VLIVE24SEVEN // Business Nailcote Hall CELEBRATES 25TH ANNIVERSARY
Twenty-five years ago, Rick Cressman rescued Nailcote Hall out of receivership. Rick saw huge potential not just in the stunning Jacobean building, but also its idyllic setting and convenient location, boasting easy access to Birmingham as well as major attractions such as Stratford-upon-Avon and the NEC.
Reflecting on the purchase, Rick said, “The first person to go was the chef. The food was dreadful!” This, of course, is in stark contrast to the talented team that he now has around him, a team he has never felt happier about. “The hotel was soulless, there certainly wasn’t the gallery of celebrity guest photos gracing the walls that there are now, but the location was superb.”
Visionary, Rick set about adding facilities that would transform the experience of Nailcote for the predominately corporate audience as it was back then, quickly building a leisure club, tennis courts, and extra bedrooms, which took the hotel from loss making to break even whilst at the same time creating Rick’s Garden Café & Bar and the spectacular Lant Suite, which meant that Nailcote was the first venue in the UK to receive a Civil Ceremony Licence! Something that would also later transform Nailcote’s fortunes was the addition of three holes of golf, which would allow business guests to head out into the fresh air and relax after a long day. Now of course golf plays a much larger role in Nailcote’s daily life.
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The last 25 years have delivered Rick more challenges than many would imagine and if awards were given out for determination of character, Rick would be the first to receive one. The lack of planning permission for much-needed additional bedrooms that would transform the hotel’s ability to make money and create new jobs whilst also serving the demand for rooms across the area hit many stumbling blocks. “I sometimes wonder if this country is for or against job creation! Thankfully, through persistence and sheer determination, we’ve now built the rooms that we needed to build 15 years ago!”
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Nailcote has been a labour of love as well as money for Rick, often planting the many trees and plants that have made the golf course a reason to visit in its own right himself. Over the years, the few holes he initially created have been transformed into a 9-hole championship golf course, home to the British Par 3 Championship which he first resurrected in 1998. “What has given me the most joy over the last 25 years has been designing and building the golf course, creating lakes, planting trees, encouraging wildlife and building what is a stunning landscape to be played on and admired,” explains Rick. The course also forms a picture perfect garden for wedding parties to look out on and include as their photo backdrop for their albums.
This demanding and mature short course now attracts a host of celebrities and professional players, a broad cross-section of talents, to the Championship each year which is hosted by legendary golfer Tony Jacklin MBE. Charley Hull, now the UK’s number one female player, played at the Championship when she was just 10, whilst Jasper Carrott, Sir Bobby Charlton, members of Westlife and Boyzone, as well as the likes of Ian Woosnam, can all be spotted playing at the event. Brian Barnes describes the Par 3 at Nailcote as “better than the Par 3 at Augusta” – something Rick is very proud of.
“Over the years Tony Jacklin has been a huge inspiration, encouraging me to do even more to the golf at Nailcote to make the course and Championship what it is today; our title sponsor Farmfoods have also driven us forward. The event is now something altogether very special with the social side raising its game to match the standard of golf! The event itself has transformed the reputation and success of the business.”
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