Having decided that they wanted the spa’s decor and
treatments to be very natural, Hutson and his team began to look for suitable product houses. “We wanted products that were a bit different, that weren’t available on the high street, that were from the British Isles and that were as nat- ural as possible,” says Hutson.
In the end the team settled on natural skincare brand NUDE, created by Fresh & Wild founder Bryan Meehan and Bono’s wife Ali Hewson; Irish seaweed spa brand Voya; Ayurvedic specialists Tri Dosha; and Daylesford Organic’s Bamford range. Herb House is the fi rst spa to offer Bamford Body treatments outside of Daylesford’s own Hay Barn spa in Gloucestershire, and it’s something of a coup for Lime Wood. “It’s a very happy relationship,” says Hutson.
A BUSY YEAR AHEAD
“The year ahead should be a year of consolidation for Lime Wood,” says Hutson. “It should be about getting the spa really well established. I’d like to see the membership properly bedded in – we’re aiming for 400 members and currently have around 150. I’d also like to see the occu- pancy and room rate for the hotel climb.” Occupancy for 2010 stands at around 70 per cent, which Hutson says is “pretty pleasing for our fi rst year” and the average room rate is about £240 net. Hutson says the hotel was suffering slightly from not having a spa, and he expects the opening of Herb House to drive bookings for the hotel. “Where I think the spa will really help is with bookings dur- ing our off season and in the week,” he says. “The hotel is already full at the weekends, but I’m enthusiastic about the spa really adding to bookings mid-week and during January, February and March. It very much completes the picture.” Hutson and the team are also keen to add half a dozen
rooms to the hotel – “29 rooms is always going to be hard work,” he says – and they have identifi ed several areas in the grounds which would be suitable for these.
ISSUE 1 2011 © cybertrek 2011
Also in 2011, Hutson and the team are set to redevelop Whitley Ridge, Lime Wood’s smaller sister hotel, which Hutson says was suffering from a lack of investment. The plans include a refurbishment of the 20 bedroom hotel and a relaunch which focuses on the hotel’s rein- vigorated kitchen garden. “We’ve come up with a pretty interesting concept which will bring the kitchen garden to the fore,” he says. “We want to create a country house hotel with kitchen garden food. If that concept proves popu- lar I think it could be replicated elsewhere.” After 35 years in the hotel industry, Hutson says he is still driven by a love of the business. He is happiest working for a small hotel group such as the Lime Wood Group, he says, where he can employ a personal, hands-on approach. “We sold Hotel du Vin when we did partly because we had a good offer, but also because it needed a more corpo- rate approach in order to expand the group further, and that just isn’t me,” he says. “I like running a business in a very personal, hands on way. I like knowing the name of every potwasher I employ and I like getting my hands dirty.” ●
Read Leisure Management online
leisuremanagement.co.uk/digital 59
The spa’s herb-planted roof provides a relaxing place for massages, yoga and tai chi (main picture above). The hotel is set within the New Forest
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