DoSomethingDifferent.com parent company Attraction Tickets is to give more than £1 million in bonuses to staff as it transitions the business to employee ownership.
Owner, founder and chief executive Oliver Brendon and other shareholders have sold their shares in the largest seller of theme park ticket and hotel packages in the UK, and will hand ownership of the business to an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT). They believe Attraction Tickets is the largest UK travel company to make such a move.
Last year, ROL Cruise transferred to an Employee Ownership Trust following the departure of owner Jeremy Dickinson.
Brendon will not be leaving as part of the transition. The EOT board will be chaired by Juliet Thorburn, global HR director at fellow employee-owned business Scott Bader and Brendon and his leadership team will continue to manage the Attraction Tickets business.
They were joined this week by Emilie Mouquot who assumes the new role of chief growth officer, following six years at Notonthehighstreet.com and previous spells at Tripadvisor and Viator.
Brendon said: “We are ready to accelerate our growth. While we have ambitious plans, we need a clear, actionable strategy to ensure every department understands their objectives and how success is measured. Emilie will be instrumental in developing and implementing this operational growth strategy. We also recognise the need for fresh perspectives, particularly in e-commerce, UX and sales.”
Camila Pintos Clemente, Tathiana Polimeni, Caroline Leon, Juliana Polimeni, Caron Cockburn
The Employee Ownership Trust transaction values the Attraction Tickets business at £41 million and each of Attraction Tickets’ 128 employees will share in EOT completion bonuses worth more than £1 million.
Payouts are based on length of service, with the first £3,600 of the bonuses being tax free under EOT rules. The average length of service at Attraction Tickets is over six years.
Attraction Tickets believes employee ownership will enable the business to grow and prosper organically, while “preserving its unique corporate culture, with all employees participating in its financial success in an enduring structure”.
Brendon added: “We have concluded a transaction that will reward the business’s most vital stakeholders – its employees.
“Employee ownership is one of the most equitable forms of capitalism, whereby value is shared amongst those who work hard to create it. This ownership structure will not lead to a softer commercial approach. In fact, employees and management will be more focused than ever on business performance because they will benefit from our ongoing success.
“This is an important milestone for the company I started 23 years ago, and we are all excited about future growth.”
Freya Costick, Lizzie Dye, Sophie Gissing, Chris Bradshaw
He said: “Above all, I sincerely hope that the legacy of this company is one of excellent service to our customers, enduring partnerships with our iconic suppliers and generating prosperity for all employees over the coming years and decades.”
Hannah Bryce, head of SEO, said: “The change to an EOT feels like a very considerate way to ensure the business becomes even more successful while remaining a stable, employee-centric place to work for the long term.”
Leyla Aliyeva, marketing & product executive, e-commerce, said: “I think it’s a democratic and progressive approach to business, and makes us quite an innovative and forward thinking company in the industry.
“I think it’s a great incentive for people to stay long-term and build their career at Attraction Tickets, and I’m intrigued to see how it will play out in the future.”
Paul Rowell, technical lead, said: “I’m glad the company has decided to change to be employee owned, I think it’ll bring new opportunities and ideas to the business and I’m excited to see how it’ll help us grow and develop further.”
Attraction Tickets follows in the footsteps of companies including The John Lewis Partnership, Aardman, Richer Sounds and Go Ape, which have successfully adopted employee ownership structures.
Employee Ownership Trusts were established by the UK government in 2014 and offer a way for employees to indirectly own a company, with the trust holding shares in the company for the long-term benefit of the employees.
Brendon said Attraction Tickets had seen strong demand for its core attractions in Florida, Paris and California, posting a total transaction value in the year to December 31, 2024 of £197 million, with an EBITDA of £6 million.
Main picture L-R: Juliet Thorburn, Oliver Brendon, Karen Court