Bella Brodie
Has a wealth of experience in the park and leisure home world and has been reporting on parks, homes and industry developments for over two decades in a number of industry publications. Prior to that, she ran a PR agency specialising in leisure accommodation and the hospitality sector. With a passion for innovation and cutting-edge design, she is a keen advocate of holiday home ownership and holidaying in the UK, regularly highlighting examples of excellence and best practice.
Exciting designs, new innovations and a great atmosphere!
The World of Park & Leisure Homes is a key date in the diary for anyone thinking of buying a park or leisure home. Many of the industry’s innovators are out in force exhibiting their latest models. This year, residential homes, lodges, and holiday homes took a giant step forward in the design stakes, with some truly outstanding models on show. Yet the story of the show was probably not a manufacturer this time, but an air-bourne lodge system designed to change the landscape, literally, for plots currently at risk of flooding.
GAME CHANGING FLOOD ADAPTIVE PLATFORM
This exciting new innovation came from the Flood Technology Group, working in partnership with Flood Technology Manufacturing to bring its innovative flood adaptive platform for holiday lodges and mobile homes to the market. This was showcased at Stoneleigh for the first time this year, after the groundbreaking system was retrofitted to a lodge at a riverside site in Warwickshire. This exciting, world-first project confirmed that it’s possible for prime plots of land near bodies of water and in flood-risk areas to be developed safely. Both new build and retrofit systems have been successfully tested and are now available. By partnering with FTM, Flood Technology Group will be able to make its Flood Adaptive Platform for holiday lodges and mobile homes available to tourism businesses across the UK and beyond, helping them to future-proof their operations against the increasing flood risk posed by climate change.
Simon Gilliland, Chief Executive of Flood Technology Group, said: “Our gamechanging flood adaptive technology, enables us to offer a unique proposition to the holiday home and lodge market, which will be hugely beneficial to holiday parks in flood-risk areas.”
Mark Holland, Director of FTM, added: “We’re very excited to combine our manufacturing expertise with Flood Technology Group’s innovative technology to bring fully flood-adaptive holiday lodges to market. With around 10,000 UK holiday park homes at moderate or significant risk of flooding, there’s a real need for this cuttingedge product to help tourism businesses adapt to the growing flood risk.”
Research commissioned by Flood Technology Group indicates that the Flood Adaptive Platform costs 40 per cent less to install, operate, and maintain than other flood risk mitigation methods, including flotation -based systems. Additionally, its low-carbon, off-site assembly approach reduces greenhouse gas emissions from manufacturing, transporting, installing, and maintaining the platform by up to 95 per cent compared to other methods. Flood Technology Group’s partnership with FTM is a significant step towards providing robust flood protection solutions for the tourism industry and other sectors. We actually took a trip up in the lodge sited on the platform at Stoneleigh, and it felt robust, rising so steadily that you could hardly feel it, and with hardly any sound. Considering how many plots this could open up to development and how many existing homes this could help in flood-risk areas, this could be a game changer for the industry, and we hope to see it rolled out in many locations in the future.
“…this could be a game changer for the industry”…
EMERGING TRENDS
The trends for this year seemed to be contemporary design with architectural features, but with a few wild cards thrown in for excitement, including rustic lodges, striking use of marble, the rise of the full-size bath in holiday homes, and increasing use of feature lighting to set the tone. The Harbur Curve was unmissable on entrance, and lived up to high expectations well, yet the H4 they also showed was also outstanding. Opposite, Pathfinder had two exciting lodges, The Loft and The Astbury, and their Merley residential home was one of the talking points of the show – the Pathfinder team are firing on all cylinders and, without doubt, ones to watch at the moment!
Omar dominated the central walkway with a rooftop lodge, and their stand was busy throughout, thanks to their ability to bring something for everyone. Their revamped Anniversary was quite a talking point, but their new Contemporary also shone brightly; a great example of how design skill and fantastic dressing delivered instant wow factor on entry. In fact, the home staging was outstanding at this show, often thanks to Dress Packs Solutions’ sterling work, and Oakgrove also stood out from this perspective, so we should also acknowledge their talented dresser for her hard work, too! It was lovely to see Manor Park Homes, Hawthorne Lodges, and Fairway Homes deliver their usual high-quality park and leisure homes to extend the range for discerning buyers, and Your Retreats made a big impact with their contemporary lodge, complete with stunning lighting features. There were quite a few mini-lodge and pod manufacturers present, with a very diverse offering across the board. Stately homes had their own village as usual, where their new Sapphire residential home was quite jaw dropping, a masterpiece of open space and light. However, we also loved their Wentwood, destined for Norton Manor Park, had a very memorable lounge with inglenook fireplace.
Prestige kept quiet about what they were taking and their Phoenix was amazing, with a striking entrance and a memorable hidden office in the lounge. The Sonnet was sweet and uplifting as residential homes go, with a fresh colour scheme to match, and we think that will sell really well as a mid-range home with a sleek look and finish. Another design team excelling on every level. They’ve also revamped the Sofia, giving it broader appeal, and we think this will surprise many a buyer who will see how different it is.
“manufacturers are starting to get competitive again with their designs”
SUPPLIERS AND SERVICES
To help those thinking of buying but with lots of questions, there were a lot of service suppliers present as always. Ibraheem Dulmeer of Park Home Law was on hand to help showgoers orientate with industry intricacies and legal matters, and Matthew Gibbs of Clear View Park Homes also had a stand, so he was able to answer any questions about park and leisure home construction and build processes, when a survey is needed and for advice on repairs and refurbishment.
Quickmove had a strong presence as always and seem to go from strength to strength. They were a must-visit stand for anyone thinking of buying a park or leisure home as they will take the strain out of the process, helping to match buyers with their perfect park, home and location. For residential buyers with a property to sell, they can buy it for cash, enabling a quick and hassle-free transaction, so it’s no surprise that they were so busy. They are particularly well known for their great service levels and friendly staff, helping to make the process easy for those otherwise not familiar with the quirks of the park home property market.
Parkhouse Air Conditioning’s stand was a popular hit in all weathers, keeping their visitors warm and cool in turn as the weather kept changing, demonstrating their product efficiency perfectly. Gateway Chassis launched their sectional chassis system, which enables manufacturers to customize their build to any size or assembly method, with every part delivered in flat pack format, ready to feed into the customer’s own assembly process in a streamlined, cost-effective way. For those with limited storage and assembly space, it offers an all-in-one solution without compromising unduly on strength or capability.
Overall the show had a great atmosphere and solid footfall, and it’s clear that the manufacturers are starting to get competitive again with their designs. That’s great news for the industry as you never know what you’re going to see next!
“…an increasing use of feature lighting to set the tone…”
DIARY DATES
Next year’s dates have already been announced as 5th June for trade, and 6th – 8th June for the public, and you can find out more about who is exhibiting closer to the time at www.parkhomeandleisure.co.uk Berkeleyparks have already been confirmed as overall sponsors and NACO/ Park Life hopes to sponsor the catering area once again.
NEXT UP
The next major show not to miss is the Great Holiday Home Show, which takes place in Harrogate from 8th – 10th September for the general public, and 12th – 14th September for trade. For further details head to www.thegreatholidayhomeshow.co.uk
