Premier Inn owner sees UK sales jump amid strong demand

Hotel bookings at Premier Inn soared between March and May, new figures from the company show.

Whitbread, which owns the hotel chain, said that its accommodation business in the UK saw sales jump 18% over the period when compared to last year.

Strong sales, particularly in London where it was able to charge more per room, came as demand was high from people travelling for both business and pleasure.

Total sales in the UK, including Whitbread’s pubs, rose 15.6% to £686.5 million. In Germany, where Premier Inn has been rapidly expanding, sales more than doubled to 53.8 million euros (£46 million).

Chief executive Dominic Paul said: “Our business is in great shape and trading well.

“Given the lack of branded supply growth and permanent decline in the independent sector, I am confident that our business model will continue to deliver as we strengthen Premier Inn’s position in the UK, unlock our potential in Germany and maximise long-term returns for our shareholders.”

Whitbread did not explain the reasons for this jump, simply that there was “strong consumer demand”.

The company added another 348 rooms to its portfolio in the UK and Ireland and plans to open a total of between 1,500 and 2,000 rooms during the current financial year.

The business said that the levels of bookings it currently has makes it confident that the first half of this financial year will be “strong”.

“The structural reduction in hotel supply, coupled with strong consumer demand, is highlighting the strengths of our differentiated business model, as evidenced by our continued strong performance,” Mr Paul said.

“Our forward booked position into the second quarter underpins our confidence in being able to deliver a strong first half result.”

“In Germany, we now have 56 hotels with 10,000 rooms open, and a further 32 hotels and 6,000 rooms in the pipeline.

“Overall market demand continued to recover during the first quarter. Our cohort of 18 more established hotels is continuing to perform in line with the market and we have been encouraged by the performance of our less mature cohorts that are starting to follow a similar trajectory.”