred</span> French payment service provider

Edenred, formerly known as Accor Services, is an international payment service provider.

A travel management company (TMC) is a travel agency which manages organizations' corporate or business travel programs. Such companies will often provide an end-user online booking tool, mobile application, program management, and consulting teams, executive travel services, meetings and events support, reporting functionality, duty of care, and more. Non-Profit travel management companies also provide services to manage complex visa requirements, pre-trip medical needs, remote area travel, and immediate disaster relief planning. These companies use Global Distribution Systems (GDS) to book flights for their clients. This allows the travel consultant to compare different itineraries and costs by displaying availability in real-time, allowing users to access fares for air tickets, hotel rooms and rental cars simultaneously.

Roomkey, formerly Room Key, was a hotel metasearch engine. Roomkey was a joint venture founded by Choice Hotels International, Hilton Worldwide, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, InterContinental Hotels Group, Marriott International, and Wyndham Worldwide, or their respective affiliates. There were over 45,000 hotels in 150 countries listed on Room Key, including 60 brands.

Pullman Hotels and Resorts is a French multinational upscale hotel brand owned by Accor. Pullman has 145 hotels and resorts in 42 countries spread across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle-East and Oceania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharan Pasricha</span> Businessman, entrepreneur (born 1980)

Sharan Pasricha is an Indian-born entrepreneur based in London, England. He founded the hospitality and operating company Ennismore, and acquired The Hoxton and Gleneagles. He is the founder of Maison Estelle and Estelle Manor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Express Global Business Travel</span> Travel management

American Express Global Business Travel is a multinational travel management company headquartered in New York City. Amex GBT has 18,000 employees in more than 140 countries. American Express holds a minority interest in Amex GBT, but the travel company operates as a separate entity from the financial services group.

Radisson Hotel Group is an international hospitality company that has its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. It originated as a division of Carlson Companies, which owned Radisson Hotels, Country Inns & Suites and other brands. In 1994, Carlson signed a franchise agreement with SAS International Hotels (SIH), after which SIH started to use the brand Radisson SAS in the Europe, Middle East and Africa markets. In 2005, Carlson acquired 25% of the shares of SIH, at that time known as Rezidor SAS Hospitality. In 2010, Rezidor Hotel Group became a subsidiary of Carlson. The enlarged hotel group adopted a new trading name, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, which was one of the top hotel corporations in 2013.

References

  1. 1 2 "CWT at a glance".
  2. "Power List 2019". Travel Weekly.
  3. Biesiada, Jamie (February 21, 2019). "CWT scrubs Carlson and Wagonlit from name". Travel Weekly.
  4. "Accor Divests Stake in Carlson Wagonlit Travel" (Press release). Hospitality Net. 27 April 2006.
  5. "Carlson Announces It Will Take Full Ownership of Carlson Wagonlit Travel" (Press release). Business Wire. June 22, 2014.
  6. Phelps, David (March 5, 2015). "Carlson board sharpens its focus". Minneapolis Star Tribune .
  7. King, Danny (June 23, 2014). "Carlson to take full ownership of Carlson Wagonlit Travel". Travel Weekly.
  8. "Carlson Wagonlit Travel launches new division dedicated to hotels – RoomIt by CWT". CWT (Press release). July 17, 2017. Archived from the original on October 6, 2019. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
  9. Chaturvedi, Anumeha (July 17, 2017). "Carlson Wagonlit Travel launches new division RoomIt dedicated to hotels". The Times of India .
  10. "CWT is the New Name in Digital Business Travel, Hotel Distribution, and Meetings & Events". CWT (Press release). February 18, 2019. Archived from the original on February 18, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  11. "First rule of Ransomware Club is do not pay the ransom, but it looks like Carlson Wagonlit Travel didn't get the memo". The Register (Press release). July 31, 2020.
  12. https://skift.com/2021/09/15/carlson-family-gives-up-control-of-namesake-agency-cwt-in-refinancing-deal/ [ bare URL ]
  13. "Amex GBT To Acquire CWT" (Press release). March 25, 2024. Retrieved March 26, 2024.