Cove Communities Holiday Park UK HoldCo Limited (HPUK), the holiday park firm that entered administration last November, owes £244 million in debt, with several Scottish sites now up for sale.
Scottish sites affected
The administration impacted eight locations in Argyll employing nearly 197 staff, plus a Scottish Borders site with 20 employees. A holiday park in Cumbria employing 46 people and a Cornwall park with 97 staff were also affected. These facilities have continued to trade while administrators Alvarez & Marsal seek a buyer.
Argyll Holidays reportedly owed £103 million at the time of the collapse. Cove acquired the family-founded company for approximately £100 million in 2022.
Reasons for collapse
Joint administrator Adam Paxton attributed the failure to "high interest rates and consumer spending contraction," alongside rising operational costs. The firm also closed its Medmerry resort in West Sussex in April 2024 after severe flooding and gale force winds caused extensive infrastructure damage.
It is uncertain whether a secured lender owed £70 million will receive a distribution, with The Herald reporting this is "dependent on the value achieved for the sale of business process." Unsecured creditors owed £174 million, mainly loan notes and inter-company debt, may also receive no return.
Administrators' statement
The administrators said: "This led to an inability to continue to service the loan. As a result of the above, the group requested the secured lender provide additional funding."
"The secured lender did not agree to the group's request and exercised its powers under its qualifying floating charge to appoint administrators in order to protect value within the company."
Alvarez & Marsal have reportedly appointed property agents Colliers to market Cove's entire trading portfolio in a coordinated sales process, including sites in Scotland and England. The Scottish sites under Argyll Holidays up for sale are Drimsynie Holiday, Hunter Quay Holiday Village, Loch Awe Holiday Park, Loch Eck Caravan Park, Loch Eck Country Lodges, Loch Lomond Holiday Park, St Catherine's Caravan Park, and Stratheck Holiday Park. Creditors have approved extending the administration process to October 2027.
