Glampitect, the Edinburgh-based glamping site design consultancy, is celebrating hitting £1 million of sales just two years after forming.
The firm was set up in the autumn of 2019 by Calum MacLeod and Alisdair Young and has enjoyed strong growth under the pair’s guidance.
The opening few months of trading saw just over £41,000 worth of deals struck. The company then enjoyed a successful 2020 with sales of more than £400,000 and that trend has continued in 2021 with the consultancy’s services in high demand across the UK and internationally.
In October Glampitect smashed the £1 million barrier since being established in Edinburgh, with £555,000 worth of business being done to date this year.
“I am delighted that we have made it this far this quickly. If someone had suggested this to me two years ago, I’d have just laughed at them.” said Mr MacLeod.
“We set a target in December 2019 for the following year and the dream was to do £15,000 a month which would have been a total of £180,000. Our best month turned out to be £67,000 and we did over £400,000!
“Hard work and dedication has got us here and we want to keep going.”
A sales target of £2 million has been set for the next year and for MacLeod it has been a remarkable journey since the company struck its first deal at the 2019 Glamping Show in Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire.
“I remember that moment quite vividly as I was so nervous!” said Mr MacLeod. “It was a pre-planning application for a site in Aberdeenshire and I recall standing there with the card machine shaking in my hand as the client went to pay. I remember thinking ‘this is actually happening’!
Headquartered in Edinburgh but with offices now in Dubai and Birmingham, Glampitect is a full-service design consultancy for people interested in setting up a glamping site business.
It offers research and feasibility studies, pre-planning applications and full planning submissions, as well as assistance with clients’ websites, marketing, PR and social media to ensure maximum return on investment.
The firm is one of the pandemic’s success stories, with 17 full-time members of staff currently employed.
“We took the leap back in 2019 and it has paid off so far,” added Mr MacLeod, a former electrical engineer. “Ali and I both left full-time jobs to have a go at this without really knowing what was in store for us. It has been fun and eventful the whole way since we started out and to be honest it doesn’t feel like work.
“I’d love our success to empower people to have the confidence to try something different if they find themselves stuck in a rut or if they are not feeling fulfilled at work.
“If I could give any advice to people, it would be ‘don’t be scared’.”
Commenting on the company’s rapid growth, Mr Young said: “As with any start-up, there have been challenges along the way but it’s fantastic to be where we are at the moment.
“It’s a special milestone for us but this is only the start as far as myself and Calum are concerned. There are exciting times ahead for Glampitect and I can’t wait to see where the journey takes us.”
The entrepreneurs began their glamping journey in the Highlands when they set up North Coast 500 Pods in Achmelvich, Sutherland, before establishing Glampitect.
