Record results for holiday cottages specialist
Sykes Holiday Cottages, the UK’s largest independent operator of UK holiday rental properties, has announced record results for its latest financial year as it looks ahead to its best summer yet on the back of the current heatwave.
The Chester-based business saw sales and profits rise as the relatively weak price of sterling during 2017 made the UK more attractive to both British and overseas holidaymakers.
Sales during the year to the end of September 2017 rose 38% to £37.5m, compared with the same period the previous year, while EBITDA rose 28% to £8.8m
Sykes, which now manages more than 11,000 properties in holiday hotspots such as the Cornish coast, the Lake District and North Wales, said it was now on track to serve around 1.3 million customers during this financial year as the current hot weather helped drive bookings to record levels during May and June.
The good start to summer, together with a feelgood factor boosted by the Royal wedding and recent sporting success, all helped the company secure in excess of bookings in the past eight weeks, up 35% on the same period a year ago.
Acquisitions such as that of Cornish Cottages and Helpful Holidays, together with strong organic growth, had helped it grow its stock of high quality holiday properties.
Meanwhile, continued investment in technology enabled the firm to build highly specialised scaleable bid and revenue management platforms, enabling it to integrate new holiday homes quickly while also boosting profitability for property owners.
As a result, the business said it was already the fastest-growing holiday letting business in the UK and was well-positioned to pursue its growth strategy, which includes taking 2.5 million customers on holiday each year by 2020.
Chief executive Graham Donoghue said: “The recent Royal wedding and warm weather have been a perfect showcase for everything that Britain has to offer.
“The UK’s charm and culture is unique, and is hugely attractive to holidaymakers both at home and overseas.
“Our continuous investment in service, technology, our brand and the selection and marketing of our properties means we are the best choice for owners and offer the best experience to customers.”
He added: “We are seeing more and more people buying holiday homes and approaching us to market their properties. Last year, we personally visited more than 10,000 potential new holiday homes, adding around 3,000 new properties to our portfolio.
“At the same time, the boom in staycations not only shows no sign of slowing down, but is in fact spreading to attract more and more visitors from other European countries like Germany.”
It is estimated that the UK currently has around 250,000 holiday property owners, although this figure is said to be growing as a result of pension freedoms that came into force in 2015, making it easier for those aged over 55 to access and reinvest their pension pots.
Britons’ desire to be beside the seaside ensured beach and coastal holidays remained the most popular, ahead of luxury and unusual properties such as yurts, and pet-friendly holidays.
The company said its top UK destinations were: Yarmouth, Isle of Wight; Whitby, North Yorkshire; Filey, North Yorkshire; Falmouth, Cornwall; and Windermere, Cumbria.
