Case Study: Shakespeare House Boutique B&B
Less than six months after opening its doors, Shakespeare House has been named as a ‘Top 50 Place to Stay’ by the Daily Telegraph, lauded by The Guardian, Observer and Conde Nast Traveller magazine, and earned five star Gold status from VisitBritain inspectors.
It is certainly different, as a boutique Buckinghamshire B&B, but the owners - in their first foray into the tourism sector after successful varied business careers - are also carving out a reputation for serving excellent food in two stylish dining rooms.
Co-owner Nick Hunter and his partner had spotted a niche opportunity to turn the Grade II starred part Elizabethan former coaching inn into boutique guest accommodation. It is popular with weekending Londoners, domestic and overseas visitors to Oxford and Bicester Shopping Village, and business guests, amongst others.
They wanted to develop a reputation for excellent food - primarily for residents, with occasional dedicated eating trade such as smaller weddings. Nick went looking for support and advice from all sources, and discovered the Fresh Skills for Chefs training programme.
“We were basically amateurs in entering tourism and hospitality, with no prior training,” Nick explained.
“But having travelled widely, and identified the opportunity for something a bit different in Buckinghamshire, we knew the quality levels our target audience would expect. We wanted to create a product that would sit at the top end in comparison with hotels in the region - but was unique and very reasonably priced for what we offer.”
“We want our food to be at serious quality gastro pub level, and to focus on using excellent fresh, seasonal produce that was locally sourced wherever possible.”
He has attended two Fresh Skills for Chefs courses - ‘Matching food with wine’ and ‘Pastries and Breadmaking’ – and both have had a direct impact.
“We now make a wide range of bread and pastries ourselves, adding to our distinctiveness. Learning how to match food and wine appropriately has been very useful too. For example, we have taken a whole new look at the canapés we make to see how they will work with different wines and what is suitable for specific occasions.”
As well as breakfast and evening meals, Shakespeare House has built a reputation for its afternoon teas. Guests are enjoying beautifully equipped and decorated rooms; a friendly laid-back atmosphere, and cooking that is anything but ‘amateur’. Occupancy levels have grown rapidly as word spreads, with even the winter months proving very busy. Gross profit margins on food are already reaching the target 75%.
Nick said: “We’re passionate about good food, but producing it profitably as a business is a different matter. I was delighted that we discovered the support on offer from Tourism South East Training and Skills at such an early stage. As well as the Chefs’ courses, we have benefited from their specialist tourism e-marketing training. The courses were low cost, and they have repaid the investment many times over.”
