Aparthotel operator Staycity has secured a new financing deal to support the group’s ongoing growth plans after reporting a 14 per cent increase in turnover for 2019.
The group has reached an agreement with Dunport Capital, giving it a €22.5 million flexible loan facility to support growth, which includes a 224-apartment property in Manchester due to open in March and a 142-apartment development in Dublin in November. Staycity expects to have more than 1,000 apartments operating in Dublin by 2021.
In 2019, Staycity saw turnover grow to €78 million, with earnings rising around 11 per cent. The year saw the group invest heavily in central functions to support the opening of around 1,800 keys in its secured pipeline over the next two years. It also saw Property entrepreneur Stephen Vernon’s John Pollard Foundation acquire a 5 per cent stake in the company.
During the year, the group entered the Italian market for the first time with a 175-unit property in Venice, while a 284-key resort-style property opened near Disneyland Paris. In addition, it opened its first venture in Germany with the launch of a 48-apartment Wilde Aparthotel by Staycity located within Berlin’s famous Checkpoint Charlie, as well as the 128-unit Wilde Aparthotel by Staycity Edinburgh, Grassmarket.
CFO Wayne Arthur commented: “The year was a challenging one, particularly in the UK where confidence has been fragile due to Brexit uncertainty. Despite these challenges, we delivered a record like-for-like occupancy of 87.3 per cent and are delighted to have signed a new €22.5 million loan facility with Dunport Capital after five years of fantastic support from Proventus, which has secured Staycity with a flexible, seven-year loan as well as significant interest savings and a supportive Dublin-based partner.”
Co-founder and CEO Tom Walsh said: “I am delighted with the progress made in 2019; not only did we deliver industry-leading occupancy levels, we’ve also gained our strongest-ever guest satisfaction scores. We are on target to deliver revenues of over €100 million in 2020 along with continued profit growth. The new year will see us continuing to work towards our target of operating 15,000 apartments by 2024.”
staycity.com