Online bathroom retailer Victoria Plum has announced that its sales rose by a record 46 per cent to £103m for the year ended 28 February 2021. The company has also put in place a permanent remote working strategy.

In addition its EBITDA increase by 115 per cent to £4.5m. Over the same period, the company grew its headcount from 349 to 398.

18 months ago the Doncaster based company was acquired by Leeds-based private equity fund Endless, this year also marks its twentieth year in business.

During that time, Victoria Plum has continued its successful management-led turnaround and transformation strategy under the leadership of chief executive, Paul McClenaghan.

This included launching a bathroom design and installation service in 2020, a move that has clearly differentiated the company, creating higher value transactions and enhanced customer relationships.

Victoria Plum also took the decision last year for all its people to permanently work remotely. The only exceptions to this are the teams working in the company’s 275,000 sq ft distribution facility in Doncaster and across its nationwide delivery network.

Victoria Plum’s Doncaster facility and one of its offices in Hessle, East Yorkshire, have now become hubs where people can work and meet according to their requirements.

Commenting on the business’s performance, chief executive Paul McClenaghan said: “We have an ambitious growth strategy, highly capable people throughout the company and a collective determination to further accelerate our rate of expansion. These latest record results validate our approach and provide us with the platform to progress our plans at pace.

“Elements of our results have benefitted from the speeding up of the structural shift to online retail throughout 2020. However, we were constantly evolving Victoria Plum as a pure-play online retailer long before last year’s events happened and will continue to do so.”

Compared to the previous financial year, Victoria Plum’s website users increased by 165 per cent to 23.2 million whilst its sessions rose 194 per cent to more than 51 million.

Paul continued: “We are confident that we will continue to grow at speed. Our market fundamentals are strong, we have the necessary scalable infrastructure in place and a clearly differentiated design and installation service that is experiencing rapidly increasing demand.

“In addition, the constant stream of valuable data and consumer insights we access and interpret enables us to quickly adapt our product offer to meet customers’ needs, keeping us ahead of the game.

“All this means we are ideally positioned to make Victoria Plum the most differentiated, most trusted and most respected bathroom provider.”

For further information visit www.victoriaplum.com.

Bathroom Brands Group is sponsoring DESIGN POD; the contemporary podcast from Hotel Designs aimed at interior designers and architects working across the globe.

This innovative new series reflects on the key issues faced by many modern design professionals with an aim to amplify voices and to invite healthy discussion. As leaders in bathroom design, the group is extremely proud to be part of the thought-provoking series whilst showing their full support for the hospitality industry.

Hosted by Hotel Designs editor, Hamish Kilburn and his co-host interior designer Harriet Forde – the pair have a wealth of knowledge across both the hospitality and design industry. To listen to the podcast, visit:
www.hoteldesigns.net/design-pod/

At ISH this week TOTO is presenting its corporate message of “Life Anew,” The theme reflects new lifestyle habits across the globe, triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting in a new awareness about hygiene in the home and in hospitality venues.

Cleanovation

TOTO offer a “clean, hygienic, and comfortable lifestyle” that is realised through innovation in clean technologies known as “TOTO CLEANOVATION”. This is the main exhibition concept, TOTO promises to deliver “comfort, cleanliness, and safety” not only with its toilets but also with many other bathroom products. “WASHLET,” “CLEAN SYNERGY,” and “TOUCHLESS” are the keywords behind TOTO’s proposal.

Let’s wash with WASHLET™️

A ‘Hygienic and Comfortable Lifestyle’ is explored with the message ‘Let’s Wash’, the meaning of the word WASHLET™️. The message is that users can wash with warm water rather than wiping to provide a feeling of well-being to everyday lives.

CLEAN SYNERGY Technology & Design

TOTO’s technology for toilets is not only about individual function but the combination of each technology. ‘CLEAN SYNERGY’ is all about the collaboration of technologies that keeps your toilet clean every time you use it.

The security of TOUCHLESS

TOUCHLESS technology allows you to take action around the bathroom area without touching fixtures. TOTO is producing TOUCHLESS bathroom spaces, delivering a sense of security for all users.

The TOTO website also features a full range of digital content including presentation movies and virtual spaces.

The Unified Water Label Association (UWLA) is calling on the KBB industry to realise the importance of protecting the Earth’s fresh water supply. The call to arms was made on World Water Day – 22nd March. World Water Day focusses on the importance of fresh water and presses for the sustainable management of fresh water resources. 

UWLA MD Yvonne Orgill, pictured, said: “The theme of World Water Day 2021 is ‘Valuing Water’ – a sentiment that we will be exploring at our virtual conference, Water Matters, on Tuesday 13th April. 

“Everyone has a part to play in making responsible water-saving choices, especially those involved in designing, manufacturing, selling, installing and purchasing, water consuming bathroom products.

“The Water Matters virtual conference is free to attend and brings together representatives from across Europe to discuss why water matters to them, and how they are communicating this important message in their own marketplace.”

Impact Entrepreneur Ben Keene will be guest speaker at the conference. Ben cofounded Tribewanted, an eco-friendly sustainable community in Fiji, and has spent 20 years exploring how to make a positive impact through building start-ups, communities and adventures around the world.

Keene said: “Water is life! Helping people understand the impact of their water consumption and nudge them towards positive behaviour change is an exciting challenge. I look forward to sharing some stories at the Water Matters event that I hope will accelerate your impact.”

Carlos Velazquez, newly elected president of UWLA, will also present on update on the progress of the Unified Water Label across Europe. He said: “This will be an important conference for anyone that wants to learn more about how to communicate with customers on water efficiency and environmental issues. We have brought together an outstanding line-up of speakers to share their strategies, and the commercial benefits that come from supporting and promoting the Unified Water Label.” 

More information and a registration form can be found here. 

Hospitality leader Edyn has shared plans for popular lifestyle brand Locke for the year ahead, this includes UK and internationally openings, a new property in Cambridge and the European expansion of the brand into Germany and Ireland.

The popular aparthotel portolion elevates the traditional aparthotel model by combining beautifully designed self-contained studio apartments – complete with fully fitted kitchens, living areas and laundry facilities. Locke partners with exciting up-and-coming designers and disruptive food and drink partners to give each location its own character and style.

Locke’s home-meets-hotel concept appeals to a broad range of travellers, appealing to both business and leisure guests and accommodating long- and short-term stays. Offering an elevated level of safety for its guests with the opportunity to live autonomously in each apartment, interest in this new format continued to grow throughout 2020, with Locke opening the doors of four properties over the course of the year. Across the edyn portfolio – which also includes serviced apartment brand SACO, The Moorgate and Wittenberg – occupancy for 2020 averaged 65%, significantly outperforming many comparable brands in the market.

“After demonstrating the resilience and adaptability of our business model throughout the pandemic, we’re excited to share further details of our Locke openings in 2021, which promises to be an exceptional year of growth for the brand across Europe.

As international business and leisure travel reawakens, we are seeing new trends, tastes and priorities emerging. Locke’s hybrid home-meets-hotel concept has never felt more relevant, and we’re looking forward to expanding the brand into new markets to meet traveller demand for more spacious, self-contained accommodation.” – Stephen McCall, CEO of edyn.