INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
NEW DELHI: Holiday and education travel group Cox Kings is looking at unlocking value of its education business, PGL, either through a
stake sale or an initial public offering in the UK, people familiar with the matter told ET.
UK-based investment banking firm Baird is
advising Cox Kings on the process and has pegged the valuation of the business between Rs 5,000 crore and Rs 6,000 crore, they said
PGL is part of a London-based company, Holidaybreak, which Cox Kings acquired in 2011 for £312 million through its subsidiary Prometheon
Holdings (UK) Ltd.
A spokesperson at Mumbai-based Cox Kings said the company was always looking at a liquidity event and if a valuation
justified a stake sale or an IPO, the company would act in the best interests of shareholders
Baird did not respond to an email seeking comment till press time.
Besides PGL, Holidaybreak also operates brands like NST in the
experiential learning space and the Meininger hotel-hostel brand.
Prometheon is the parent company of Holidaybreak
Holidaybreak’s education division provides residential outdoor education and adventure trips for schoolchildren through the PGL brand
PGL operates around 25 centres in the UK, France and Australia
Holidaybreak's other education brands include NST, a group-travel services provider to schools and colleges in the UK, and EST, which
specialises in bespoke educational travel and subject specific conferences for 16+, higher and further education students.
Its budget brand
Meininger operates in the hotel-hostel space in Berlin, Munich, and Hamburg besides Amsterdam, Brussels, Copenhagen, London and Milan.
In
March 2018, Cox Kings sold 11.58 per cent stake in Prometheon Holdings to SSG Capital Management, an existing investor, for Rs 450 crore to
Group CEO Peter Kerkar had said the company was looking at all opportunities to “unlock value” in its businesses.
