Hostelworld today gave an upbeat projection for the year after issuing its first financial results since a November stock market listing in London and Dublin valued the company at €245 million.
Overall group bookings for the year to December 2015 rose by 1%, with the Hotelworld brand growing by 17%.
Total transaction value for the year was pegged at 2014 levels at €634 million while adjusted earnings [EBIDTA] dropped by 12% to €23.6 million.
This came as marketing spend increased by €8.5 million to €37.4 million, including the €3.2 million relaunch of the Hostelworld brand.
The company disclosed that 41% of Hostelworld bookings came via mobile devices, a year-on-year rise of ten percentage points.
Asia was the fastest growing destination region with a 10% rise in bookings with South Korea the seventh highest nationality for Hostelworld brand bookings.
The year saw an additional one million customer reviews and one million Hostelworld app downloads.
Chief executive, Feargal Mooney, said: “We offer hostels worldwide the market leading proposition, providing them with a low cost distribution channel, access to a global customer base, access to our online property management system and to our leading booking engine technology.
“Consumers trust strong brands. The Hostelworld brand is characterised by a sense of adventure, community and social interaction, which appeals to our core target millennial demographic.
“We made significant investments in the brand in 2015 and are well poised to capitalise on these in 2016 and beyond.
“The new financial year has started well and in line with our expectations.
“The strength of our brand and technology together with healthy booking numbers and continued pricing improvements, underpinned by a growing marketplace, gives the board confidence in the group’s future prospects.”