Keeping it simple and uncomplicated
You can’t help but feel uplifted and inspired whenever you meet Avril Owton.
Avril’s life story is fascinating. She always wanted to dance and was a ballet dancer before she became a Tiller girl. She was a Lionel Blair Dancer, too. But her longest career was as a Tiller dancer; at the London Palladium. Sunday Night etc, working with all the stars of the 20th century.
And then Avril fell in love, married and left the stage to live with her husband in his hotel – The Cloud Hotel - in Brockenhurst, Hampshire. This is where her story starts.
Her husband died suddenly in 1992, leaving Avril with a hotel to run, run-down and with debts and four children to raise.
Fourteen years on and Avril is the owner of a very successful, debt-free hotel and one which has extraordinarily high rates of occupancy.
Her message is a very simple one. Know your market, focus on that market and keep it simple.
The Cloud is a modest hotel. Very comfortable, but modest. It’s surrounded by the New Forest. And that’s what her clientele wants. A hotel that is unpretentious, very friendly, simple but good food, and the New Forest on their doorstep.
Avril knows her market and has never deviated from providing exactly what they want. As other hotels in the area put Jacuzzis in the bedrooms and helipads on the roof, Avril has eschewed any such major changes. Her clients don’t want that sophistication.
Lots of businesses could learn from this. The Cloud may not have the biggest car park, nor a huge cocktail bar, nor a restaurant serving the latest nouveau cuisine. But it’s full and the house full sign is usually up.
You’ve all heard about knowing your market and keeping it simple. This is an excellent example of how to do it.
Tags: Keep It Simple
