Travelodge 'well-placed' to build on 2010's strong growth

Budget hotel chain Travelodge has enjoyed strong growth thanks to cost-conscious customers, with sales up 13 per cent and 70 new hotels in its portfolio.

The firm, which bought 52 hotels from Mitchells & Butlers in July, sold 7.2 million rooms in 2010. It said like-for-like growth of 6 per cent was led by its London operations.

Chief executive Guy Parsons said the company would continue to focus on expansion this year, with four hotels already opened and 36 currently being built. He said: "We are creating 725 new jobs, and ensuring we are well on track to reach over 1,100 hotels and 100,000 rooms by 2025.

"We therefore remain confident on the longer term outlook for Travelodge, with stable current trading and our strong growth pipeline ensuring that we are well-placed for 2011."

Travelodge - which launched a national advertising campaign featuring a teddy called "Mr Sleep" last year, above - has recently focused on city centre growth to rebalance its portfolio away from roadside locations.