Michael Frenzel
Michael Frenzel (born 2 March 1947)[1] is a German business executive. He was the chief executive officer of TUI AG from 1994 to 2013.[2][3][4] Since 2018 he is a World Travel and Tourism Council ambassador.[5] He studied law and holds a doctorate.[6]
Michael Frenzel | |
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Michael Frenzel in 2014 | |
Born | |
Nationality | German |
Occupation | Business executive |
Years active | 1981–2013 |
Known for | CEO of TUI AG |
Early life and education
Frenzel was born in Leipzig, at the time in Allied-occupied Germany, on 2 March 1947.[2][1] When aged nine, he escaped to West Germany with his father and lived in a refugee camp for three years.[2] He attended the Ruhr University Bochum, studying law.[6] He worked at the university as a scientific assistant, and graduated with a doctoral degree in law.[2]
Career
He joined Westdeutsche Landesbank in 1981,[2] in Düsseldorf.[1] He was promoted to manager of the Industrial Holdings Department in 1983.[1] And the Equity Holdings Division in 1985.[1] There he managed holdings in banking and real estate.[1]
In 1988 Frenzel joined Preussag AG as an executive responsible for trading and logistics.[2] He was promoted to the position of chief executive officer in January 1994.[2]
During his time as chief executive, Frenzel transformed the company from an industrial conglomerate into a travel services company.[3] He oversaw Preussag's acquisition of Hapag-Lloyd in 1997.[3] In 2000, he oversaw Preussag's £1.8 billion takeover of Thomson Travel.[7] The company also acquired the German tourism operator TUI in 1998 and the French firm Nouvelles Frontières.[2] After these acquisitions, Preussag was Europe's leading tourism operator.[1][2] In July 2002, Preussag was rebranded as TUI, short for Touristik Union International, the name of a subsidiary it had bought previously.[8]
Frenzel retired from TUI in February 2013, succeeded by Friedrich Joussen.[3] He became a World Travel and Tourism Council ambassador in 2018.[5]
He has served on the supervisory boards of several large German companies, including Volkswagen, Deutsche Bahn, and Norddeutsche Landesbank.[4][6] He is a member of the International Chamber of Commerce.[4]
References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Michael Frenzel. |
- "Michael Frenzel – Crunchbase overview". crunchbase.com. Crunchbase Inc. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- Davidson, Andrew (2009). 1000 CEOs. Dorling Kindersley Limited. p. 223. ISBN 9781405352727.
- Bryant, Chris (31 July 2012). "Tui to appoint new chief executive". Financial Times. Frankfurt: The Financial Times Limited. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- Townsend, Abigail (27 March 2005). "Michael Frenzel: He wants to take you on holiday – but has no time to time to take one himself". The Independent. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- Davies, Phil (28 June 2018). "WTTC selects industry leaders as ambassadors". travelweekly.co.uk. Travel Weekly. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- "Executive Profile, Background – Michael Frenzel". www.bloomberg.com. Bloomberg. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- Walters, Joanna (30 July 2000). "The holiday king who sent Cook's packing". the Guardian. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- Calder, Simon (19 October 2017). "From Thomson Cruises to Marella: a strange tale of travel rebranding". The Independent. Retrieved 17 October 2018.