Alistair Houghton meets ROD TUCKER, chief executive of Haulfryn Group

WHETHER being mocked by comedians or blown up on Top Gear, British caravans and holiday homes are perennial subjects for mirth – and the US-style trailer park remains a comedic staple.

But, as Rod Tucker is keen to point out, the caravan and holiday home industry is a serious business, worth more than £3bn annually to the UK economy.

Tucker is chief executive of Chester’s Haulfryn Group, a £50m turnover business which owns upmarket holiday and residential home parks in North Wales and the South and South West of England.

A business like Haulfryn, he says, has moved far away from the stereotypes of static caravans and mobile homes and instead has won a loyal customer base, thanks to its commitment to investing in its parks and providing quality facilities. It is continuing its investment programme despite the current tough economic conditions.

Its holiday parks are largely occupied by owner-occupiers, while its residential parks are popular with retired people.

Haulfryn’s flagship park is the 550-unit The Warren at Abersoch, on the Lleyn Peninsula, which was founded in 1948 and has been popular with generations of holidaymakers from the North West and further afield.

Its seafront units are in great demand, with many residents having their own boats – and the sale price of one of those homes hit the front page of the Daily Post’s sister North Wales newspaper last year.

“At the back end of last year we sold one of those for £500,000,” said Tucker, with an understandable smile. “It was reported in the US as the first “million-dollar” trailer.

“The holiday sector has changed because it used to be about very basic facilities on parks, but now it’s gone a long way upmarket. We’ve responded to customer demand and they want facilities like indoor pools and gyms.

“These days we pay more attention to the environment and landscaping so parks aren’t blots on the landscape. We work very hard to make sure they fit in.”

Equally, in the residential industry, Haulfryn is continuing to move away from the traditional caravan and holiday home image.

“On the residential side they’re known as park homes these days,” said Tucker.

“In the 1970s they were used by youngsters to get their first step on the housing ladder.

“But with the advent of 100% mortgages for houses, they tended to drift away. Park homes have developed more towards a lifestyle environment for people looking to release equity from their family homes.

“They’re very popular with those looking to live with like-minded retired people.

“Park homes have had a bad image over the years. Many people would know them as trailer homes. We’ve moved on by targeting the retirement age group.

“So many people when they see the parks are amazed by the lifestyle.”

Haulfryn was founded by Frank Minoprio in 1935 and five of his direct descendants are now on its board. The group employs around 260 full-time staff, with casual staff lifting that figure to 400 every summer.

Tucker says that since 2002, when investors started snapping up residential parks and pushing up their prices, Haulfryn has focused on expanding its holiday park business.

Last year the company bought five more in an £18m acquisition spree – including two in North Wales, marking the company’s first expansion on its “home turf” for several years.

The company prefers to buy parks in need of renovation and focus on redeveloping them to its standards. Its current investments include a £1m project to build a new pool at its Gimblet Rock park in Pwllheli.

Tucker says Haulfryn’s decision to keep investing in its parks will help it to thrive while others suffer in the slowdown.

“People are much more discerning than they used to be about their holiday accommodation,” he said.

“That’s down to package holidays. They’ve seen quality facilities abroad and we have to match them.

“We don’t offer the levels of entertainment of other parks, and we haven’t got huge arcades. It’s a more relaxed environment.”

Tucker admits, however, that varying planning regimes throughout the UK can affect the group’s expansion plans.

“One of our biggest battles is planning for our new developments,” he said. “Across the country you get mixed messages.

“Those in North Wales tend to support new developments, the same in Devon and Cornwall. But in Eastbourne and Hastings it’s more difficult.”

Tucker says the credit crunch has had mixed effects on his business. On the residential side, sales have slowed as customers who may have sold their houses to buy park homes decide instead to hang on to their old homes until prices rise.

“Holidays is a mixed bag,” he said. “North Wales has held up very well in line with last year, which is surprising. The South East has held up very well.

“The South West has gone very quiet. People will go from around London to Devon and Cornwall. At some parks I’ve heard people say ‘It cost me another £30 to get here this year.’ It’s started to bite.

“The market is better than I thought it was going to be. Nobody really knows how long it’s going to go on for, but we’re fairly upbeat about it.”

Tucker remains confident that his industry will keep growing in the long-term and says Haulfryn aims to move into new parts of the country.

“We look for a reasonably-sized park then have satellites around it,” he said. “We have been looking at the Yorkshire coast.

“We haven’t got any definite plans because in the last year or so there have been parks coming available in areas where we already operate.”

Haulfryn has homes built to its designs by manufacturers around the country, and has its own design team to make sure homes are equipped with the latest technology and are as up-to-date as possible in design terms

“It’s great to see how homes are developing,” said Tucker. “We’ve got one unit with a blower in the ceiling so you can come out of a shower and dry yourself without using a towel.”

Tucker lives in Windsor but spends much of his time visiting Haulfryn’s parks around the UK, as well as its head office just outside Chester’s city walls.

TUCKER has spent all his working life in the leisure industry. He joined Gowrings Leisure in 1973 to sell caravans and holiday homes, and having worked his way up through that business, joined Racecourse Marina in 1981 as operations director, responsible for a 200-berth marina and boat sales.

In 1989 he became operations director at Gowrings plc, running its residential parks and finance business. In 1995 the group sold that part of its business to Haulfryn.

Tucker joined the Haulfryn board in 1997 and became chief executive last year.

He has won a 25-year service award from the National Caravan Council (NCC), of which he will become vice-president this year.

Tucker’s role at the NCC sees him meeting industry colleagues from around the UK and lobbying MPs and ministers about legislation affecting the industry.

He said: “It’s a great industry to be in with a lot of friendly people. We can discuss problems with each other.”

Tucker’s boat sales role saw him sell to celebrities including Michael Caine, Ernie Wise and “really nice guy” Rolf Harris.

He says several celebrities have also owned Haulfryn properties, including William Roache, who plays Ken Barlow in Coronation Street.

“He had a unit at The Warren for many years and he’s been a great ambassador for us,” said Tucker.

“We have a lot of business people from the North Wales or Liverpool area as well.

“It’s amazing how often you talk to people and they’ll say ‘I was at The Warren staying with a friend’”.

alistairhoughton