Accommodation Company Moving Against Market Trend Came Out of Loss
Larsen, one of Estonia's largest short-term accommodation service providers, managed to turn losses into profits despite the difficult accommodation market – the group's net profit last year reached 2.9 million euros and the number of visits grew by 44% year-on-year. Just a year earlier, the company had losses exceeding 2 million euros.
Larsen's CEO Priit Vare confirmed that 2024 was a successful year for the accommodation company. "It can be said that Larsen moved against the tide of the short-term accommodation market, as we grew both the number of accommodators and economic indicators significantly. Revenue growth was supported by a strong summer period, during which we managed to increase the share of short-term accommodation and accommodation price increases in the second half of the year. The decline in EURIBOR also had a positive impact," commented Vare.
According to the Estonian Hotel and Restaurant Association, the number of nights spent in Estonian accommodation companies in 2024 grew by 3% compared to the previous year, but this indicator still remains below pre-pandemic levels. At Larsen's properties, however, the number of visits grew by as much as 44% year-on-year. Vare pointed out that in Estonia, the popularity of hostels located away from the city center is growing, offering increasingly successful competition to hotels located in the city center. The results were also boosted by the opening of a new property at the end of summer last year.
According to the financial report, Stay Larsen group increased its sales revenue by over 20% to 4 million euros in 2024, and the company's net profit was 2.9 million euros. A year earlier, the group's sales revenue was 3.2 million euros and losses reached 2.1 million euros.
Larsen's board chairman Indrek Naur highlighted the company's management's contribution to improving financial results and increasing efficiency. "Larsen's service has by now established itself firmly in the local short-term accommodation market and is able to successfully compete with large international hotel chains operating in the capital. For a company that operates with local capital and is a small player in international comparison, profit growth is a very strong result in such a competitive and economically sensitive sector," said Naur.
However, the financial report notes that Larsen's operations are affected by seasonality. "There are customer segments whose demand is higher in summer months or during Christmas holidays and in autumn, when studies begin at universities and not all students have yet found permanent accommodation. However, we have significantly increased our average occupancy throughout the year. Larsen bases its pricing policy and the distribution of accommodation capacity among different segments on seasonality," explained Priit Vare.
At the end of the financial year, Stay Larsen group, which focuses on short-term accommodation services, owned and operated four hostels in Tallinn with 496 rooms. Last year, Larsen began construction of a new property on Ehitajate Road in Tallinn, and the new hostel is planned to open at the end of this summer.
During the 2024 financial year, Larsen continued designing a new hostel on Väike-Ameerika Street in Tallinn, and construction began in May 2025. Design work continues on a property on Pärnu Road in Tallinn.
