Operating profits at the company that runs a Travelodge Plus hotel in Dublin city centre increased by 4 per cent to €10.57 million last year on the back of a State contract to house international protection (IP) applicants.
Accounts filed by Tifco Hotel Group’s subsidiary, Pumkinspice Ltd, show that the business, which operates a 393-bedroom hotel on Townsend Street in Dublin 2, saw revenues jump 13 per cent to €21 million from €18.5 million.
The company received €10.6 million (including VAT) from the Department of Integration last year for accommodating IP applicants at the then newly-constructed hotel in early 2022.
It operated exclusively under that contract for the rest 2022 before opening to the general public in April 2023.
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The company paid €12 million dividend to its parent firm, Cherrybeach Ltd, in September 2023.
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In a note with the accounts, the directors said the company “traded well in the year with a combination of State contracts and increased occupancy and rates driven by market demand”.
The company has continued to profit from its asylum seeker business in 2024 with Department of Integration figures showing that Pumkinspice received €1.2 million for the second quarter of this year for accommodating IP applicants.
On events since the end of 2023, directors said they “are evaluating the strategic options of the company and no definitive decision has been made at this point”.
Last year, numbers employed increased from 50 to 85 and staff costs rose from €2.4 million to €3.07 million.
Higher interest costs resulted in pretax profits slipping by 7 per cent to €8.04 million. The pretax figure takes into account non-cash depreciation costs of €2.05 million and interest payments of €2.53 million. That compares to interest payments of €1.47 million in 2022.
The company recorded a profit after tax of €6.33 million. After paying out the dividend in September, shareholder funds at the end of 2023 totalled €33.09 million.
Accumulated profits declined from €5.8 million to €178,008 and cash funds were down to €2.85 million from €3.05 million. The company’s tangible assets had a book value of €70.98 million at the end of December last.
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