Challenging market conditions impacts revpar growth for EasyHotel's franchised properties

Budget group EasyHotel has reported like-for-like revenue per available room (revpar) growth of 7.7% across its owned properties, with a 1.6% drop in its franchised hotels.

The figures were announced as part of the group’s trading update for the year ended 30 September 2019. Total system sales were up 28% to £47.8m, while revenue grew by 56% to £17.6m. It is anticipated that adjusted EBITDA will be £4.6m.

The company said operating in challenging market conditions, impacted by ongoing political and economic uncertainty, had required an investment in both price and an increased use of online travel agents.

New hotel openings during the period included the 89-bedroom EasyHotel Old Street, London and the 124-bedroom EasyHotel Milton Keynes. Both hotels were said to be trading strongly.

Guy Parsons, chief executive of EasyHotel, said: “The hotel markets have remained challenging in the second half of the financial year, particularly in the UK where we are seeing dampened consumer confidence. Whilst our owned hotels have continued to outperform the market, we have not been immune to the weaker regional hotel market and trading across our franchised portfolio has continued to be subdued.

“Whilst we don’t foresee any improvement to the trading environment in the medium term, we are focused on our strategic priorities and believe the current economic uncertainties will present attractive investment opportunities to continue to expand our development pipeline in our target destinations, underpinning the long-term growth of the brand.”

EasyHotel, one of the spin-off brands from Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou’s EasyGroup, is now majority owned by shareholder ICAMAP.