LONDON, April 18, 2002 - Cendant Corporation (NYSE: CD - news) today
announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Novasol
AS (Novasol), the leader in the Northern European vacation home rental
sector. Novasol specializes in the marketing of privately owned holiday
properties for rent, under the Novasol and Dansommer brand names, principally
across Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany and Eastern Europe.
| The transaction will be Cendant's third vacation rental sector acquisition
since the acquisitions of UK based Holiday Cottages Group (HCG) and Italy
based Cuendet Cie S.p.A. (Cuendet) in 2001. The transaction is expected
to be modestly accretive to Cendant's earnings per share.
While the prior acquisition of Cuendet extended Cendant's geographic
range of properties available under contract to Southern Europe, the acquisition
of Novasol will add a substantial portfolio of more than 17,000 cottages
in Northern Europe. Cendant's total European contract portfolio now consists
of more than 32,000 villas and cottages and positions Cendant as the leader
in the sector.
"We are pleased to enter the Northern European market and continue to
expand our vacation rental industry presence by adding Novasol and Dansommer
to our other quality European brands, said Group Managing Director of Cendant
EMEA, Scott Forbes. |
 More
than 30 years ago - on December 28, 1968 - a new company called Nordisk
Ferie was established. The first product of this new company was cabin
holiday in Norway. The company started as a one-man-show in a cellar at
Nørrebro in Copenhagen.
Today, the company has developed into Northern Europe's largest rental
company for holiday homes. The new name of the company is NOVASOL. The
difference between then and now is huge - but the essential principles
and standards of NOVASOL are still the same. NOVASOL is a Danish owned
concern, going international, with subsidiaries in a number of countries,
several offices at popular holiday resorts and hundreds of competent employees. |
|
"As a major provider of travel related services and the largest vacation
home rental company in Europe, Cendant is uniquely positioned to provide
a full range of product and services to Novasol and Dansommer's more than
11,000 travel agent partners.''
Cendant Corporation is primarily a provider of travel and residential
real estate services. With approximately 70,000 employees, New York City
based Cendant provides these services to businesses and consumers in over
100 countries. |
