by David Bates
Self proclaimed ‘King of Caravans’, Don Amott, reaps benefits of Brits holidaying at home
The owner of a series of leisure parks across the UK has insisted Brits are becoming increasingly aware of the UK’s holiday spots.
Self-proclaimed ‘King of Caravans’, Don Amott, 66, who heads 24-acre showground,
Despite being in business since 1963, Amott refuses to take a back seat or to limit expansion. He told the Derby Telegraph: “We’re ahead of last year. Last year was a decent year but we’re 10 per cent ahead on sales this year and it’s about the same on the profit side”. Recent figures have revealed Don Amott Leisure Park has a current turnover of £15 million, with additional parks raking in £7 million respectively.
The ‘King of Caravans’ acknowledged that the rise in staycations following the 2007/2008 recession was beneficial for the British tourism trade, but as the economy has picked up, he certainly hasn’t slowed down.
Amott considers himself at the forefront of the caravan-leisure industry. He describes a eureka moment on holiday in Palm Springs, Florida, saying: “They had big water features, the grounds were manicured and the trees were lit up.
“Over here, we just had lines of caravans and seeing all that made me think we were doing something wrong. We came back and scrapped every idea we had. We were like the pioneers of what you now get in this country.”
This approach to caravanning is rather more expensive, but Amott told the Derby Telegraph, “what we try to do is give people value for money” by consistently delivering the best possible product. Their profit, he says, is directed into enviable customer service and continual development.
