It’s that time of year, when Business Link Magazine invites the region’s business leaders to offer up their predictions for the year ahead.
It has become something of a tradition, given that we’ve been doing this now for over 30 years.
Here we speak to Mark Goodson, the owner and Managing Director of Wayside Holiday Park near Pickering.
The picture facing the tourism industry in Yorkshire in the next 12 months is nuanced and complex. On the one hand, the threat of Covid and the worrying new variant, combined with a chronic lack of capable staff and a fractured supply chain, is a real challenge for our sector. There’s no getting away from that. On the other hand, the global pandemic has fuelled the “staycation” boom in the UK and it is highly likely that many people won’t be going abroad next year, because it is a logistical nightmare as well as a potential risk to health.
So let’s be optimistic to start with. Yorkshire is a most fabulous county and has flourished during the past 18 months, despite the problems faced by its main tourism body, Welcome to Yorkshire. Its beauty speaks for itself, from the glorious Dales, to the historic city of York and from the atmospheric North Yorkshire coastline to the stunning Moors. Our county has it all. There is every reason to believe that 2022 will be an exciting and successful year, Covid and lockdowns permitting.
Looking more specifically at the holiday park sector, our supply chain is a major worry. Because of the staycation boom, and the buying power of the grey pound, the demand for static caravans and holiday lodges is very strong. But the availability of both is erratic at best, despite strenuous efforts by the manufacturers. However, I am an optimist by nature and have invested £200,000 to upgrade our holiday park for the New Year. I am confident that this optimism isn’t misplaced.
