History of Center Parcs Europe

Transcription

1 History of Center Parcs Europe 1953 Opening of Sporthuis Centrum Piet Derksen, who later founded Center Parcs, opens his first Sporthuis Centrum store on the Rotterdam Lijnbaan. The first sports department store in the Netherlands is an unparalleled success. Sporthuis Centrum expands into a chain of 17 innovative and spectacular stores within just a few years Opening of De Lommerbergen, the first village In addition to sports articles, Sporthuis Centrum also specializes in holidays. In 1967 Piet Derksen establishes a new trend. He buys an area of forest near Reuver (Limburg) and builds 'luxury' cottages, equipped with colour TV and central heating. The cottage design contact with nature is the concept of the well-known Dutch architect Professor Jaap Bakema. A new formula is created: from now on the Dutch can enjoy short breaks close to home Opening of Het Vennenbos The popularity of De Lommerbergen is so enormous that a new village is quickly opened: Het Vennenbos, in Hapert, North Brabant Opening of Het Meerdal The latest innovation is introduced in the third village, Het Meerdal in America, North Limburg: cottages are located alongside a lake for the first time. Water chutes and fun features are introduced into the swimming pool Opening of De Huttenheugte Piet Derksen opens his fourth village in as many years: De Huttenheugte, close to Coevorden Opening of De Berkenhorst Interest for Sporthuis Centrum, as it was then named, continues and the fifth village in the Netherlands is opened: De Berkenhorst, near Kootwijk Sale of Sporthuis Centrum shops Piet Derksen sells all 17 Sporthuis Centrum shops and from now on concentrates on developing the villages.

2 1980 Opening of De Eemhof, the first village with a Subtropical Swimming Paradise The opening of De Eemhof is a milestone in the company's history for two reasons. Firstly because it is the first village to accommodate more than 600 cottages and a comprehensive village centre, all built in one go. But most importantly, because the Subtropical Swimming Paradise is introduced for the first time at De Eemhof Opening of Erperheide, the first village beyond the borders of the Netherlands The company turns its attention beyond the borders of the Netherlands for the first time. The first village outside the Netherlands is Erperheide, located at Peer, in Belgian Limburg Opening of De Kempervennen Clustered round the former Eurostrand just underneath Valkenswaard rises the spacious village De Kempervennen Opening of Het Heijderbos and a change of name Het Heijderbos opens in 1986, with the first wild water rapids, on the extreme tip of North Limburg. With a view to international expansion the company also changes its name. Sporthuis Centrum becomes Center Parcs from now on Opening of Sherwood Forest, the first village in the UK Opening of De Vossemeren, with the first covered Parc Plaza The opening of Sherwood Forest, the first village in the United Kingdom, becomes fact. De Vossemeren, the second village in Belgium, features a new trend: an enormous dome that covers all the central facilities. In future, the Subtropical Swimming Paradise and the covered village centre will be a standard feature of every village of Center Parcs Opening of Les Bois-Francs, the first French village An entirely new holiday concept is introduced into France with the opening of Les Bois-Francs in Normandy.

3 1989 Opening of Elveden Forest Scottish &Newcastle becomes new owner The second village in the UK is completed near Thetford in East Anglia. Piet Derksen withdraws from Center Parcs and sells his shares to Scottish & Newcastle Sale of De Berkenhorst Due to limited expansion options, De Berkenhorst is sold to Creatief Vakantieparken, which later also takes over Het Vennenbos (1994) and De Lommerbergen (1996) for the same reasons Opening of Les Hauts de Bruyères The Center Parcs concept also takes root in France. The second French village opens in Sologne (Loire region) Opening of Longleat Forest Longleat Forest, the third village in England, is situated inside the Longleat Estate, near Bath Opening of Bispinger Heide Due to the popularity of the Dutch and Belgian villages among the German population, Center Parcs now directs its expansion plans towards the east. Bispinger Heide is 80 kilometres south of Hamburg and makes up part of the Lünenburger Heide, a European Heritage nature reserve Extensive innovation programme All Dutch and Belgian villages undergo a complete change of appearance, including a metamorphosis of the village centres and the Aqua Mundos. The Jungle Dome is introduced at Het Heijderbos and the Discovery Bay at De Vossemeren.

4 Center Parcs invests in a new millennium concept Following on from the ambitious renewal programme completed in the villages over the past three years, Center Parcs now gives shape to its millennium concept with important new investments and innovations that affect all aspects of the Center Parcs product Pierre & Vacances and DB Capital Partners buy Center Parcs Scottish & Newcastle sells Center Parcs Europe to a 50/50 joint venture between Pierre & Vacances and DB Capital Partners (later MidOcean) in order to concentrate on the expansion of its beer and retail activities. The three villages in the United Kingdom are subject to a 100% takeover by DB Capital Partners Fourth village for Center Parcs in the UK The Oasis Holiday Village near Penrith on the edge of the Lake District is taken over by Center Parcs UK in September 2001 and given a new name: Oasis Whinfell Forest Center Parcs Europe reinforces market leadership Center Parcs selects the five best Gran Dorado villages and includes these in its European portfolio in order to work on other market segments Pierre & Vacances becomes full owner of Center Parcs Europe Pierre & Vacances owner of half the shares in Center Parcs Europe since March 2001 reaches agreement with MidOcean on the purchase of the remaining fifty per cent of shares in Center Parcs Europe New German village Center Parcs takes over the German village Butjadinger Kuste in Tossens close to Bremerhaven from the Eurohypo AG in Frankfurt.

5 2007 Opening of Le Lac d Ailette and acquisition Sunparks The superior luxury village Le Lac d Ailette opens near Reims. An expansive, 84-hectare site is home to an ultra-modern and extremely varied holiday village. The biggest touristic project in Europe in the last fifteen years accommodates 800 wooden cottages in authentic Canadian style and a wide range of facilities. The village is attractively situated on the lake at L Ailette. Center Parcs acquires the Belgian Sunparks Group. The acquisition of the 4 Belgian villages fits entirely with the development strategy of Center Parcs Europe and offers the opportunity to strengthen its position in the holiday market, in the three and four star category Fourth village in France Introduction of dual branding strategy with Center Parcs and Sunparks Construction works has started of the fourth village in France, Le Domaine des Trois Forêts, in the forested settings of Moselle. This village which is due to be completed in 2010 becomes a fully ecological and bio-diverse village. The investment in the village amounts to 250 million euro. The Center Parcs Europe Group engage in a new era with the introduction of a dual growth strategy with a clear positioning for Center Parcs and Sunparks whereby both brands perfectly supplement each other. Depending on their need, guests opt for the most complete and richest product in the sector, Center Parcs. Or they make a conscious choice for Sunparks, villages with the best weather independent facilities in their segment. In order to immediately place a fully fledged offer on the market, as from January villages of Center Parcs belong to the Sunparks family: Zandvoort aan zee and Limburgse Peel in the Netherlands and Nordseeküste and Eifel in Germany.