Cameron Hall Developments swung to an operating loss of more than £4m in the midst the pandemic, as its flagship Wynyard Hall hotel suffered under restrictions.
Recently published accounts for the development firm - set up by property tycoon Sir John Hall - laid bare a challenging period in the year to the end of December 2020 in which turnover fell from £8.2m the year prior, to £2.35m.
However, the firm's director Allison Antonopoulos said 2021 had brought "significant improvements" in profitability and cash reserves and advance bookings for 2022 had, at the time, already exceeded budgets.
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The accounts show the group - which employs about 128 people and includes subsidiary companies Wynyard Developments, Wynyard Hall and a majority stake in Rossington Developments Limited - recorded a £2.6m loss on the sale of one of its properties to two of Sir John's grandchildren - his namesake John Hall and Gregory Cameron.
Sarah Antonopoulos, CEO of Cameron Hall Developments, said: "Our 2020 accounts reflect the unprecedented impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had globally on the hospitality industry and our business was no exception to that. Our hotel operation, Wynyard Hall was either closed or had restrictions imposed upon it for most of 2020 and 2021 which negatively impacted the business.
"After a strategic review following the Covid pandemic, we believe our business operations are now more streamlined and lay the foundations for long term stability across the business. One exciting success story from the strategic review has been the launch of our new plot to plate restaurant, The Glasshouse, which sources all ingredients locally and produces its own fresh produce from its own gardens.
"Following the unprecedented market conditions over the last two years, we are pleased to say that the business is recovering well from the negative impact of the pandemic. As a result of the decisions we have made and the hard work of our team, the business expects a return to profitability in 2021.
"As a group, land sales and property development further strengthen our position and we look forward to continuing our recent success since reopening."
Separate accounts for Wynyard Hall show the hotel itself made an operating loss of £860,184 on turnover of £1.37m - the majority of which was generated by sales, including food and drink, at the property. Turnover in 2019 had been more than £5m.
Turnover from the group's land development business fell from £3.05m to £872,000 during the period while other property related income fell from £154,000 to £109,000.
During the year Cameron Hall Developments made use of a £50,000 Covid Bounce Back Loan, as well as £809,000 in government grants, including £625,973 from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.
