SCOTTISH hotel group, Crerar Hotels has reported an £8.9m increase in turnover (up from £5.49m to £14.46m) in just a year – which has also seen significant investment in its people and properties.
Despite the challenges curing the trading period brought by “stop-start” Covid restrictions, the Scottish hotel group invested close to £2million in the Isle of Mull Hotel and Spa and close to £500,000 in the Glencoe Inn which became the first property in the portfolio to achieve an AA five-star rating.
Crerar Hotels has also boosted staff numbers by more than 40 and increased wages resulting in a total £1.6million increase in remuneration across the group.
While the company reported a pre-tax loss of £831k, Crerar Hotel’s CEO described this as a “significant improvement” on last year’s reported loss of £2m and is confident the company is on an upward trajectory.
Chris Wayne-Wills, CEO of Crerar Hotels, said: “We are proud to reflect on a good year where we have demonstrated our commitment to strengthening our proposition by investing heavily in our high-quality portfolio. The benefits of our investment strategy are clearly on track”.
“The hangover of the impact of Covid-19 continued to affect the industry’s ability to trade as normal, however, we have still emerged in a considerably stronger position than the previous year while committing some £4.72m to capital expenditure and £1.6m to remuneration to expand our teams. Our unwavering commitment to investment in our portfolio and our talent has put us in the best possible position for continued success and recovery.”
In addition to achieving a five-star rating at the Glencoe Inn, the ongoing commitment to renovation and standards also paved the way for other coveted accolades at the World Travel Awards and Prestige Travel Awards for the Isle of Mull Hotel & Spa.
The group’s investment strategy has continued into the current financial year, with extensive upgrades in spa facilities at Golf View Hotel & Spa and Loch Fyne Hotel & Spa, as well as a substantial renovation of the Balmoral Arms, formerly known as the Deeside Inn which has also been awarded an AA 5 star Inn status.
Chris added that the current financial year would continue to bring its own new set of challenges but remains confident that Crerar Hotels is in a strong position to navigate these.
He said: “We have witnessed the pandemic ravaging many hospitality businesses and the Covid impact hangover remains in some sectors. At Crerar Hotels, we have continued to focus on our investment in our people and our hotels. We retain our excellent future potential, our dynamism, vibrancy and innovation to deliver sustained recovery and to support wider economic objectives such as vital jobs, growth and investment in the heart of our economy and communities. We are confident in the future and committed to nurturing talent, investing in our portfolio and playing our part in ensuring Scotland remains front-of-mind as a world-class destination.”
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