Interview
TO THE MANORS BORN After the purchase of Hartsfield Manor by CQK Ltd, Giles Thomas is now the General Manager of three hotels in Surrey and Kent, all of which are converted from traditional manor houses. Is this a deliberate growth plan or just coincidence? Ian Trevett met with Giles and Group Marketing Manager, Chris Ells, to find out.
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t is no surprise to find a collection of sumptuous wedding albums in the reception of Hartsfield Manor, this venue is one of the most photogenic buildings you can find. The Victorian manor house is set in 16 acres of rolling grounds, lawns and terraces, and is is one of the county’s most popular choices of brides wanting a dream wedding. However this is not just a fairy-tale wedding venue. The last time I came here was a visit, romance was certainly not in the air. Instead I had to sit through several hours of being told how to drive safely - but then that was my fault for not noticing the speed cameras! Hartsfield is also a busy conference and meetings venue, and one of their clients is the company providing speed awareness courses for naughty drivers. But even though I didn’t want to be there, I couldn’t help but be charmed by the idyllic location. So is this a wedding venue, conference centre or hotel? And how does it fit in with current collection of hotels. Sitting in the traditionally panelled lounge, looking out of the lush countryside, I asked Giles and Chris, why CQK had taken on the venue and how it fits in with the group’s current portfolio.
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SURREY CHAMBERS
Giles explains: “It is all three! Hartsfield Manor is the third hotel in the group of hotels, the others are Reigate Manor in Surrey and Hadlow Manor in Kent. We have invested heavily in the two hotels and they have seen a great incline in our turnover and performance. So the owner, Geoffrey Goddard, and I had a discussion about expanding. When we saw Hartsfield we both agreed that this would be the perfect location for us as a group to take on board.
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We want people to know you don’t need to book a wedding for a big corporate event to be welcome here. We want to get as much connection as possible with Betchworth and Dorking and the local areas.
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“It is a venue with huge potential. There are lots of people who want to come out of London for a relaxing conference/training centre and it is very quiet here as we’re set back from the main road. Coming up the drive to the manor house gives you that expectation that you’re coming up to a very grand building.” “It also has the advantage that it is local to Reigate Manor. We know the area and we can transfer staff between the one and the other and offer better training facilities and development for our teams.” The offerings of the three hotels have common themes, but they are distinct and have strong individual characteristics. Giles describes them as follows: “Hadlow Manor is a 29-bedroom hotel, with three function rooms. It’s predominantly a wedding venue, so occupancy is seasonal. We can comfortably host two weddings on one day. Weddings are the number one priority in the summertime. “Reigate Manor is more of a private function and events venue, with six function rooms. We do weddings but it is a smaller percentage of