Our story began just over 75 years ago. We were founded in 1946 when Walter Allen switched from making beehives to building touring caravans after he spotted an opportunity in the growing post-war leisure market. He lived in the village of Willerby, on the outskirts of Hull, in East Yorkshire, at the time, and set up a small factory there with fellow entrepreneur John Richardson. That’s where our name came from – Willerby was born!
...we became the leading manufacturer of quality holiday homes and lodges in the UK. We did this by moving with the times, constantly evolving, and investing in our people and our facilities. But we’ve remained true to our roots and, although we now operate from a 90-acre site, employ more than 1,100 people and produce over 8,000 holiday homes, lodges and residential park homes every year, we’re still based in Hull.
Our focus on quality is at the heart of everything we do is. Our first touring model back in those very early days was called the York and was just 11ft long. Others soon followed, including the very popular Vogue. In a nod to the past, and our proud history, we still have an original 1956 Vogue sited at our Hull showground. It’s quite the talking point for visitors!
We responded to increasing consumer demand over the years with larger and more sophisticated touring models, and also moved into manufacturing permanently sited holiday caravans. The holiday homes industry was growing rapidly – and so were we. Families wanted to hire caravans on the coast or in the countryside. The demand for more luxurious holiday caravans they could buy on a site of their choice to visit on weekends or for short breaks was also increasing. The great British staycation had truly arrived and ever since then, there’s been no holding us back as we’ve continued to grow and develop as a business. We’ve remained at the forefront of the evolution of the holiday homes industry, leading the way with new innovations and developments and producing the most luxurious holiday homes and lodges available.
A significant milestone in our recent history was the launch of Willerby Bespoke in 2018, as we entered the residential and luxury leisure lodge market for the first time. Our Bespoke park homes are fully furnished, decorated and equipped to an exceptional standard, with each home custom-designed by Willerby’s experts to match buyers’ tastes and needs exactly.
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