Potters Resorts is a short breaks holiday company in the United Kingdom, operating two five-star resorts in Norfolk and Essex. The company has been privately owned by the Potter Family since opening its first location in Hemsby, Norfolk in 1920 after solicitors' clerk Herbert Potter won £200 in a Sunday Chronicle newspaper competition.[1] It was called 'Potters' and is widely recognised as the first permanent and mixed use holiday camp in the United Kingdom, with timber huts for accommodation and permanent main buildings. 'Potters' moved to Hopton-on-Sea in 1924.

Potters Resorts
Company typePrivate company
Industry
  • Leisure
  • Hospitality
Founded1 January 1920 (1920-01-01) (first site, Hemsby)
FounderHerbert Potter
HeadquartersHopton-on-Sea, Norfolk, England
Number of locations
2
ServicesAll-Inclusive Short Breaks
OwnersThe Potter Family
Number of employees
800
Websitepottersresorts.com

Now under the management of fourth generation John Potter, the company acquired a second location[2] at Five Lakes Resort in Essex in 2021, which relaunched as Potters Resorts Five Lakes in 2022.

Locations

edit

Potters Resorts own and operate a coastal location at Hopton-on-Sea in Norfolk and a countryside location at Five Lakes in Maldon, Essex. Both resorts are open all year round.

Country Resort Nearest city or town County Nearest motorway or dual carriageway junction Year opened
United Kingdom Hopton-on-Sea Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft Norfolk A47 1920 (originally in Hemsby)
Five Lakes Colchester and Tiptree Essex A12 2022

Hopton-on-Sea

edit

Located in the small seaside village of Hopton-on-Sea between the towns of Gorleston, Norfolk and Lowestoft, Suffolk is the company's original Resort and current headquarters. 'Potters' first opened in 1920 at nearby Hemsby, close to Great Yarmouth, before moving to Hopton-on-Sea in 1924, close to the railway station. In 1934, having acquired new land by the seaside, 'Potters Beach Camp' was opened where Potters Resorts Hopton-on-Sea remains today.

Five Lakes

edit

Located in the village of Tolleshunt Knights and close to the Blackwater Estuary National Nature Reserve, the site originally opened in 1974 as Manifold Golf Club.[3] Under new ownership, Five Lakes Resort opened in 1995 complete with a 114-hotel room, a new golf course and additional spa facilities. The resort operated as a corporate hospitality venue until its acquisition by Potters Resorts in 2021.[4]

References

edit
  1. ^ "Potters Resort on the hunt for early visitors from 1920s to 1960s". Great British Life. 30 September 2019. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Four-star resort in Essex to be taken over by new firm for 'undisclosed sum'". Gazette. 26 October 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
  3. ^ "Golf: It all started 25 years ago..." Gazette. 9 July 1999. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  4. ^ "Potters Resort expands into Essex after acquiring new site". Eastern Daily Press. 25 October 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2023.

52°32′04″N 1°43′48″E / 52.5343855°N 1.7299122°E / 52.5343855; 1.7299122