Industry News

Host & Stay are delighted to announce that Growth Partner, a consumer-specialist investment firm backed by HomeServe Founder Richard Harpin, has completed a significant £10.5 million investment in Host & Stay.

Host & Stay are a rapidly growing holiday let and short-term rental management business, with a market disrupting model, to support its buy-and-build strategy, which has been set in motion with the two acquisitions completing in parallel with Growth Partner’s investment.

The partnership marks a major milestone for Host & Stay and is a testament to the incredible growth they’ve achieved since their founding in 2018. Their disruptive and vertically integrated model has underpinned growth from 9 properties to over 1,000 properties under management in the last five years, growth that outstrips all others in the market over that same period.

Host & Stay’s service includes a fully integrated model to homeowners, which unlocks greater rental yields for its property owners, alongside a higher touch level of service. This differentiation model has helped the business capitalise on the £2.5bn thriving staycation market in the UK, enabling its exceptional year on year growth.

With Growth Partner’s investment, Host & Stay will be able to continue its rapid growth to become the leading end-to-end holiday let and short-term rental management agency in the UK. They’re poised to grow their services and innovation even further whilst being able to accelerate their commitment to developing their teams and expertise.

With the support of Growth Partner, Host & Stay’s buy-and-build strategy has gained instant momentum with the acquisition of Norfolk Holiday Properties and Air Host For You, both completing in parallel with Growth Partner’s investment. Norfolk Holiday Properties, founded in 2018, provides management services to 130 properties spanning the entirety of Norfolk, from urban, to coastal, to rural, giving Host & Stay a significant foothold in the 7th largest market by listing in the UK. Airhost For You, founded in 2015, manages 105 properties in Brighton (Airbnb’s most searched location in the UK in 2023) making it the largest property management company in the region.

Richard Harpin said: “Host & Stay embodies the entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to excellence that drives true innovation in any industry. Dale Smith and his team have harnessed a unique market opportunity and are poised for tremendous growth. Our backing will support Host & Stay in its journey to set new benchmarks in the holiday let and rental management space.”

Dale Smith said: “After several years of growing Host & Stay organically from a single property to one of the largest short term rental management agencies in the UK, we’re truly excited to be partnering with Growth Partner for our next phase of the journey and to realise our ambition of becoming one of the world’s best short term rental operators.

Alex and the wider Growth Partner team have been exceptional to work with throughout the investment process and they have approached the partnership in a collaborative and pragmatic way from day one. This approach has only further strengthened my confidence that we have chosen the right investment partner, and along with the vast experience and strategic influence of Richard, we’re now in a fantastic position to accelerate the growth of Host & Stay both in the UK and overseas.”

Host & Stay’s mission has always been – and continues to be - to provide the highest quality service to their owners, and the partnership with Growth Partner will help them continue to set new benchmarks in the holiday let and short-term rental management industry.