Quality Cottages

Adviser to Quality Cottages, a holiday cottages rental company, on its sale to Awaze.

The deal

Welsh holiday group acquired by Hoseasons parent group

Quality Cottages and its sister brand Quality Unearthed have been acquired by Europe’s leading managed vacation rentals and holiday park business Awaze, in a deal supported by our Corporate Finance team.

Quality Cottages was founded in 1961 and run by Leonard and Margaret Rees, the business has since expanded across Wales, becoming an agency for holiday home owners. The couple’s son Tim Rees founded its glamping arm, Quality Unearthed, in 2011. Following continued growth in the domestic holiday market and amid ongoing consolidation, the family tasked our Corporate Finance team to conduct a full sales and marketing process to explore opportunities with both trade and private equity-backed buyers, resulting in the acquisition by Awaze.

The acquisition sees Awaze add more than 650 new units, largely on the Welsh coast, to the self-catering specialists growing UK portfolio.

A team led by FRP Corporate Finance Partner Darren Miller, and Director Alex Patey played an integral role sell-side, delivering a full exit for the team behind the business, while securing a positive future for its brands. Awaze will now market the newly-added accommodation to domestic and international audiences through its key brands, Hoseasons, cottages.com and Novasol. The group is backed by private equity firm Platinum Equity.

Tim Rees, former shareholder and CEO of Quality Cottages and Quality Unearthed, said: “First and foremost the sincerest of thanks to you both. It has been quite a journey to get to this point, and yes certainly a feeling of relief. You guys have been fantastic, the personal support when things got tough was above and beyond, as too were the countless late nights and early mornings you have both put in. We couldn’t have been happier with how you have approached this and the effort to get this deal done and over the line. The whole family is very pleased with the deal, and very pleased to have worked with you on this.”

FRP Corporate Finance Director Alex Patey added: “The UK’s holiday rental and self-accommodation sector has grown exponentially in the past 18 months and shows little sign of slowing as holidaymakers rediscover the ‘Great British holiday’ in volume. The sector is not alone in seeing consolidation and large, well-resourced operators continue to seek opportunities to add established and well-run brands like Quality Cottages and Unearthed to their offer. For those that have spent decades building now thriving businesses, it represents an outstanding opportunity to realise the value of their hard work and cement their legacy.”

HCRLaw and DSA, provided legal and tax advice respectively.

Deal summary

Date:

August 2021

Sector:

Leisure & hospitality

Deal type:

Selling a business

Deal size:

Undisclosed

The UK’s holiday rental and self-accommodation sector has grown exponentially in the past 18 months and shows little sign of slowing. Alex Patey Corporate Finance

Related team

Alex Patey

Alex Patey

  • Director
  • Corporate Finance
  • London West End

Darren Miller

Darren Miller

  • Partner
  • Corporate Finance
  • Reading