Otus & Company

What Otus & Company does

Otus & Company is a London-based boutique advisory firm incorporated on 2 December 2002 that delivers independent strategic advice and corporate finance transaction services exclusively to the hospitality, travel and transport industries. It serves boards, CEOs and senior managements with two core service lines: high-level strategic advice (corporate strategy, industry context, organisational milestones) and full-range corporate finance advisory (M&A, disposals, joint ventures, strategic stakes, financings, and private equity / hedge fund engagements). Revenue is generated on a professional-services, bespoke-engagement basis across Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia, with named clients spanning blue-chip hotels groups, tour operators, airlines and airports, and private equity and pension fund investors.

The firm operates through two legal vehicles: Otus & Company Advisory Limited (parent, wholly owned by co-founders Paul Slattery and Simon Read, plus director Ian Gamse) and Otus Corporate Finance LLP (established 27 July 2004, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority). There is no proprietary technology platform; the offering is people-led, anchored by the two co-founders — Paul Slattery (former Managing Director of Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and author of "The Economic Ascent of the Hotel Business") and Simon Read (Oxford- and London-educated Chartered Accountant with a PWC background) — and a Special Advisor bench of roughly twelve senior industry figures including former CEOs/CFOs/MDs of Thomas Cook, Holidaybreak, Hoseasons, Radisson Hospitality, British Airways, Easyjet, Carlson Worldwide and Sophia SA. The go-to-market is senior partner-led enterprise field sales into C-suite decision makers, supported by thought-leadership channels (Hotel Analyst, Flight Global, conference speaking, books, LinkedIn).

Anchored logos across two decades include Hilton, Marriott, Starwood, Radisson, NH Hoteles, Carlson Companies, Whitbread, Edwardian, Clermont Hotel Group, Tata, Expedia, Holidaybreak, All Leisure Group, Vacalians, Minor International, EUJet, Flyaway, Canada Pension Plan, Public Sector Pension, 3i, Warburg Pincus, Alchemy Partners and Barclays Private Equity on the buy side and sell side. Operations are concentrated at one London office (No1 Cornhill, EC3V 3ND), with a registered office at 45 Gresham Street, EC2V 7BG. The firm is privately held with no external institutional investment indicated.

Name

Otus & Company

Legal name

Otus & Company Advisory Limited

Website

https://otusco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Otus & Company is a London-based boutique advisory firm providing independent strategic advice and corporate finance (M&A, disposals, joint ventures, financings) exclusively to the hospitality, travel and transport sectors, serving boards, CEOs and private equity investors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Boutique Corporate Finance Advisory

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Fairness Opinions & Independent Financial Advice (BPAHAOAF)

Keywords

• Strategic advisory services
• Mergers and acquisitions
• Corporate finance advisory
• Hospitality consulting
• Transport sector advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Strategic Advisory Services: High-level advisory services for boards, CEOs and senior managements covering corporate strategies, industry context, long-term and short-term considerations, and organizational milestones. The firm emphasizes independence, expertise, and capacity for independent judgement.
2. Corporate Finance Transaction Advisory: Advisory on full range of corporate finance activities including mergers and acquisitions, disposals, joint ventures, strategic stakes, financings, private equity and hedge fund engagements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Otus & Company is a London-based boutique advisory firm providing independent strategic advice and corporate finance advisory services exclusively to the hospitality, travel, and transport industries. It serves boards, CEOs, and senior managements with high-level counsel on corporate strategy and the full spectrum of corporate finance transactions including mergers and acquisitions, disposals, joint ventures, strategic stakes, financings, and engagements with private equity and hedge fund investors.

Product overview

Otus & Company is a consulting firm offering two core service lines: Strategic Advice and Corporate Finance Advisory, focused exclusively on the Hospitality, Travel, and Transport industries. The firm has operated since 2002, providing independent advisory to boards, CEOs, and senior managements on strategic issues and transaction execution.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategic Advice High-level advisory service for boards, CEOs and senior managements of hospitality, travel and transport companies, covering corporate strategy, industry context, long-term and short-term considerations, and organisational milestones. Delivered independently without cross-selling or follow-on implementation conflicts.
• Corporate Finance Advisory Full range of corporate finance transaction advisory for hospitality, travel and transport clients, including mergers and acquisitions, disposals, joint ventures, strategic stakes, financings, and engagements with private equity and hedge fund investors. Delivered through the FCA-authorised entity Otus Corporate Finance LLP.

Named customers24 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Major Institutions in Business and Financial CommunitiesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOtus works in partnership with other major institutions in the business and financial communities to deliver advisory services. Partnerships are collaborative rather than formal channel or technology relationships.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Moelis & Company: Independent global investment bank providing M&A, restructuring and strategic advisory across sectors including consumer and leisure — competes with Otus for sponsor-led hospitality and travel mandates at the upper-mid and large-cap end.
• Cushman & Wakefield Hospitality: Global commercial real estate services firm with a hospitality practice providing investment sales, advisory and valuation — competing for similar hospitality M&A mandates but as part of a much broader real-estate platform.
• PwC — Hospitality & Leisure: Big-Four corporate finance and strategy practice serving global hospitality and leisure clients on transactions, restructuring and value creation — overlaps with Otus on strategic and corporate finance mandates.
• EY-Parthenon — Hospitality & Leisure: Strategy and transactions advisory within EY serving hospitality, travel and leisure clients on M&A, divestitures and strategic transformations — competes for similar mandates with greater resource depth.
• JLL Hotels & Hospitality: Global real-estate services group with a dedicated hotels and hospitality investment advisory practice offering transaction, advisory and capital-markets services to owners, operators and investors.
• Deloitte Corporate Finance — Hospitality: Big-Four advisory practice providing M&A, restructuring and strategic advisory with a dedicated travel, hospitality and leisure sector team — overlaps with Otus on mid- and large-cap hospitality transactions.
• KPMG — Travel, Leisure & Hospitality: Big-Four advisory practice providing deal advisory, consulting and audit to global travel, hospitality and leisure clients — broader in scope but a direct competitor on hospitality M&A mandates.

Direct peers

• Christie & Co: UK-based specialist advisory, brokerage and valuation firm dedicated to the hospitality, leisure, healthcare and education sectors. Closest like-for-like competitor on size, geography and vertical focus to Otus.
• HVS: Global hospitality consulting and valuation firm providing M&A advisory, feasibility and asset-management services to hotels, resorts and lodging investors — directly comparable on sector specialism and advisory services.
• Savills Hotels: International real-estate advisor with a dedicated hotels team providing investment, valuation and transactional advisory across hospitality — overlapping with Otus on hotel M&A and strategic advisory.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Otus & Company