BRITISH BUSINESS OWNERS STICK WITH UK – DESPITE RAIN AND RECESSION
Sun, sea and sangria are no longer as appealing to British hospitality business owners as they once were, according to the UK’s leading tourism and accommodation directory, iknow-uk.
iknow-uk, has found that despite having the opportunity to invest in the holiday industry abroad, the majority of its customers have opted to stay in the UK and develop businesses on home soil instead.
Marcus Simmons, managing director at www.iknow-yorkshire.co.uk, explained: “In recent years business owners in the hospitality industry have been looking abroad for investment opportunities, so we were really surprised when we talked to customers who own holiday parks, hotels and bed and breakfasts and they said they were favouring Britain again. Many of them have had the opportunity to move abroad and invest in holiday homes in other parts of the world, but the majority have opted to stay in the UK instead.
Kerry Woodhead, and her husband Dave own the Pinewood Holiday Park near Scarborough. In 2004 they had a change in personal circumstances, which meant they were thrown into making some difficult decisions about their future.
Pinewood holiday park in Scarborough
Kerry explained: “After being in the retail business for more than 16 years, we suddenly found ourselves unemployed. We had recently been to Grand Caymen on holiday and decided that it might be a good place to live and work. We put a plan in place to move there, and to run a holiday accommodation business, and started to look for suitable properties.
“Driving home one evening we passed a caravan park a couple of miles from our home in Scarborough. We’d passed it hundreds of times before, but noticed it was up for sale, so decided to pop in and take a look. It was perfect, with amazing countryside all around, and a great view of the north east coast.
“We decided that as exotic as Grand Caymen seemed it couldn’t compare with the amazing location of the holiday park.
“The UK is such a great place to own a holiday business. We have such lovely visitors, and in my opinion the location is unrivalled – even by the beaches of Grand Caymen!”
Jeana Shippey, owner of Direct Whitby, a group of holiday properties in the Yorkshire seaside town, also chose a UK investment over a business abroad.
Direct Whitby in Yorkshire
She said: “I have had an extensive career in the travel and tourism industry and actually worked for a leading tour operator overseas for more than 13 years. When I decided to take voluntary redundancy from my job and invest in my own holiday accommodation business, I looked seriously at buying a property in Cyprus, but opted for a cottage in my home town of Whitby instead.
“For me, there’s nothing quite like a UK seaside holiday. We have such a stunning coastline in this country – there’s absolutely no need to head abroad for a beach holiday.
“We have amazing countryside, loads for families to do, and I believe that here in the UK we invest much more time into giving a personal service to customers than people do abroad.
“I also focus heavily on pet friendly accommodation, and have won awards for my provisions for people wanting to take their pets on holiday. I’ve done lots of research, and there aren’t as many opportunities for this kind of holiday overseas. I’m so pleased I chose Whitby over Cyprus – I’ve never looked back.”
Marcus Simmons, from iknow-yorkshire.co.uk, said: “Kerry and Jeana’s stories are not untypical. We have spoken to hundreds of customers who have had the opportunity to move abroad, but have decided to stay in the UK and build a holiday business here instead.
“As we all know, the economic situation is not great here at the moment, but there are still brilliant little places that people can spend a long weekend away – and they don’t need to jet off abroad to do so.
“We’ve found that there are still masses of people who would rather holiday in their home country than go abroad – the staycation is still as popular as ever.
“The recession has meant that holidaymakers are increasingly looking for ways to have a cost effective break away, and looking nearer to home means that they can discover the hidden gems of the UK without breaking the bank.”
Marcus added: “We’re hoping that the domestic tourism boom will continue as Brits rediscover the fantastic holiday options that are right on their doorstep.”
Tourism and accommodation website www.iknow-yorkshire.co.uk, is part of the iknow-uk group of websites, which offer UK holidaymakers information on a wide choice of accommodation options and breaks away across the UK.
Founded by Marcus in 2003, iknow-uk now operates 12 regional websites for accommodation providers including hotels, guest houses, holiday cottages and B&Bs. The sites are visited by almost a million users each month.
Holiday home owners looking to list on one of iknow’s websites, should visit www.iknow-uk.com.
Tags: Yorkshire
