TAPESTRY HOLIDAYS FAILS

	TAPESTRY HOLIDAYS FAILS
	11 August, 2006
	Upmarket, tailor-made tour operator Tapestry Holidays has ceased trading. The London-based company, which specialised in holidays to Turkey, Greece and Croatia, had 1,500 customers abroad and thousands of forward bookings when it failed. Managing director and founder Nick Wrightman said: "Myself and my team are all extremely upset and right now our priority is to help our guests and our staff in resort. A spokeswoman said the 30 staff were informed this morning and were now busy contacting clients to tell them the news. Some 5,500 customers were due to travel with the operator this year and 700 in 2007. A downturn in bookings was due to a number of factors, including the bird flu outbreak in Turkey. It is believed the company had been the subject of possible acquisitions earlier this year, but none had come to fruition. An industry source said the operator had been heavily discounting in the peak period and had been offering incentives for customers paying up front. "This is often a sign that there are cashflow problems," the source said. The CAA is currently making arrangements for customers abroad to complete their holiday and return to the UK, and to fully refund those with forward bookings. The company held an Air Travel Organiser's License providing a 1.7m bond. By Bev Fearis  Source: Travel Mole