Better Business – The Green B&B, Shropshire

29 November 2011 by
Better Business – The Green B&B, Shropshire

A journey that started on the London Underground and went via France to Shropshire has seen Bob and Val Yeldham create the perfect hideaway for mature couples of retirement age. Katherine Alano reports

Background Two years ago Bob and Val Yeldham decided to move from the hustle and bustle of London in favour of a more peaceful pace of life in Shropshire.

Having met while working on the London Underground nine years ago, Bob and Val took early retirement, moved to France and opened up a B&B, but Bob got homesick so they cut that short and returned to the UK.

However, they wanted to remain in the B&B business and after several years of looking for that perfect house, they found the Green B&B.The white-washed 17th century Grade II listed cottage sits along the River Clun, in a small village called Clunton, south of the Shropshire Hills, close to the towns of Church Stretton, Ludlow and Much Wenlock.

The Yeldhams bought the property for £190,000 and after a year of refurbishment at a cost of £70,000, they opened in spring 2010.

Bob admits that they had little experience in hospitality, but when it came to starting up their own business the couple knew what was right and what is wrong from their own experiences staying to B&Bs.

"When we decided to do a B&B we knew we had to do that we knew was good and apply it to our business," he says.

Refurbishment The property, built in 1650 was originally two cottages and was used as a drovers' stop-over. The couple keen to keep costs low, did the majority of the work themselves, employing local tradesmen and family friends to help with the bigger jobs such as electrics and rendering.

They also wanted to address the flooding problem from the river.

"The locals used to call the house the ‘House of Floods' - which of course we wanted to address and try and prevent in the future," says Bob.

All electric sockets are now positioned half way up walls on the ground floor, they fitted a stone floor rather than carpet, replaced the back door with an outward opening one for easy exit in the event of a flood.

They also moved the car park from the banks of the river to the back of the house and invested in a floodgate system which uses a scissor jack mechanism for quick access.

Target market The target market for the business is predominately mature couples of a retirement age, however, they have welcomed guests of a younger age range.

"Older couples often want to go away mid-week and outside of school holidays - and because we are in a quiet and peaceful location we get a lot of bookings from that type of clientele," says Val.

To cash in on that market, the Yeldhams offer a special four-night rate Monday to Thursday at £150.

"Not only does it keep us busy in the week, it offers that target market value for money at a time when the area is not inundated with children," she adds.

Walkers are also a big market for the couple and have paid the extra for the walkers badge on their profile on the VisitEngland website in the hope to broaden their target market.

Marketing As any new business, marketing was a key factor for their new venture. The first port of call was placing adverts on free tourism websites such as the Visit Shropshire website - but the B&B only had a handful of enquiries from these.

TripAdvisor and most recently Twitter has been the biggest driver of enquiries and business to The Green.

"We have realised that that using TripAdvisor and now Twitter can be a very powerful tool to reach a wider audience, and for our small business it also all about recommendation," says Bob.

"We ask all our guests to comment on the website and so far we have had some very good responses and hope that this will help, not only with returning guests, but with new ones too."

The couple also work with local businesses, recommending other B&Bs in the area if they are fully booked, as well as local pubs and restaurants.

Bob admits that 2009 was a tough time to open, but is confident that they have pitched themselves at the right level.

"If you can aim at the right market with the steady guaranteed income like a pension then you can get business in," explains Bob. " The key is not to out price yourself. You have to be competitive."

One year on

After being awarded four stars and the silver award by Visit England the couple won't be resting on their laurels.

Visit England can send someone out at anytime and without any notice and after their stay the feedback is instant.

"If we keep everything just above the four- star level we know we can't fall back," says Val.

"Running a B&B or any hospitality business is not easy. It's not just doing breakfast and changing beds for the guests. It does not stop there," Bob explains.

Looking to the future, the Yeldhams want to continue offering a four-star B&B, but believe that the next season will be better for them. Bob will continue to look at other marketing routes and is also thinking about targeting the country pursuits market.

"Over the past year we have been building our reputation in the local area," says Bob.

"Now that the villagers have seen how much time and effort we have put into the Green we have now become part of that community, which is important for small businesses such as ours."

Spotlight on breakfast

breakfast
breakfast
Sourcing good produce for your breakfast is key and at the Green they take pride at being awarded the Gold Breakfast Award by enjoyengland.com for their breakfasts.

Shropshire is a rich source of ingredients and with foodie market town Ludlow down the road and an abundance of farms around it's not hard for Val to source all her breakfast from the local area.

Bacon and sausages come from the butcher Peter Combes in Clun, who makes his own sausages and Val sources eggs from a local farm.

"A local sheep farmer puts all his eggs in a big box, in half dozens and another box for the money and you just leave your money in the box - you wouldn't get that in London!" says Val.

Tomatoes are from Ludlow market and Val is currently sourcing homemade jams and marmalade. Val makes her own cakes (a welcome treat for guests) and bread for toast.

For next season Val and Bob are planning on growing their own vegetable patch and greenhouse with the hope of supplying their own tomatoes and fruits for breakfast.

FACTS AND STATS

Owners Bob & Val Yeldham
Staff 2
Turnover £6,500 (based on first year)
Average weekly occupancy 40% (based on first year trading)
Room rate £60 per night B&B
Double rooms 2

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