The senior leadership team of Great Little Breaks parent HotelshopUK has completed a management buyout of the company.
The buyout, by managing director Diana Evans (pictured centre), finance director Craig Newcombe (pictured left) and operations director Robert Veale (pictured right), aims to facilitate the company’s next growth phase.
Other directors will remain on the board, said the company, including founder Vivienne Findlay, who remains as a director for the foreseeable future but with a reduced level of shareholding.
HotelshopUK was set up by Findlay in 1999, originally to help hotels to sell distressed room stock via a third-party through mass marketing in the national press.
Its short breaks specialist Great Little Breaks began selling through travel agents at the start of 2020, aiming to fill the void left by the demise of Super Break. The company has continued to expand its product range while its trade booking system went live earlier this year.
The company currently employs more than 100 people and is on track to enjoy a record-breaking year, with annual turnover in excess of £20 million.
Evans said: “I am absolutely thrilled to be able to finally announce this news. We have been working towards this for a long time so to see it come to completion at last is a dream come true.
“A lot of time has been invested in creating a robust business platform and as a management team we are excited to be able to implement our vision and business plans to take HotelshopUK to the next phase of growth.”
She pledged service standards would “remain high” with “further plans to improve our offering”. Service delivery, continuous improvement and sustainability will be a key focus for the leadership team, she added.
Findlay said she was “delighted” the management team were now major shareholders in the business. She added: “We have worked together for many years for this moment.”