Following in the footsteps of dental practices, veterinary clinics and daycare centers, a mix of foreign private equity and strategic parties is now also stepping in full on Dutch recreation companies. First from larger vacation parks, but now it is even descending on the smaller campsites.
In recent years, Dutch vacation parks and campsites are increasingly being taken over by foreign parties. Think for example of large chains such as European Camping Group (owned by PAI Partners), Siblu Villages (owned by Naxicap Partners), EuroParcs and the French family businesses Huttopia and Capfun.
In addition, vacation park operator Roompot (owned by U.S. investor KKR) has long been in the process of acquiring industry peer Landal Greenparks (until recently owned by Platinum Equity). That acquisition was finally approved by the Authority Consumer and Market (ACM) on April 12, 2023, but only after Roompot agreed to divest some 30 bungalow parks to Dormio, which is another major player in the field of vacation parks in our country.
Chromepotization
As a result of these developments in the recreation industry, experts say there is what you might call increasing de-glamorization and petrification of the vacation product, and traditional camping is increasingly in jeopardy. Or "verroompotisering," as it is called among entrepreneurs in the industry. On top of this, the so-called people's camping, where Joe with the cap liked to stand with his mobile home during the vacation season, is also disappearing. Traditional annual pitches are increasingly having to make way for luxury and more expensive chalet parks, including swimming pools with slides, or for so-called tiny houses.
'Crazy is not that, by the way,' says recreation expert Sasja Vermeulen of agency Ginder, who also notes that large foreign parties are becoming increasingly dominant in the Dutch recreation market through takeovers. 'In many places, as the operator of a campsite or vacation park, you can naturally ask more per week for a luxury chalet or a tiny house than for a regular annual pitch with a mobile home on it.'
Save the campsite
Yet in some layers of the Dutch population, especially among diehard campers and (local) politicians, there is increasing resistance to the conversion of traditional campsites with annual pitches into parks with (expensive) vacation homes. This makes the wave of consolidation underway among campsites sensitive.
It was recently even reason for SP MP Sandra Beckerman to launch an initiative note for it, called 'Save the camping'. Her reasoning: traditional camping disappears where the big (foreign) money appears. But that is a picture that is not entirely accurate, according to the researchers of Opkopen Vakantieparken, a report commissioned by the government in 2022.
'The image that annual pitches on Dutch campsites are rapidly disappearing because foreign investors are buying up Dutch vacation parks en masse is incorrect. Dutch investors are also involved and they are just as guilty of converting campsites, because the earnings model of a petrified vacation park is much more interesting than that of a traditional campsite. However, it is true that finding a new location for a permanent annual pitch for a mobile home or wooden chalet by someone who is thrown off a campsite because it is being converted by the new operator is not always easy, because those pitches have been declining in numbers for years," the report's researchers concluded at the time.
Takeovers
The consolidation wave among campsites has been going on for a while, but recent examples of Dutch campsites taken over by foreign (read: mostly French) chains are Lente van Drenthe in Gasselte by Siblu Villages and campsite Het Groene Eiland in Appeltern and campsite De Belten in Rheeze, both by Capfun. There was also recently the acquisition of Camping Warnsveld, which was taken over by Yoko Village, a party from Costa Rica. This business also wants to convert the campsite and create a living community where people can engage in communal activities such as yoga and ecstatic dancing from a recreational home.
According to Vermeulen, the reason why campsites change hands and then often end up in foreign/other hands is because the entrepreneurs who run the campsites or vacation parks are often already elderly and because they do not have anyone within the family who can or wants to succeed them. Or, as in many other industries, they struggle with business succession.
Moreover, the intensive lifestyle involved in running a campground is not for everyone. This often leaves no other option than to sell the camping company or vacation park to another party. However, according to Vermeulen, it is not the case that entrepreneurs who want to get rid of their campsite automatically end up with the larger foreign parties such as Capfun or Siblu.
Capital-intensive
Usually, according to Vermeulen, it is then that the entrepreneurs try to sell their campground to a family member or to another entrepreneur, because they actually find that the most comfortable. If that doesn't work out, then they start to see if they might be able to place it with one of the big foreign chains and see if they might be interested in taking over the campground, she outlines the situation.
Money, of course, is a driving force in this regard. But according to Vermeulen, money is not the only motivation for a campground owner or vacation park operator to sell up. For example, there are entrepreneurs who want to ensure the continuity of their campground and for whom making the bottom line may be slightly less important. 'In addition, securing retirement can also be an important motive for entrepreneurs to sell their campground or vacation park,' Vermeulen states.
What also sometimes happens is that entrepreneurs want to sell their campground or vacation park because they can no longer muster the energy to make another investment to completely renovate or restructure the campground or vacation park. 'Operating a campground is a capital-intensive business and some entrepreneurs simply don't feel like holding up their hand to the bank one more time or putting all their savings into the vacation property one more time.'
Knockout bid
The amounts circulating in the market that foreign parties are willing to pay for a relatively small campground are substantial. On average, the purchase price fluctuates between 3 and 10 million euros, which of course depends on the scale and location of the campground. Vermeulen cannot confirm whether those amounts are correct. 'But it is of course logical that a campsite with a swimming pool and with a number of other facilities for camping guests will fetch much more than a campsite with only a large grassy field intended for pitches and caravans.'
An owner of a well-run campsite in the east of the country, who wishes to remain anonymous (but whose name is known to the editors), has himself been approached a few times by parties who wanted to take over his campsite. 'Often you are approached by a recreation agent. They ask you whether you might be interested in selling your campsite. They will send you an e-mail or approach you directly to see if they can talk about it. It's usually not the case that suddenly someone from one of those big chains shows up at your site and says he wants to buy your campground, because that's not so easily accepted in our world.
He himself has so far declined the honor because he still enjoys running his campground too much. But he says there are plenty of other campground owners in his area who have stepped in and accepted such a knockout offer from such a large chain.
'It's take it or leave it then, but at least these have been golden times for recreation brokers. Here in the area I have also seen two campsites taken over by Capfun in a short time. It's not much 'fun' by the way, because they fill the site with chalets, because the yield per square meter is much higher. They outsource the catering on these campsites, because they say they don't know anything about it. And they put in a manager who doesn't live on the site himself or doesn't even live near the site. What I also know is that some campsites have been sold to Capfun privately, without the intervention of an agent. Those have never been on the market.'
According to Namur, the large parties on the takeover path at least have the capital to take over. She also cites the speed of action to get the deal done as a plus. As a downside, she mentions that campground owners who sell a business may see their business change faster than they would like. Vermeulen: "You have to let go of that as soon as possible, because you won't be in control after that.
