Alan Cawley is MD of independent family-owned business The Cawley Hotel Group and its flagship Duck Bay Hotel on the banks of Loch Lomond, plus restaurant and luxury retail businesses House of Darrach at Gartocharn, Coast at Langbank, Boardwalk, Falkirk, River House, Stirling, and The Loch House in Lochwinnoch with another one in the pipeline.
Alan runs the business with his sister Margo – also involved are her two sons Stuart and David King.
The business began in 1985 and now employs roughly 350 staff and owns all the freeholds, and on the back of the refurbishment of Duck Bay’s restaurant and lochside outdoor area that debuted at the start of this year, there are plans to next year upgrade the existing 23 rooms and suites plus self-catering cottages a stone’s throw from the hotel and add a further nine suites.
I got a very warm welcome from Alan on a cold December day and we chatted in his office adjacent to Duck Bay Hotel and however many times you visit, this spectacular setting never ceases to amaze.
Said Alan, “I took on the role of MD after my father passed away and at that point, we had Duck Bay and The Hungry Monk at Gartocharn, now the House of Darrach. We also took on another hotel, The Kirkhouse Inn out at Strathblane for which we were made a great offer after three years that we decided to take because it would give us financial security for the rest of our lives.”
The hotel business in 2020 and 2021 was our next port of call as well as Alan’s plans for the redevelopment and expansion of Duck Bay’s accommodation offering in 2021.
He told me, “We were gearing up for 2020 to be our best year yet, and to be fair when we’ve been open it’s been good, and Eat Out to Help out was great.
“With the new vaccine, I’d say we could see recovery within nine months but next season will have limited numbers on it, so I think 2021 could be healthier for hospitality but only if the government steps in with more incentives like taking away business rates for another year, keep the VAT reduction in place for another year, or by introducing a discount scheme for hotels similar to Eat Out to Help Out to get things rolling.
“They are going to have to help or they’ll lose businesses from hospitality and we all know how important this industry is to Scotland and the level of employment that it creates. If they don’t step in there will be a lot more casualties than we have already seen.
“We seem to be in a better place than most. We are very fortunate that we are in the Loch Lomond National Park. We would normally see tourists from international markets and that just wasn’t here this year.
“But what helped us in the summer once we reopened was the staycation market. It was huge and we were fully booked. People might have realised what’s on their doorstep and explored their own country and I’d like to think that they’ll support our tourist industry by changing their habits, but I’m not sure.”
The levelling off in business visitors has also affected Duck Bay’s occupancy rates because its footprint stretches beyond the leisure market.
Alan explained, “The business market is also down with people being encouraged to work from home, and fewer people are travelling and the fact that a huge proportion of our business customers come from Faslane.”
What about his plans for improving and expanding their accommodation offering at Duck Bay?
Said Alan, “We need more bedrooms and the hotel is about to get a major overhaul and I think that there’s a huge future for hotels on the Loch Lomond National Park. So the plan is we will develop more bedrooms within the space that we have and this gives us the potential to add on another nine, which is significant. The architects are already putting together the plans and then it will go to planning.”
Alan also took the decision this year to discontinue weddings at Duck Bay for several reasons.
He explained, “We used to do weddings at the hotel, we have done thousands of them but we decided to permanently focus on accommodation rather than functions.
“There’s also Brexit to consider and a lot of uncertainty and where there’s a healthy wedding market there has to be certainty. They’re booked well in advance and pre-planned.
“Cameron House is our neighbour and they have been closed three years on 18th December after the fire. They are reopening with another 90 bedrooms and a magnificent function suite next year and we have a wonderful working relationship with them. They are a great feed for us, for both the restaurant and the hotel.”
Alan is a very organised person and always to modernise the business to ensure it stays in the best possible shape for the future.
He said, “I am a stickler for being organised and it serves me well in business. New staff will often say that it’s all very organised and that there is a form for everything and a place for everything and I think that the staff respond to this type of structure and the sense of security that it gives them. I think that’s how we manage to keep good people, and if you are keen to further your career you will do well with us. Primarily it’s all about the customer experience. That is the one constant in hospitality.”
All of the systems have been upgraded and Alan’s son Darrach has just joined the business fresh from a business degree, bringing with him a sharper IT Focus, but Alan is equally cautious about expanding the business too rapidly. He prefers a measured approach.
He explained, “I have seen too many businesses grow too quickly and they lose their rhythm, that personal aspect of the service, so we are doing it in bite-sized chunks and we are in negotiations for another outlet and I would like to think that we could keep adding the odd one.
