Former Thomas Cook store in Exmouth to reopen as Hays Travel tomorrow

Exmouth's former Thomas Cook store will reopen tomorrow under new management from Hays Travel.

Three former Thomas Cook staff from Exmouth have found new employment with Hays Travel and will be present at tomorrow's reopening.

The store, on Exeter Road, will not be trading but will be open for a meet and greet with locals interested in the transitions from Thomas Cook to Hays Travel.

Customers will be offered tea, coffee and cake as staff look forward to seeing old customers and new.

Hays Travel has so far re-opened 138 of the 555 former Thomas Cook branches with many more to follow throughout the week.

The UK's largest independent travel agent, and Sunderland based company, now has 1,930 former Thomas Cook employees on its books. More applications are being taken and the recruitment helpline is open all week on: 0800 215 5995.

John Hays said: "Irene and I have been taken aback by the good will and well wishes from the public over the past few days. It really has been humbling.

"We're so proud of our wonderful teams, both old and new, who have come together working around the clock to get as many new branches up and running as quickly as possible."

The first Hays Travel holiday booked in a Thomas Cook shop happened last week at the Debenham Centre in South Shields, and since then more bookings have been taking place all over the country.

Hays Travel has been at the forefront of a media whirlwind since it announced it was to re-open all 555 of the closed Thomas Cook shops last Wednesday (9 October), with John and Irene Hays completing over 60 interviews with both the regional and national press.

The Hays Travel press team say they have taken hundreds of media enquiries, which has resulted in John and Irene headlining major broadcast channels, from BBC One's 6 O'Clock News to ITV's Good Morning Britain.

Dozens of former Thomas Cook employees and Hays Travel colleagues have been in the spotlight both in national and regional media across the length and breadth of the UK.