The Wave has completed a new investment deal worth £27 million with Sullivan Street Partners, which will support its plans to develop several new sites across the UK and Ireland.
The Wave is developing a host of inland surfing destinations after opening its first location in Bristol in 2019. The Wave is in talks with several potential sites in the UK, and is exploring a potential international expansion.
“We want to share the positive power of waves, the physical and mental health benefits, and the pure joy of surfing with as many people as possible,” said Nick Hounsfield, CVO and founder of The Wave.
The company plans to create more than six new surf parks in the next five to seven years with an investment of £200m. The Wave is already working on a site in London in the Lee Valley Regional Park.
Its new surf parks will cover between 70 and 100 acres, and will all feature a large surfing lake that provides perfect surfing waves for all abilities.
The agreement with Sullivan Street will enable The Wave to secure sites, make plans and further debt finances for its next three to four attractions. It also comes with a commitment to fund the construction phases of the future projects.
New surf parks across the UK and Ireland
Craig Stoddart, The Wave CEO, said the investment deal will allow the team to “move forward with our strategy to develop up to five more Wave sites in the next five years, and further cement us as a leading developer in the surf park sector – a leisure category that is set to boom”.
Earlier this year, The Wave signed an exclusive partnership with wave-making technology provider Wavegarden. The company’s Bristol site opened with the world’s first inland surfing lake to use Wavegarden Cove technology.
According to a news release, the surf park sector is burgeoning. As many as 100 surf parks could be operating across the globe in the next 20 years.
Images: The Wave
