Travelodge says it wants to open 100 hotels over the next five years, predicting strong long-term growth in the budget sector.
The company’s annual results, posted today, show revenue up 8.8 per cent to £693.3m. It attributed this to a “five-year transformation” programme carried out between 2013 and 2018, which has seen its portfolio grow by 4 per cent to 575 hotels, and sales up by £250m.
Over that period it has launched premium economy ‘SuperRooms’ and brand Travelodge Plus, invested £100m in hotel upgrades and opened 60 new hotels.
In 2012, facing mounting debt, Travelodge agreed to a financial restructuring that saw £235m in debt written off, 49 properties dropped from its portfolio and a £75m cash injection from investors.
Its 2018 results showed revenue per available room, a metric commonly used by the hotel industry, up 3.2 per cent to £41.69.
Occupancy was up by 2.5 per cent to 78.5 per cent, while EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) rose £9.6m to £122m. Travelodge said that was in the face of cost increases including an increased national living wage, higher business rates and the costs associated with improved occupancy.
The company said it had seen “thousands of new business accounts,” many using its business account card.
It has previously outlined plans to open in more conference centre locations, and along the upcoming HS2 line.
CEO Peter Gowers said Travelodge was investing “in better quality and choice for our guests, while staying true to our budget roots.”
“Our strategic focus on location, price and quality has enabled Travelodge to deliver a set of excellent results,” Gowers said.
“We extended our network of hotels, remained focused on delivering attractive prices and took another step forward on quality.
“The long-term growth opportunities for the budget sector remain strong and we expect to open 100 new hotels over the next five years, creating approximately 3,000 jobs.”
In a statement, Travelodge said: “With the strength of the value sector, UK households still spending a relatively small percentage of household income on domestic hotels, the trend for businesses to choose budget and our platform of domestic scale, international bridgeheads and established franchise operations, we believe that once the current pressures abate, we are well positioned to build on our improved position in the years ahead.”