Transat has announced the immediate retirement of CEO Jean-Marc Eustache.
Annick Guerard has been appointed President and CEO of the company where she has been Chief Operating Officer since NOV 2017.
In a statement, Transat noted Eustache was “one of the principal architects of the creation of Transat in 1987”, and “helped make Transat a world leader in the tourism industry.”
"With the crisis resulting from the COVID-19, we were most happy to have been able to rely on all of Jean-Marc's experience and wisdom to face the worse storm in the history of Transat and the tourism industry, until the implementation of the critical $700 million financing announced on April 29, 2021 which will provide Transat with the funds it needs to relaunch its operations on solid grounds once it emerges from the pandemic-induced restrictions," Raymond Bachand, the Lead Director of the Corporation, said in company’s statement.
"We are grateful to Jean-Marc for his contribution and his unwavering dedication throughout his tenure at Transat, and we now hope that he can fully enjoy his well-deserved retirement" he added.
"Jean-Marc has been a pillar of the company since its beginnings more than thirty years ago, and we want to continue to make this jewel that he leaves us shine for several decades to come" said Eustache’s replacement, Annick Guérard.
"I leave the company in the good hands of Annick Guérard, who has my full confidence as well as that of the rest of the management team and the Board of Directors. I have no doubt that, under her leadership, Transat will accomplish great things and once again become a formidable competitor admired by all,” Eustache is quoted as saying.
“I am proud to have brought Transat to where it is now, and to have been able to secure the funding that allows it to face its future with confidence. It is now time to make room for new decision-makers, as Transat will deploy the plan that will once again make it a solid, profitable company and, for a long time to come, the symbol of leisure travel in the eyes of its many customers, in Quebec and elsewhere."
In addition to stepping down as CEO, Eustache is giving up his role on Transat’s board of directors. Guerard will join the board, and Bachand will assume the role of Chairman.
All of these leadership changes at Transat are effective as of 27MAY.
