TAG: Travel agent for Jay-Z, Rihanna and Lady Gaga sold to ECI Partners
A former investor in the likes of Harry Potter publisher Bloomsbury, Games Workshop and National Express has acquired a travel agent that arranges the itineraries for the likes of Jay-Z, Rihanna, Lady Gaga and the Foo Fighters.
ECI Partners has snapped up The Appointment Group (TAG) after Apiary Capital put the London-based company up for sale with a price tag of £100m towards the end of 2023.
TAG was founded by John Gianquitto and Maurice Veronique in 1988 and specialises in booking flights, hotels and other travel arrangements for pop groups, comedians, celebrities and their entourages. The business employs more than 450 people across the world.
A majority stake in the company was acquired by London-based private equity firm Apiary Capital from Arrowpoint Capital in 2018.
According to The Times in October 2023, Rothschild had been hired by Apiary Capital to sell the business for up to 10 times earnings.
TAG’s accounts for 2023 are not due to be filed with Companies House until September this year.
For 2022, the firm’s turnover totalled £40.7m while it made a pre-tax profit of £11.7m, according to a document filed with Companies House.
TAG and ECI Partners did not comment when asked by Morning Wire how much the deal was worth.
Apiary Capital has said it will make a 4x return on its investment when the deal is completed.
As well as working with the likes of Jay-Z, Rihanna, Lady Gaga and the Foo Fighters, TAG also provides its services to well-known business leaders.
TAG chief executive Jens Penny said: “Today is a fantastic milestone in our evolution, as we proudly announce the investment by ECI.
“With our entertainment and corporate clientele and the incredible TAG team, we are very confident that this partnership will deliver a host of new benefits and opportunities as we’re poised to elevate our standards even further, ensuring unparalleled service for our clients as we continue to shape the future of entertainment and high-end corporate travel management.
“We would like to thank Mark, Jess, Nicki and the team at Apiary for their support and commitment over the past six years and we look forward to the journey ahead and growth with ECI as our new partner.”
“Delighted to pass the baton on”
George Moss, partner at ECI, added: “We are excited to be partnering with TAG and leveraging ECI’s experience of investing in the travel industry to propel this global leader to new heights in the global entertainment and corporate travel markets.
“We are looking forward to working with the management team to continue innovating TAG’s service model, investing in technology and supporting the next stage of growth in its global footprint.”
Mark Salter, managing partner at Apiary Capital, said: “We are incredibly proud to have been part of the amazing journey that TAG has been on since our investment in Jens and his team have done a fantastic job in expanding TAG into new geographies and markets, more than doubling the size of the business on the way.
“We are delighted to pass the baton on to ECI who are the right partner to take the business forward and support it through its next phase of growth.”
Clearwater International provided corporate finance advice to ECI Partners while Squire Patton Boggs gave legal advice.
Rothschild & Co provided corporate finance advice to TAG and Apiary while Browne Jacobson gave legal advice.