A stake in the specialized tour operator Simpson Travel, which specializes in holidays in Mediterranean destinations, including Greece, was acquired by the private equity firm Risk Capital Partners, owned by businessman Luke Johnson.
In particular, the tour operator offers holidays in boutique hotels, luxury villas and apartments in Corsica, France, Greece, Italy, Mallorca and Turkey.
Former Hotelplan UK chief executive Paul Carter will take over as chairman of the company following the deal, while Ed Pyke will be upgraded from chief operating officer to chief operating officer.
Founder Graham Simpson will remain as an advisor to the board, while his two sons, Mathew and Daniel, and daughter Hannah will continue to hold the positions of product director, commercial director and head of commercial sales, respectively.
Meanwhile, Helen Grace will continue as director of marketing and communications.
Graham Simpson founded Simply Travel as Simply Crete in 1978, offering villa holidays in Greece.
Thomson Holidays acquired Simply Travel in 1999, but Graham Simpson returned after a short hiatus to found Simpson Travel in 2002 and take over as CEO in 2008.
Risk Capital Partners’ involvement in the travel sector included Neilson Active Holidays and Cruise.co.uk, which was sold to Bridgepoint Development Capital for £52m in 2016.
Luke Johnson, former president of Pizza Express and Channel 4, served as president of Neilson Active Holidays from 2014 to 2018 before its sale. He was also the largest shareholder and non-executive board member of Elegant Hotels, which was sold to Marriott for $200 million in 2019.
Speaking about the new partnership agreement, Ed Pyke said: “I am thrilled to take on the role of CEO at this clutch moment in the company’s history. To date, we have recorded record years in 2023 and 2024 as bookings surpass pre-pandemic levels. As one of the UK’s most trusted specialist tour operators, I recognise the solid foundation and reputation for excellence Graham has built for Simpson Travel and look forward to leveraging his legacy to drive the company forward. RCP’s investment and support provides a wonderful opportunity to advance our ambitious growth plans – I am extremely proud of everything we have achieved to date and extremely excited about the future.”
Graham Simpson said: “I am very happy that RCP is joining our team. There is no doubt that supporting them is an exciting prospect. They are as passionate as I am about the future of Simpson Travel and I know our founding principles will remain at the heart of the business. Our reputation is based on the exceptional service and distinctive quality of our properties, and I look forward to watching the business grow more and more under the leadership of an exceptional management team.”
“We believe Simpson Travel is an amazing brand with an extremely loyal customer base. We look forward to supporting Ed and the management team in their ambitious plans to grow the business,” added Luke Johnson.
