Transat lays the foundations for its Sun destinations hotel chain

Jordi Solé appointed President of Transat's new hotel division

MONTREAL, Feb. 1, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - Transat announces the appointment of Jordi Solé as President of its new hotel division, effective February 20. Mr. Solé, who has worked for major international resort chains, will lead Transat's entire hotel development operations in the Caribbean and Mexico, two markets where the international tourism company has been active for 30 years. 

"We are delighted to be associated with a tourism and resort industry professional who has extensive experience in operations, sales, marketing and staff management at all-inclusive resorts at Sun destinations," said Jean-Marc Eustache, President and Chief Executive Officer, Transat. "We will be able to rely on Mr. Solé's strong knowledge of operations and markets in order to develop our own hotel chain in the South." He added: "The development of this new hotel division will drive Transat's growth and prosperity by enabling us to totally adapt the travel experience to our customers' needs."

Since 2001, Jordi Solé has overseen the operations of resorts belonging to several major international hotel chains. He began his career in the industry in Spain as Deputy Managing Director of Barcelo Hotels and Resorts, where he optimized operational and organizational procedures across Europe. In 2009, he came to Latin America as head of Iberostar Hotels and Resorts in Mexico, where he oversaw the 10 resorts in the region (4,000 rooms and 4,500 employees). More recently, he was appointed Senior Vice-President, Operations, for Blue Diamond Resorts, participating in the extensive growth and development of the company. Mr. Solé holds an MBA from IESE Business School and a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering from Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, in Barcelona, Spain. 

In order to embark on its project to become a full-fledged hotel operator, Transat sold its minority 35% interest in Ocean Hotels in the fall of 2017, a stake it had held since 2007. It plans to operate some 5,000 owned or managed hotel rooms within seven years.

About Transat
Transat A.T. Inc. is a leading integrated international tourism company specializing in holiday travel. It offers vacation packages, hotel stays and air travel to some 60 destinations in 26 countries in the Americas, Europe and the Middle East. Based in Montreal, the company has 5,000 employees. Transat is firmly committed to sustainable tourism development, as reflected in its multiple corporate responsibility initiatives over the past 10 years, and was awarded Travelife Partner status in 2016 (TSX: TRZ).

Recent distinctions and awards

Named world's second-best leisure airline at the Skytrax World Airline Awards (2013?2017) and best in North America in the same category (2012?2017)

Placed second among airlines on Forbes magazine's 2017 ranking of Canada's Best Employers

Named one of the Best Corporate Citizens in Canada by the research firm Corporate Knights (2014?2017; 16th in 2017)

Named the number one carrier in North America for energy efficiency by Atmosfair (2011?2016)

Ranked among the Top 10 call centres in North America by BenchmarkPortal (2012 and 2015)

Voted Best Leisure/Charter Airline (2008?2017) and Best Tour Operator (2014?2017), at the Agents' Choice Awards presented by Baxter Travel Media

Voted Best Airline (2013, 2014, 2015 and 2017) and Best Tour Operator (2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017), at the Trophées Uni-Vers awards organized by the Association des Agents de Voyages du Québec

SOURCE Transat A.T. Inc.