Four travel firms in Sunday Times Profits Track 100

Domestic operator Forest Holidays, business travel firm Click Travel, Titan Airways and Longleat Enterprises have been ranked among the UK’s 100 private companies with the fastest growing profits.

Wendy Wu Tours was highlighted as among ten ‘rising star’ private companies with forecast profits of £4.6 million and margins of 12% in 2018.

Derbyshire-based Forest Holidays came fourth in the 19th annual Sunday Times Profits Track 100 with annual profit growth of 130.50% to £7.2 million last year.

Phoenix Private Equity were attracted to the business and paid £110 million for a 42% stake in 2017. The company is part owned by the Forestry Commission and has 571 wood cabins to rent in nine locations, with a new site in the Brecon Beacons planned.

Click Travel featured at 39th on the annual list with profit growth of 75.75% to £3.4 million as sales grew by 30% in the year to March 2017, although margins were described as thin.

The Birmingham travel management company, which provides business travel services to clients such as Red Bull, TalkTalk and Adecco, developed its own self-booking ‘travel cloud’ technology in 2016.

Charter specialist Titan Airways, which runs a fleet of 12 aircraft serving carriers such as Aer Lingus and Jet2.com, boosted profits by 61.03% to £9.6 million last year to come 70th on the top 100.

Tourist sites operator Longleat Enterprises, which runs its Wiltshire safari park and Cheddar Gorge and Caves, was 95th on the list with an annual profit increase of 55.33% to £3.5 million.

Bed Manufacturer and retailer Dreams topped the Profit Track 100 with annual profit growth of 166.89% to £34.5 million.