When did school trips change I asked myself, in my day you were lucky if you had the chance to go to a local zoo or joy of joys, I once spent a three day residential break in a Church of Wales Bible Centre with some classmates. All I remember is the chronic food and constant rain. These days our school children seem to go all over the world to explore all sorts of exotic locations the only stipulation being that mum and dad remortgage and fork out a sum that only the Greeks would recognise.
In our case we waived my stepson Lewin away last week on his journey to Namibia where he and others will be building a new school for the local children over the next few weeks. In reality of course I'm really proud of him, it will be an unforgettable experience and made all the tougher as he will have to cope without the internet. I suggested he try and communicate by sending a letter, I might as well asked if he was looking forward to cholera. Nevertheless we all look forward to his safe return, it will be fascinating to see what impact Africa has made on him.
Back on planet reality, business at the moment I'm delighted to say is brisk and we have welcomed lots of guests coming down to visit this beautiful area. Living and working in Devon, its too easy to sometimes forget how lucky we are to earn a living here, over the past few weeks the colour and variety of our countryside has been very special. Our own small patch of countryside in the hotel has had lots of care and attention from Ray our gardener, its all been building up to a visit from the judges of Tiverton In Bloom who arrived yesterday to mark his efforts. We wont know until October how well we've done but Ray in his usual optimistic way informed me he can't see us repeating last year's gold medal success. Personally I think the garden is even better having matured another year. I've come to realise that gardeners like farmers are generally not an optimistic group of people as Oscar Wilde once succinctly put it, "the optimist sees the doughnut, the pessimist sees the hole".
On the staffing front, we saw receptionist Gabby leave and welcomed Ben in her place. Currently training, Ben will I'm sure make his mark on the team and prove to be an asset for the future. We welcomed another Ben to reception recently, full marks to head receptionist Louise, employing people with the same name, a masterstroke as it helps my memory no end. The second Ben is my son who returned from university for the summer prior to leaving for one year's secondment to work at a five star resort close to Boca Rotan, Florida in September. I think I already know where we might be taking next year's holiday!
Our sales manager Kevin is going full scale to ensure that our forthcoming events will be successful. So if your thinking about tying the knot, interested in a murder mystery or would like to see one of only two seven seater bikes in the country, then we have something for you. All details can be found on the website. To top it all off we will be taking delivery of this years Christmas brochure in the next couple of days just in time for the Mid Devon Show. I know what your thinking, turkey and stuffing when it's 20 degrees outside but it will be here before you know it.
Recession does force businesses to look at other avenues for growth, in our case we have recently launched a new company in the South West called Out There. It's a digital marketing company which offers other hospitality businesses the opportunity to promote their product to the public. We believe it offers something new and innovative for the area and I know only too well how important it is to make your marketing budget stretch as effectively as possible.
Finally as many of you regular readers will know, I generally try to keep you informed by reasonably humorous and interesting content. Some of you have been kind enough to approach me to say how much you enjoy my musings so I hope you'll therefore forgive me on this occasion to tell you how concerned I am about a situation which appears to be developing rapidly. Some of you may have read in the Gazette recently that Mid Devon Council are in discussions with Premier Inn to open a new 80 bedroom hotel in the town. I and other accommodation providers are very worried on the effect this will have on our businesses. We don't believe the local market, outside of the school summer holidays, will be able to support another 80 rooms. Current supply outside of that 8 week period generally exceeds demand and the effect of another large hotel opening in the town we believe will be to drive down rates to the detriment of future investment and jobs. During our 16 year period here I have seen many new players come into the market, inns, pubs, farmhouses, lodges, boutique hotels and historic houses all offering quality rooms and services at a range of different prices. I've never complained,on the contrary, I've welcomed the new players as a sign of the increased interest in the town and surrounding area. However without new business simply increasing bedroom stock, particularly in the budget sector will be damaging to many of us. I know this because I have spoken to many fellow Best Western Hoteliers who seen this happen and the effect it has had on their local market. Local suppliers, growers and producers will all suffer when a national company with a centralised purchasing structure dominates a local market. I have not said anything until now but having spoken to many local accommodation providers, I realise I'm not alone in my concerns and I intend to make our voices heard to the relevant public authorities.
As I say, my apologies for the rather serious finish to this month's blog
Until the next time,
Kind regards
Rhys