THE East Anglia-based Premier Travel Agency group has celebrated its 75th anniversary.

Premier, which is based in Cambridge, has 28 branches, at locations including Newmarket, Haverhill, Halstead and Saffron Walden,

Besides the retail network, the group also includes Premier Holidays, a tour operator offering a range of options from luxury tailor-made holidays overseas to short breaks in the UK.

Premier, which was originally formed by a group of students who decided to run their own bus trips to the seaside, today employs a total staff of 215.

Throughout its history the company has banked with Lloyds, and Richard Todd, relationship director for Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets in Cambridge, visited Premier’s head office to present a longstanding business award.

Mr Todd said: “The business continues to outperform the leisure sector by focusing rigidly on ensuring its customers have great experiences in both organising and going on their holidays.

“As a bank that’s also committed to long-term customer relationships, we’re delighted to help the team at Premier celebrate its 75th anniversary.”

Renford Sargent, chairman of Premier, added: “As an independent tour operator and retailer we’ve had to work hard to maintain the business’s growth, but that independence means that we can be flexible and adapt to the market more easily to ensure our customers get the best deals.

“The support and advice we’ve had from Lloyds Bank and other professionals has given us the firm financial foundations we need to maintain our focus on customer service which has helped us grow into one of the largest independent travel companies in the south east.”