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Voyages SNCF has bought UK-based pan-European rail booking service Loco2for an undisclosed sum. Loco2 will continue to operate as a standalone brand with its co-founders, Kate and Jamie Andrews, staying with the business. Compared with its peers in the rail booking space, Loco2 has received only modest levels of funding, tapping family, friends and angel investors rather than taking the private equity or venture capital route. Jamie Andrews noted that it has raised ￡1.8 million since launch and that the sale to Voyages SNCF represents “a healthy return for [Loco2] investors”. Voyages-SNCF.com is owned by the French rail operator SNCF and is a de facto online travel agent, one of the biggest in France. It has seven other country-specific sites, selling European rail tickets and passes, hotels, attractions and tours and activities, either standalone or as a package. SNCF has worked with Loco2 since 2012 and was the first rail operator to sell inventory through Loco2. Read original article |
