Hays Travel was founded in 1980 by John Hays in Seaham, Durham, where he opened a small retail store behind his mother's clothing store.[1] Hays Travel reached sales of over £1 billion in May 2018.[2] The company's turnover increased by £42 million over 2017, and pre tax profit was up slightly to £10.1 million. At the time, the company had about 1,500 employees.[3]