“One of the things that makes it difficult for us to expand at a greater rate is that we have freeholds and this also makes it tougher of course because there are a lot more leaseholds out there than there are freeholds on decent sites.”
Alan’s father Bobby’s legacy still lives on in the business in the form of the Bobby’s licensed café brand at Duck Bay in the space that used to be the retail part of the business. But hospitality wasn’t always the Cawley family concern.
Explained Alan, “We as a family business were in the rag trade. We had seven menswear shops in the West of Scotland and my dad was a great friend of Sir Hugh Fraser and to this day my oldest friend is his daughter. Patricia. So Sir Hugh bought us out because at the time he had parted company from House of Fraser and did his own thing and my dad went in as his MD.
“My dad then saw a little bar-bistro that was for sale local to us at Alexandria and we bought that and this was our initiation into the hospitality industry.
“Then we found that Duck Bay was for sale and my dad moved heaven and earth to get it – sold his home, everything. It was a pretty rundown affair. There was no hotel at all. It was a restaurant and a motel I suppose and by the time we got here there was no roof on the building – it had been completely allowed to disintegrate into nothingness.
“And to be fair to Duck Bay, this was a turning point in our lives. It changed our lives dramatically in that it’s successful and always has been. In fact, there will only ever be one Duck Bay – it’s iconic.”
There was so much more that Alan had to say that we, unfortunately, don’t have space for so perhaps we will speak with him again in 2021 once the Duck Bay Hotel expansion is complete and venue number seven is up and running.
Glasgow City Council has been the slowest in the country at handing out the Government funded Coronavirus Business Support grants, according to new research by the Scottish Beer & Pub Association (SBPA). Only 96 Glasgow pubs, out of 384 who applied for support grants, have received them. This equates to 25% which makes Glasgow Council the worst Council in Scotland at administering the Coronavirus support fund with the Scottish Borders Council being the best giving out 95.86% of its grants to pubs already.
The SBPA research revealed that an estimated 1500 Scottish pubs eligible for vital grants, still haven’t received the funds from Local Authorities .
Across the whole of Scotland, 3,929 pubs are estimated to be eligible for a grant, with 61% (2,403) receiving the funds. This leaves an estimated 1526 pubs without this much needed cashflow at the end of the month, when bills and payments are due.
The Local Authorities with the lowest percentage of approved applications for grant support are:
Glasgow; 25.05% approved grants and 288 Pubs without funds.
South Lanarkshire; 48.95% approved grants with 80 Pubs without funds.
Fife; 51.71% approved grants and 143 Pubs without funds.
However Council’s which deserve a pat on the back for supporting pubs with the highest number of approved applications for grants are:
Scottish Borders; 95.86% of grants approved; only five Pubs without funds.
Aberdeenshire; 83.84% grants approved with 31 Pubs without funds.
Clackmannanshire; 81.45% grants approved and 7 Pubs without funds.
The support package was announced by the Finance Secretary Kate Forbes in March, with Local Authorities expected to receive funds within 10 days. Over one month later, many businesses have still seen no sign of the cash which is being distributed in £10K and £25K packages.
Commenting on the research, Emma McClarkin CEO of the Scottish Beer & Pub Association said, “Our research shows that too many Local Authorities are not paying grants to pubs and other hospitality businesses anywhere near quickly enough, with over 1500 pubs across Scotland estimated to still be waiting. For smaller pub businesses in particular this grant funding is urgently needed.
“This needs to be rectified immediately. Otherwise, pubs will close for good and the thousands of people they employ will lose jobs.
“Credit must go to those Local Authorities who are doing the right thing and getting their grants to pubs and other businesses quickly. We need the Local Authorities to learn from best practice and get the urgently needed support to pub businesses as a matter of urgency.”
Johnston’s Bar & Bistro and the Cooks of Stirling have been brought to the market by Christie & Co following an instruction from the administrators of Snowie Solutions Limited. An additional licensed trade development site on Stirling’s King Street is also up for sale.
Johnston’s Bar & Bistro is located in Falkirk, at the bottom of the old Lint Riggs it is a three storey sandstone building which offers 45 covers on the ground floor and 40 covers on the mezzanine level.
Cooks of Stirling, is a hotel and restaurant in Stirling’s city centre with a separate private dining area for functions and also has seven boutique styled, en suite letting rooms. The development site on King Street in Stirling is a mid-terraced three storey building including a basement. Christie & Co is seeking £325,000 for the freehold of Johnston’s Bar & Bistro, £550,000 for the freehold of the Cooks of Stirling and £495,000 for the freehold of the licensed development site.
