TUI to close French travel agents and cut jobs

TUI plans to close or sell its network of travel agents in France with the loss of almost 600 jobs as the travel operator cuts costs in response to the Covid-19 crisis.

The FTSE 100 company said if it shuts all 70 of the retail shops, 583 jobs would be lost, accounting for about 60% of its workforce in France. TUI said its French business was loss-making before the coronavirus epidemic and that the crisis had made matters worse.

TUI France will focus on high-margin business with a few brands and will scrap less profitable, high volume offers, the company said. The result will be a smaller French business that should break even from 2021, it said.

The company put all its operations under review in May in response to the Covid-19 crisis, which has battered the travel industry and plunged Europe into a deep recession.

The Anglo-German company said: "The TUI group aims to reduce its overhead cost base by 30% worldwide. The restructuring of TUI France is a step towards making TUI more competitive and then emerging from the crisis stronger."

TUI said on Tuesday it planned to partially restart its summer 2020 holiday programme as restrictions were lifted in Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland. It intends to operate about 30% of its original capacity in the fourth quarter. The company suspended most of its package, cruises and hotel operations in March.