The support we had from the Development Bank of Wales meant we were able to switch from older forms of power to new, cleaner energy, and gives us the infrastructure we need to make similar improvements in future.
Mark Harris, Co-founder, Wild Lakes
Company overview
Wild Lakes is Wales’ first wake park and has quickly become a popular spot for wakeboarding, attracting thousands of visitors every year. It also features an aqua park, a large indoor climbing wall, and serves South American street food in its tipis.
Management team
Mark Harris, Sarah Harris and Steph Harri, Co-founders - The siblings are all graduates in podiatry, sports and social sciences, and mechanical engineering. They have always seen Pembrokeshire as home. Keen to give back, they wanted to support the community that gave them so much growing up.
Business purpose
Located near Narberth, Wild Lakes Wales is an award-winning, family-run attraction offering water-based adventures led by trained coaches. Activities include wakeboarding, ringo rides, and playtime on an inflatable obstacle course in the Aqua Park.
There’s also an indoor bouldering wall, where climbing is done without ropes or harnesses—making it more accessible. It’s a great way to boost cardiovascular endurance, strength and flexibility.
STOKED is a restaurant that celebrates coal and wood-fired cooking, using seasonal, fresh, and locally sourced ingredients served in a relaxed setting. Drawing from worldwide cuisine, its menu blends bold flavours and distinctive tastes that have earned it a strong reputation.
Wild Lakes is also dog-friendly, so families can bring their four-legged companions along. Throughout the year, the park hosts a lively calendar of events, including outdoor cinemas, jam nights, charity fundraisers, and much more.
Funding
Wild Lakes made the switch to solar power following a £40,700 loan from the Development Bank of Wales, via the Welsh Government-backed Green Business Loan Scheme.
A new 20kWh solar array has enabled Wild Lakes to replace its diesel-powered wakeboarding cables with clean, solar energy. There are also plans for the system to power all cooking equipment in the park’s kitchen, further reducing its environmental impact.
The loan followed an earlier £50,000 investment from the Development Bank into Wild Lakes in 2023.
What people are saying
As an outdoor business in one of Wales’ most impressive natural environments, our environmental impact is at the forefront of everything we do, and we want to take every step we can to minimise our energy consumption and our carbon footprint. We know that this is something that’s also really important to our customers, who love the environment we have here and want to work with businesses and attractions who are working hard to preserve it.
The support we had from the Development Bank of Wales meant we were able to switch from older forms of power to new, cleaner energy, and gives us the infrastructure we need to make similar improvements in future.
Mark Harris, Co-founder, Wild Lakes
Wild Lakes occupies a fantastic site among some of the best natural scenery in Wales, so it completely makes sense that they’d want to take a step like this to reduce the impact they have on their surrounding environment.
The Green Business Loan Scheme is there to support businesses like Wild Lakes who want to take that next step but may not know where to start. It’s given them the support they need to switch from older forms of energy and set themselves up for similar changes in future, and we’re delighted that we were able to help them along the way.
Nakeja Howell, Portfolio Executive, Development Bank of Wales
