Scottish hotel operator in administration
Aberdeen-based hotel operator European Development Company (EDC) has been placed in administration and its three Holiday Inn branded properties put up for sale this week.
The hotels are a Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express in Aberdeen and a Holiday Inn Express in Edinburgh and are continuing to trade under the auspices of Iain Fraser and Tom MacLennan, partners at FRP Advisory and joint administrators of EDC.
Turnover across the three hotels is around £11m, with 136 staff employed, 117 of whom are in Aberdeen.
Although occupancy levels were high, the administration has been caused by severe cash flow problems caused by the downturn in the oil and gas sector, and intense price competition from new build hotels in the Aberdeen marketplace, an FRP Advisory statement said.
EDC owned and operated a Holiday Inn Express on Chapel Street in the centre of Aberdeen and a Holiday Inn in Westhill on the outskirts of the city, together with a Holiday Inn Express on Picardy Place in Edinburgh city centre.
There are no immediate plans for redundancies.
Iain Fraser, joint administrator and partner at FRP Advisory, said: "The hotels could appeal to an existing hotel operator looking to expand their business, or an entrepreneur keen to enter the hospitality market by acquiring quality properties in prime locations. I am pleased to say that we are in advanced discussions for the sale of the Edinburgh hotel, and would urge interested parties to contact us as soon as possible with respect to the Aberdeen properties."