Ian Macleod Distillers has today (10 October) revealed plans to resurrect one of Scotland’s most cherished distilleries – Rosebank in Falkirk. Leonard Russell, MD of Ian Macleod Distillers commenting on the plan comments, “This is an extraordinarily exciting project for us. To bring back to life an iconic distillery and quintessential Lowland single malt is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity.”
Rosebank has been dubbed ‘the King of the Lowlands’ and the late whisky writer, Michael Jackson had no doubt that it was one of the ‘greats’. He described its demise as “a grievous loss”, while fellow critic, Gavin D Smith, wrote of the region’s whiskies having: “subtle charm, and none is more charming than the elegant, floral, aromatic Rosebank produced by a triple distillation process in the traditional Lowland manner.” http://www.ianmacleod.com
All this will be preserved, as Leonard Russell explained, “The distillery has a very special place in Scotland’s whisky heritage and we are committed to ensuring this is the case. We will produce Rosebank Lowland single malt in exactly the same way as it is known, using the famous triple distillation and worm tub condensers. This way we ensure the revival of its classic style and taste.”
“Our investment goes way beyond production,” he continued. “We are looking to develop a Rosebank Visitor Centre to help tell the story of this remarkable whisky – as well as safeguard the atmospheric Canal side Bond and its important heritage.”
Ian Macleod Distillers has entered into a binding agreement with Scottish Canals to purchase the site and has separately acquired the Rosebank trademark from Diageo. The company is proud to be investing in Falkirk by adding to the town’s flourishing economy and tourism scene.
But perhaps most exciting for whisky lovers as they wait for the reborn Rosebank to mature, is the acquisition of some precious existing casks. “Over the coming months we will carefully review Rosebank’s rare stocks with a view to releasing some truly scarce and extraordinary whiskies,” said Leonard Russell. With this in mind, all the latest developments will be revealed on a new, dedicated website where those who sign up will be the first to hear about the release of the rare and collectable bottlings of Rosebank Lowland Single Malt.
At the corner of one of Falkirk’s busiest hubs sits a new bar, One Princes Street which aims to add a new dimension to the towns social scene. Robert McCracken reports.
Cutting an imposing figure with it’s grand stone facade, One Princes Street is more than just an address, this new cocktail bar and lounge is attempting to stop the flow of Falkirk consumers heading to Edinburgh and Glasgow for their style bar fix. Formerly 20 Rocks, One Princes Street is a joint venture between John Hamilton and Stuart Gillespie.
When DRAM visited One Princes Street it had just opened by a couple of weeks and the small bar and function venue was obviously still a work in progress, with the finishing touches still being applied throughout.
Entering off the street, through either of the bar’s two understated entrances, you find yourself immediately in the L shaped main bar area. From the Princes Street entrance, the white fronted bar is situated directly to your left, to your right is a row of small couches and low black tables. One Princes Street appears in an expanse of greys. From the grey and charcoal ceiling, to the grey couches and carpet that extends throughout the whole bar, accentuated with black wooding panelling along the wall opposite the bar and bespoke stools and low-rise tables which adds depth and a casual feel.
The bar itself is white, looks crisp and clean, and features multi-coloured LED downlighters tucked beneath the bar top, a theme which continues behind the bar as the back-bar is illuminated in the same manner. Not that lighting is an issue in the bar, the expansive windows that run the length of the building flood the area with light, making it feel light and open even with it’s dark colour-scheme. John Hamilton, co-owner told DRAM, “These windows were covered in vinyl when we came in. We stripped it all back to open them up and let the light in. We want to work with the building’s features, not cover them up.”
To the left of the bar sits a partially enclosed booth, this functions as a VIP area and it’s creation was an important part of the refurbishment process as John and Stuart made the most of the space available, John explained, “This area was forgotten about before, there was a disabled toilet here and not much else. We moved the toilet over and put in this VIP area.” Including the 20-person VIP area, the bar has seats for about 60 in total. Adjacent to this private space is a small but functional kitchen, whilst it is not being used at the moment.
The upstairs space is being utilised as a function room. The room was a gig venue in a previous life but has been transformed into a function room which now seats 60. An original concrete staircase leads you to the function room, which follows much of the same design pattern as the main area. Greys are the order of the day, with a small bottle bar at one end of the room and at the opposite end, a small portion of the original floorboards are on display providing the room with an interesting feature.
John and Stuart are not trying to compete with the cocktail bars of Glasgow and Edinburgh but as John explains, “We’re giving people a choice, somewhere else to go.”