The man behind the PIG hotel brand has warned that an early release from the Covid-19 lockdown could be devastating for the hospitality industry.
Robin Hutson, described in the industry as one of the 海角视频's most important hoteliers, has warned that hotels, bars and restaurants would be forced to operate at a loss to maintain social distancing rules and urged for Government support post-lockdown.
Mr Hutson, who co-owns Home Grown Hotels, with billionaire chemicals entrepreneur Jim Ratcliffe, was due to open the The Pig at Harlyn Bay, near Padstow, Cornwall, on April 29.
The hotel had secured 1,000 room nights in the first three hours of taking bookings before the coronavirus lockdown hit. Now, work on site has stopped and staff across the the boutique hotel chain sent home on furlough.
Mr Hutson said: “It is really frustrating because we were just weeks away from completing the build and fit out when we had to shut up shop. It’s so frustrating to get so close and yet so far.”
But lifting the restrictions too quickly would cost business more in the long run without adequate government support, he warned.
He said: “A real problem for the hospitality industry is that most of us operate on fairly fine margins. We really need to be 80% full before we are in a break-even situation so if, for example, our restaurants are only 60% full to comply with social distancing regulations, then that would be the worst of all evils because we would be operating at a loss.
“I hope that the Government will continue to support us until we are allowed to operate freely,” he said.
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He said that the Government furlough scheme had been vital for the PIG’s 700 staff but there are about 70 team members who had accepted jobs at Harlyn Bay but had yet to get on the payroll. He said they those workers had slipped through the net and he was seeking clarification from government on what could be done to help them.
The 15th century Harlyn House was bought for £3million in 2018 and was undergoing a multi-million transformation to become the seventh in the PIG portfolio.
The PIG - which last year published a spin-off book THE PIG : Tales and Recipes from the Kitchen Garden and Beyond dedicated to the brand’s style and philosophy, has become an industry leader and praised for cornering the mid-market trend for laid back retreats.
It has a portfolio of six hotels including the PIG at Combe in Gittisham, Devon, which opened in July 2016 after a £9 million transformation and is rarely less than 90% full.
The eighth hotel, PIG-in the South Downs, was due to open in 2021.
Last year, Mr Hutson told The Telegraph that investors in the Middle East and Far East had shown interest in his business, but was hoping to have 10 sites running before looking to sell.
But the Covid-19 outbreak has mothballed the business, said Mr Hutson, leaving it with a hefty bill just to keep the doors shut on the hotels and estates.
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He said: “We are still burning up an awful lot of cash and because it is all still up in the air, it makes things particularly difficult.
“We have applied through our bank for a multi-million pound interest free loan to help us.
“It’s very concerning. While we have a machine of an organisation which is perhaps a little more robust than some, I’m such a huge fan of the small entrepreneurs in our industry and the incredible ideas that come out of all of that. Without alternative backing behind them and if they are not considered good candidates for business help, then I really feel for the independent operators. I don’t know how they will get through it.”
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He said the market will be a very different place when it does eventually open up again and that the strain on its small independent suppliers would mean that diners would have to expect a pared down menu to begin with. And that’s if customers are ready to return.
“We have to ask whether people will feel confident in going to bars and restaurants and hotel to relax because it doesn’t feel like a very relaxing time right now," he said.
“The optimists are talking about significant pent-up demand and a boom in business when everything is lifted but everything I’m seeing in the predictions, I can’t see that being the case, particularly as, by the time, we may see restrictions lifted it will be the quieter part of the year in October or November, say.”
As for when Haryln will host its first guests, who, in a gesture of thanks, will be NHS staff, it is hard to say.
Mr Hutson said: “Hand on heart, I’d love to say we’re going to open in July but however much I wish I could be saying that, I’m not going to bet on that one.”