Skift Take
The prefab hotel niche at music and sports events isn't a bad one, it just needs a good pipeline and solid collections mechanism considering the ad hoc nature of the business. Snoozebox is learning to grow up, after a great 2012 IPO.
The chief executive and founder of UK portable hotel firm Snoozebox has stepped down as part of a shake-up of the company after it revealed that losses almost tripled last year.
Just days after the AIM-listed company shocked investors with a profit warning, Snoozebox said Robert Breare had stepped down with “immediate effect”. The former Ted Baker chairman will remain a director of the company.
The shares fell 11pc to 47.5p, as Snoozebox, which uses converted shipping containers from China to create pop-up hotels at events such as the Silverstone Grand Prix and Edinburgh Festival, said finance director Chris Upton had also resigned.
Mr Upton will be replaced by Lorcan O’Murchu, the former finance chief of UK Specialist Hospitals, which runs treatment centres for NHS patients. Army logistics expert Gary Thomson has also been promoted to chief operating officer.
The shake-up came as Snoozebox said revenues rose to almost £3.8m in the year to December 31, from £35,000 in 2011. However, the figure fell short of expectations because of “uncertainties” related to the amount of revenue it expected receive from the 320 rooms it provided to house G4S security staff during last summer’s London Olympic Games.
As a result, pre-tax losses almost tripled to £4.4m, from a loss of £1.25m the previous year. The results were delayed by three days after BDO, its auditor, raised concerns over the way the company planned to report some revenues.
David Morrison, the company’s chairman, said Friday’s results were “disappointing” and “less than satisfactory”. However, he said here was “undoubted momentum within the business and a strong pipeline for the current year.”
Snoozebox, which is fronted by former Formula 1 star David Coulthard, said it had abandoned plans to build 240 rooms for the inaugral USA Grand Prix this year because of worries over compliance issues. The company already has a two-year contract to provide units at Silverstone.
Last week, Snoozebox said it had won a £3.8m contract to supply accommodation for more than 1,300 people at the G8 Summit in Northern Ireland in June.
Snoozebox floated shares on the junior market in May at 40p a share.
Have a confidential tip for Skift? Get in touch
Tags: earnings