Center Parcs
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| Public limited company (Naamloze vennootschap) | |
| Industry | Leisure |
| Founded | 1968 |
| Founder | Piet Derksen |
| Headquarters | Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| Owner | Freehold: Blackstone Group Leasehold operator: Pierre & Vacances |
| Parent | Pierre & Vacances |
| Divisions | Center Parcs UK (associated, co-branded) |
| Website | CenterParcs.com |
Center Parcs is a European network of holiday villages that was founded in the Netherlands in 1968. It is operated by two separate companies: Center Parcs Europe (CPE), which is operated by Pierre & Vacances on mainland European sites owned by Blackstone Group; and Center Parcs UK, which runs holiday villages in Great Britain and Ireland owned by Brookfield Properties Corporation.
Dutch entrepreneur, Piet Derksen, started a sporting goods shop in 1953 at Lijnbaan, Rotterdam. Its name was 'Sporthuis Centrum', 'Sport House Centre'. It succeeded and Derksen expanded into 17 outlets across the Netherlands, and then added camping articles to the range.
In 1968, Derksen purchased woodland near Reuver so staff and customers could relax in small tents. The park, De Lommerbergen, was successful, the tents were quickly replaced by bungalows. In 1987, Center Parcs opened its first UK resort at Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire. This brought the company into the sights of expanding brewer Scottish and Newcastle, which later bought the group.
In 2001, Scottish and Newcastle sold the UK side of Center Parcs to venture capitalists Mid Ocean. In December 2003 they agreed to sell the UK resorts to Arbor for £285 million, a special vehicle set up to float Center Parcs UK on the 's Alternative Investment Market. However, after flotation in May 2006, Center Parcs UK Group PLC was sold to Blackstone Group, and was re-registered as a private company. The chief executive, Martin Dalby, said that the company might add a fifth village. Late in 2004 it was announced it would be built in Woburn in Bedfordshire. Planning permission was turned down but Center Parcs won on appeal.
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Wikipedia