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Last week, I met with George Edward-Collins, owner of Cornish Traditional Cottages, on a bright spring afternoon in Haveners, overlooking the river with the cruise ship L'Austral docked in the harbour. He was introduced to me by Peter Robinson of Enjoy Fowey, a long-standing champion of the town’s tourism sector. During our conversation, George explained how his family-run holiday-letting business has navigated industry consolidation, shifting consumer trust, and digital disruption, all while staying rooted in local values and community.
George’s relationship with Cornish Traditional Cottages is, in many ways, a classic Cornish family-firm story. The business was founded in 1964 by Michael and Dawn Powell, who used to holiday in Cornwall. They bought an old fisherman’s cottage in Padstow, renovated it, and when not using it themselves, let it out. This became the first of a number of properties they acquired and restored across Cornwall. Friends soon asked if they could let their properties too, and from there, the business grew organically through trust and relationships rather than marketing campaigns.
The company changed hands in 1991, when Charles Edward-Collins, George’s father, bought the business, having joined in 1988 as Michael’s General Manager. A former Army officer, he brought discipline and structure to the operation, along with a strong sense of continuity. Over the next three decades, he ran the business first from Lostwithiel, then from a converted barn on the family farm at the edge of Bodmin Moor, before it moved to its current offices in Wadebridge. He stepped back in 2019, passing the baton to George.
George’s own path into the business was far from a straight line. After studying estate management and working in estate agency, he returned to Cornwall in 2009 and joined the family firm. He spent seven years learning every aspect of the operation before taking over in 2016.
Since then, he has led the company through what he describes as the most challenging period the holiday-letting industry has ever experienced. The rise of private equity-backed operators has transformed the landscape, consolidating smaller agencies into national portfolios with deep marketing budgets and slick digital platforms. Visibility has become harder for owners, and for small, family-run businesses like Cornish Traditional Cottages, it has meant adapting without losing sight of what made the business worth running in the first place.
The unintended consequence, George reflects, is a growing erosion of public trust. As the industry has been reshaped by large national operators, many guests have lost the sense of a local, human connection and the certainty of knowing who they’re dealing with and where their money is going. Stories of some operators failing to follow the rules during the pandemic left many wary. “Trust is everything,” he says. “Once it’s gone, it’s very hard to rebuild.”
That shapes the company’s deliberately measured approach to growth. With around 150 properties across Cornwall, including a considered portfolio in Fowey, expansion is not about chasing volume. George is clear that oversaturating a location serves no one: not the business, not the owners, and not the wider community. The focus is on balance, ensuring each home performs well and contributes positively to its surroundings, backed by direct, personal service rather than a faceless platform.
The company also recognises that each cottage is effectively a micro-business, supporting a network of housekeepers, tradespeople, laundry services, and local suppliers, while driving visitor spending through towns and villages. Through his involvement with the Cornish Self-Catering Collective, George is working with others across the sector to raise standards and ensure holiday letting is run responsibly, for communities and guests alike.
Internally, the business is small, close-knit, and intentionally flat. The team in Wadebridge is compact, with roles defined less by rigid job descriptions and more by shared values. George still answers calls, manages bookings, and, as he puts it, makes the tea if needed. A good day is defined as much by a full office and the steady flow of bookings as it is by any headline metric.
In Fowey, that local connection is strengthened through a partnership with Peter Robinson of Enjoy Fowey. Peter originally transformed the former Tourist Information Centre into a combined information and retail space, later shifting his focus to helping visitors and businesses connect more effectively. His deep local knowledge now complements Cornish Traditional Cottages’ work in the area, providing on-the-ground support for owners and guests who want to feel looked after by someone who genuinely knows the town. Peter is also a close friend and ally of Love Fowey, sharing a commitment to strengthening the local economy and community.
As the industry continues to evolve, George remains cautiously optimistic. A post-pandemic surge in new listings has begun to settle, and while regulatory pressures remain, he believes the sector is finding a more balanced footing. The focus at Cornish Traditional Cottages is straightforward: maintain standards, stay close to owners and guests, and resist the temptation to grow faster than the relationships can hold.
If you’d like to find out more about Cornish Traditional Cottages, or discuss opportunities in Fowey or elsewhere in Cornwall, visit their website or get in touch directly with the team.
For local, on-the-ground guidance in Fowey, Peter Robinson at Enjoy Fowey is always a good place to start