Carton House employs 308 people with staff costs rising to over €10m
Pre-tax losses at the five-star Carton House hotel resort in Co Kildare last year more than doubled to €2.55m due to increased costs.
New accounts for Belmullet Hospitality Group Ltd – which operates Carton House Hotel, Golf and Spa Resort on 1,100 acres of parkland in Maynooth – show the business recorded the increased losses despite revenues increasing by 13pc from €18.65m to €21.07m.
The 13pc rise in revenues compares with a 19pc rise in costs during 2023, from €19.1m to €22.73m.
This resulted in operating losses increasing more than threefold from €454,949 to €1.66m and interest costs of €892,256 resulted in the pre-tax loss of €2.55m.
The resort employed 308 last year and staff costs were the largest driver in costs – increasing by €2.32m, or 29.5pc, from €7.86m to €10.18m.
The pre-tax loss of €2.55m takes account of non-cash depreciation costs of €2.15m.
The 2023 pre-tax loss was a 108pc increase on the pre-tax loss of €1.22m recorded in 2022.
The resort has regularly hosted training camps for the Irish men’s rugby team and a note attached to the accounts states that the owners “are committed to maintaining significant investment and support to this valuable asset and business over the coming years, by funding working capital, interest commitments and debt repayments as required”.
The owners continued to invest in the business last year with additions to fixed assets valued at €2.53m.
The book value of the group’s fixed assets at the end of 2023 totalled €70.08m.
The resort’s reputation in the sporting arena will be further enhanced later this year with the resort’s O’Meara Golf Course hosting the 2024 KPMG Women’s Irish Open where Leona Maguire will be the star draw in the event running from August 29 to September 1.
The hotel resort was sold by the Mallaghan and Kelly families to Irish American businessman John Mullen for around €57m in 2017 and it re-opened and relaunched in June 2021 as a Fairmont Managed Hotel.
On business risks, the directors state that “the industry in which the group and company operates is competitive and challenging, however the directors have a detailed knowledge and experience in this sector”.
The group had shareholder funds of €33.39m made up of called up share capital of €57m offset by accumulated losses of €23.6m.
