Based in the Lake District, Sally’s Cottages is an award-winning, family-run business which began life in 2003 with just a single holiday property. Over the years, the brand has gone from strength to strength and now boasts over 500 beautiful properties in the region, including cottages in the popular areas of Keswick, Ambleside and Windermere as well as numerous other locations.
The natural beauty of the Lake District makes it one of the most popular holiday destinations in the UK, especially for those looking to make the most of the great outdoors, with plenty of opportunities for walking, hiking, cycling and all manner of other outdoor pursuits.
Sally’s Cottages property owners will now benefit not only from exposure on the Sally’s Cottages website, but also in due course, from the extended marketing reach across numerous sites within the Travel Chapter network, which receive over 35 million visits a year and include brands such as Canine Cottages, Big Domain and its flagship brand, holidaycottages.co.uk.
Sally Fielding commented: “This year is looking amazing for bookings and I very much hope this will continue going forward, after what has been a very challenging 15 months. Going into next year with The Travel Chapter at the helm will mean that there will be funds to safeguard all the jobs of the team here. It will also mean that there are the financial reserves to support the marketing of all the cottages, meaning that Sally’s Cottages can continue to be a force to be reckoned with for years to come. We chose The Travel Chapter because, whilst they have a national presence, their origins as a regional agency mean they remain a company that has the same beliefs and values as Sally’s; integrity, friendliness and simplicity.”
The Travel Chapter’s CEO, Jayne McClure, commented: “We’ve long admired the brand that Sally and the team have created as well as the great ethos and service they’ve delivered. We’re delighted that Sally and her husband Rob have chosen us to take the business forward. We’re looking forward to continuing the business in what should, hopefully continue to be a more encouraging year for tourism across the UK. In due course, we will integrate the Sally’s Cottages properties onto the wider Travel Chapter network where they will benefit from even greater marketing exposure. Our plan is to build on the brilliant success of this great business and continue to encourage guests to visit this beautiful part of the UK for many years to come.”
George Moss, Partner at ECI, adds: “We’re delighted to welcome Sally’s Cottages to The Travel Chapter Group. This is Travel Chapter’s sixth acquisition since ECI’s investment in 2019, and we’re excited to see 500 particularly high quality properties in the beautiful Lake District being added to the Group portfolio.”
In ECI’s podcast, “Building Successful Businesses,” we speak to CEOs about the building blocks of success and the lessons they’ve learned along the way. In Episode 4 we chat to Jayne McClure, CEO of Travel Chapter, about how the business has responded so strongly during the pandemic, the importance of having introverts and extroverts in a team, and how leaders have had to learn to step back this year and celebrate small wins.
