Ex-miner takes Grimsby hotel back to its roots
A former coalminer who bought the 52-bedroom Grimsby Posthouse on Monday for £1m intends to reinstate its original name of the Humber Royal hotel.
"That is how people still refer to it round here," said new owner Gordon Shepherd. In fact, the hotel was a Bass Crest even before Forte acquired it in 1990.
While Shepherd is returning the hotel to its roots, his career path has taken him far from the Barnburgh Pit near Rotherham where he worked in the 1950s. He has since worked as a Royal Navy pilot, a salesman for Unilever, owned a name plate and plastics business, and developed property.
Shepherd took his first steps into the catering business when he bought appliance maker Viscount Catering in 1994. He is still chairman of Viscount, which he sold in 1998. He also chairs the Catering Equipment Suppliers' Association.
Shepherd said he bought the hotel because he liked the modern, 1960s building and because "I like to have something to do, and something that is new".
He has kept on all the hotel staff, and plans to spend £500,000 on refurbishing the hotel to three-star standards.
Initially, he will refurbish the bedrooms, add a pool and gym, and promote Sunday lunches to encourage locals to start dining there.
As to future plans, he says, "I would like to see how this one goes, but I am always in expansionist mood."
by Angela Frewin
Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine, 24 February - 1 March 2000
