Travel Chapter

Private Equity Manager (GP)

Case study

About the company

Travel Chapter is a technology-enabled travel platform for self-catering holidays. Its headquarters are in Devon in the UK with a talented team of highly expert people and its leading brand, holidaycottages.co.uk, specialises in holidays across England, Scotland and Wales.

Investment rationale

• Acquisition of a leading UK holiday cottage platform with a strong track record of organic growth (new and repeat bookings, revenue and EBITDA growth c. 30% at entry).
• Deep immediate pipeline of M&A opportunities already identified at entry, with management having a demonstrated track record of successful bolt-on acquisitions.
• Large addressable market with sustainable tailwinds with proven resilience through economic cycles.
• ECI Partners (“ECI”) was able to gain preferential access to the opportunity as a result of a 20+ year track record in the travel sector and a 15-year relationship with the management team.

Our relationship

• PIP is a primary investor in four ECI funds and Pantheon holds an advisory board seat in each fund.

Active management and value creation

• Seven bolt-on acquisitions between February 2019 and December 2021, significantly expanding the geographic footprint and property base of the business.
• Executed the largest transaction to date of “Sally’s Cottages”, adding 500+ properties in the Lake District.
• Supported the business with organic property growth, resulting in a significant uptick in sign-ups (1,502 in 2021 vs. 1,024 in 2019).
• Helped develop the technology team and a data team that implemented several data improvement projects.
• The business traded strongly through COVID-19, with annual revenue and EBITDA growth of 38% and 50% over the three-year investment period.

Exit

• Travel Chapter was acquired by Intermediate Capital Group in December 2021, providing an exit for ECI and for PIP and generating a 2.6 times cost multiple and 36% annual return over three years.