Premier Inn drove an increase in adjusted profits to £413m (€466m) for its 2023 financial year as revenues climbed to £2.6bn.
Premier Inn owner Whitbread said it sees a big opportunity to expand in Ireland and Britain as independent hoteliers get squeezed out of the market.
Its shares climbed by over 5% after Premier Inn drove an increase in adjusted profits to £413m (€466m) for its 2023 financial year as revenues climbed to £2.6bn. The shares have now risen 18% in the past year as Premier Inn recovers from the pandemic and plans to drive ahead with expansion plans in Germany.
“The reduction in hotel supply, combined with projected strong demand for hotels has created an opportunity to increase our UK and Ireland footprint from 110,000 to 125,000 rooms,” the company said, citing data that independent hotels in the UK “had declined substantially during the pandemic”.
“We believe that operational challenges created by labour shortages and cost inflation may put further pressures on the independent sector, creating structural growth opportunities for Premier Inn across the UK,” it said.
In Germany, the group owns 51 hotels, which include recently acquired buy yet-to-be-rebranded properties.
“These are a fantastic set of results,” said Whitbread chief executive Dominic Paul. “Whilst the recovery in market demand in conjunction with a structural decline in the independent sector has provided a helpful backdrop, it is the combination of our own initiatives and our clearly differentiated business model that has sustained our brand strength and delivered such an impressive operational and financial performance,” he said.
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