Refurbishment drives up Gleneagles revenue to £51.2m

The ongoing refurbishment of Gleneagles hotel in Auchterarder, Perthshire, helped drive a 7.5% increase in annual turnover to £51.2m, alongside a pre-tax profit of £505,000, for the year ended 31 December 2017.

The annual financial report for the five-red-AA-star, 232-bedroom hotel lodged at Companies House, which outlined a change in the annual accounting period, highlighted that a dividend of £63m was paid as part of a refinancing of the business to fund further investment in the property.

The previous full-year figures, for the year ended 30 June 2016, showed turnover of £46.7m and a pre-tax profit of nearly £4m.

For the six months to 31 December 2016, turnover and pre-tax profit were £27.6m and £1.2m respectively.

Throughout 2017, Gleneagles continued the multimillion-pound refurbishment programme that has been underway since private investment company Ennismore acquired the hotel from drinks giant Diageo in 2015 for around £200m.

Recent developments include the opening of the Little Gem creche and Birnam Brasserie, alongside further bedroom refurbishments.

The report said that that the renovations are "set to further enhance Gleneagles' position as a 'Glorious Playground' as the heart of the Scottish countryside".

David Kemp, finance director, added: "Financial performance in the year was strong, with turnover increasing by 7.5% over the same period last year. This continued the strong growth in turnover experienced in the previous accounting periods, following the continuing re-styling and refurbishment of a substantial portion of Gleneagles.

"Operating profits were ahead of the same period last year, as we continued to invest in improving the guest experience and in re-developing of IT systems across the business."

The current year has seen more bedroom makeovers, alongside the creation of a new meeting space in Ochil House and the refurbishment of the Dormy Clubhouse restaurant.

Since the end of the accounting period, Bernard Murphy has left his position as managing director of Gleneagles and has since been appointed as general manager of the five-red-AA-star, 156-bedroom Athenaeum hotel and residences on London's Piccadilly, replacing Eva Mount.

Bernard Murphy leaves Gleneagles "for a new challenge" >>

Ennismore to launch Gleneagles club in Edinburgh >>

Gleneagles reports strong half-year financial performance >>

Gleneagles sees 4.7% increase in turnover >>

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