Hotel Owner Hotel Owner May 2017 digital | Page 41

QUALITY IN TOURISM
removed as to be an alien concept.
and one huge community library, I have with existing customers to help them
seen it all. Some have been driven by the understand how and why they will benefit
visiting businesses and overseeing passion of the owner, manager or hotel from the upgrades.
inspections, I have seen all sorts of group, while others are underpinned by a successful business expansions. From the commercial business case. Success has diversification, remember this. If you don’t
simple addition of outdoor gardens and been driven by thinking carefully about the love it or can’t see the value, chances are
buildings to host weddings, to grand- planning, design and business case for the your guests won’t either. Don’t diversify to
scale, high-spec spas, one mini golf course diversification, and by clear communication compete; diversify to be the best.
life easy, but it offered so much potential £3,000 for a licence. The resulting
that they couldn’t resist developing it as a small, special wedding set in their
special place for others to enjoy. own beautiful garden was such an
In my time working in the industry,
CASE STUDIES:
Treetop Escape,
Millbrook Estate, Devon
Since then, Bob & Kate have focused
Whatever your approach to
enjoyable, memorable day for them
Kate and Bob Boothby acquired the hard on succeeding, and the main thrust both that, for a year, Bob and Kate
rural, 32-acre Millbrook Estate in North of the business has been to provide rented out one of their bedrooms and
Devon on 8th March in 2005. At that a romantic countryside location for conservatory to other couples wanting
point, the turnover of the business was weddings, based initially on Kate and the same experience. The weddings
just £11,000 a year and there were only Bob’s own love story. Whilst up in the were organised around the theme
three bookings for the whole of the London Eye surveying the expansive of a ‘Runaway Wedding’ – weddings
year; before two of these cancelled. urban landscape, they decided to get especially designed for couples who
Now the business is thriving with 96% married; a lovely Sunday lunch with wanted to make their commitment to
occupancy and an expected turnover unlimited champagne was already booked each other by themselves, away from
for 2016-17 financial year of £500,000. for the next day and Bob, as a surprise the fuss and glare of conventional,
When they first viewed the estate, Bob for Kate, had invited Kate’s brother large-scale weddings. Kate and Bob
fell completely in love with it by the time and his children to join them and help realised that they’d hit an unmet niche
he’d walked just five metres. Kate asked to celebrate the good news (he was in the market when they hosted 12
him what was wrong but he wouldn’t say obviously confident of what the answer couples in one weekend.
anything as he wanted their decision would be).
The Runaway Wedding theme
about whether or not to buy to be a joint The next step was to organise the pr ovided couples with a romantic, luxury
one. The whole place was in a poor state; wedding but the search for a location ‘elopement’ wedding in the countryside,
walls falling down, overgrown gardens, where they could fulfil their wish for a where privacy and beautiful surroundings
and the self-catering cottages had only small, intimate event proved fruitless, are guaranteed and this has underpinned
a two-star grading, but by the end of the even when expanded to a search the development of Millbrook Estate ever
viewing, Kate felt the same. Interestingly overseas. Then, Gretna Green seemed since. Building on this success, the couple
it was the warmth and welcome shown to be the only available location for designed, planned and launched their
by the local pub landlord which clinched couples wanting a very personal new ‘wedding in the sky’ venue last year
the decision. experience that was something different - the Tree Top Escape. This diversification
to the big scale, full-on wedding. So is already proving hugely popular and is
telecoms business to Carphone Kate and Bob took what many people almost fully-booked for the whole year.
Warehouse and Kate was working in IT. would consider an unusual step: they It just shows that there are plenty of
They originally bought the estate as a decided to get married at home on couples who’d like their special day to be
place for them to semi-retire and take the Millbrook estate despite it costing different from the norm.
In 2005, Bob had just sold his
May 2017
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