Panache Cruises pledges £500k investment after record-breaking year

Luxury cruise retailer Panache Cruises is to spend £500,000 to fuel future growth.

The Chorley-based company is targeting 50% turnover growth in 2025 and plans to hire more than 20 additional staff across the UK and US.

The £500,000 investment will go towards additional office space in Lancashire, and larger premises in the US, along with recruiting new positions in the business and investment in new-to-brand marketing strategies.

The company currently employs 58 in the UK and another eight in Florida and plans to increase this to 73 and 16 respectively by the end of 2025.

Panache Cruises reported sales of more than £3 million in November, its biggest ever trading month.

The company has ambitions to achieve £100 million turnover by 2027-28 as part of a strategy to become the world’s largest seller of luxury and ultra luxury cruises by 2030.

Chief executive James Cole, who founded the business in 2020, said: “We’ve had a record-breaking 2024 with over 6,000 customers and turnover in excess of £25 million.

“We’re aiming to hit turnover of £35 million-£40 million in 2025 and this £500,000 investment will help us accelerate our growth further.

“We’re committed to growth but we’ll do it the right way by putting our colleagues first.

“We’re very fortunate to have great partnerships with cruise lines, who buy into our ways of working including supplying them with a lot of customers who are new to their brands.

“We have a fantastic team here and have some great relationships with a couple of investment partners in FW Capital and Rosebud, part of Lancashire County Council.”

Cole added: “We plan to double the size of the US team but a lot of our growth in the US is powered by people based out of Chorley. For example, all of our marketing and cruise line liaison is done from Chorley.”

Earlier this year the company appointed Alex Langton as head of sales and operations and Rhianna Latham as the company’s first head of people and culture.