Northstar Travel Group has announced it has acquired travAlliancemedia, the parent company of TravelPulse Canada, TravelPulse Quebec, and soon to launch, TravelPulse Mexico.

Travel Pulse Canada came into the travel trade media space in the early spring of 2017. Over a very short period of time the company has made remarkable gains, and considered by many suppliers, as their “go to” source for news and event coverage.

“The acquisition of TravelPulse Canada as part of the TravAlliance media group by NorthStar Travel Group represents a great opportunity for continued growth for us in Canada,” said John Kirk, President and CEO, TravelPulse Canada. “Together, we will be reviewing all elements of their portfolio, including events, print, with the immensely popular Travel Weekly magazine amongst several other products to determine if it makes sense to roll out in Canada.”

“We are thrilled to complete this merger of the two leading information and marketing services companies serving the retail travel market,” said Mark Murphy, the founder and CEO of travAlliancemedia. “We know the Northstar team and brands very well and believe this is a great combination of talent, complementary brands, and online services to better serve the travel advisory market,” added Murphy, who will become an advisor to the Northstar and travAlliancemedia combination. Murphy added “this merger will prove to be highly beneficial for clients north and south of the border and around the globe. Northstar clients will now have instant access to the Canadian market in both official languages, French and English, and Mexico."

“The addition of travAlliancemedia’s well-known brands serving the retail, home-based and independent travel advisory market complement Northstar’s leading brands including Travel Weekly and TravelAge West serving the retail travel industry,” said Thomas Kemp, Chairman & CEO of Northstar Travel Group.

“The acquisition provides Northstar with an unparalleled portfolio of marketing services, online media, events, and marketing tools serving the travel advisory community and connecting travel suppliers and destinations to this audience,” said Kemp. “The travAlliancemedia Canadian brands are an integral part of our growth strategy. John Kirk will continue in his current capacity, overseeing the Canadian and Mexican businesses.”

The travAlliancemedia portfolio includes the following brands:

- TravelPulse.com: A leading online brand serving the travel advisor community in the US with approximately one million monthly visitors. TravelPulse connects destinations, travel suppliers and travel advisors with real-time information and marketing services.

- TravelPulse Canada, TravelPulse Quebec, and TravelPulse Mexico: The leading online information sites serving the Canadian and Mexican travel advisory communities.

- Agent at Home: The leading brand serving the home-based and independent travel advisor community with information, marketing services and events.

- Travel Agent Academy: The leading online education platform providing travel advisors with eLearning certification on travel destinations and suppliers.

- Agent Studio: A SaaS business that gives travel advisors the ability to build, on-demand, custom websites that also feature an integrated marketing platform. This enables travel advisors to connect and market their services to clients and prospects with offers, online information and news about the latest happenings in travel.

“The travAlliancemedia portfolio is a perfect strategic fit with Northstar’s core information and marketing services brands serving the retail travel industry,” said Bob Sullivan, President of Northstar’s Travel Group. “The combination of our complementary brands, content, databases, marketing services, workflow tools and technology expand our leadership position serving the travel advisory community and the destinations and suppliers who value our audience.”

“We are very excited about the growth opportunities in Canada and we will work with John Kirk to determine what Northstar brands and products we may introduce in Canada,” added Sullivan.

John Kirk, who will continue to oversee the Canadian and Mexican businesses, said “I am looking forward to working with the Senior Management at Northstar to further expand their market position in Canada. Tom Kemp, Bob Sullivan, and all those involved recognize the value the Canadian business, with its unique and distinct markets, brings to their portfolio.”

“Our core focus has been, and will continue to be, delivering relevant Canadian travel news and event coverage to travel advisor across Canada, in French and English. We have a fantastic editorial team with Marsha Mowers, Jim Byers, Sohelia Hakimi, Catherine Maisonneuve, Alexandra Roy, and a host of talented freelancers who will continue to deliver great Canadian content to our readership. If adding elements of the Northstar Travel Group product line to our line-up of products here in Canada makes sense to our advertisers and readership, then we will do what is best for them. Having the support and infrastructure in place to support any new initiatives will make it relatively simple to deploy a Canadian version in very short order,” Kirk concluded.