Peach eyes business users as it doubles room numbers
Peach Pubs is set to almost double the amount of accommodation it offers in its pubs over the next two years.
The 13-strong group of food-led pubs already offers a total of 35 rooms, primarily to travelling businessmen and women, across three sites.
But company founder Hamish Stoddart told Caterer that he plans to introduce a further eight rooms at the Richard Onslow in Cranleigh, Surrey, which opened in February this year, as well as up to 15 at the Swan in Salford, near Milton Keynes, with the ultimate aim of a total of 60 rooms by the end of 2012.
Peach has already introduced a central reservations system for all of its rooms, overseen by joint venture partner Andrew Coath, who has worked for both the Grand Hotel in Brighton, and Malmaison.
The move is a key part of Peach's plan to grow its annual turnover from £17m in 2009 to £30m by 2013. "We want to focus on the business community, the type of people who will stay for three days in a week while working, and that helps us to fill the mid-week gap," said Stoddart.
Meanwhile Peach is still on the hunt for a new operations director to replace Paul Cutsforth who left to join the board of Orchid earlier this year.
Stoddart said: "We are looking for and experienced and successful multi-site operations director with a passion for people service and food. We will be sharing equity with the right individual."
Stoddart and co-founder Lee Cash are currently looking at sites in Milton Keynes and Leamington as they look to add two more pubs to the company's portfolio this year. They have previously confirmed that they hope to expand to an estate of around 22 properties over the next several years.
Although they began in the Midlands, starting with the Rose and Crown in Warwick in 2001, Cash and Stoddart now have ambitions to range as far north as Manchester and down to the south coast.
Meanwhile, Peach is set to spend £400,000 on maintaining its existing pubs this year.
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By Neil Gerrard
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