H O L I DAY H O M E O W N E R S H I P | TA L K I N G B U S I N E S S
Back to the day job I may not take the train each morning and
market. With hindsight they didn’t generally
I definitely do more than nine to five most
outperform the proverbial monkey with a
days but the first quarter of 2022 has seen a
dartboard, the market carried them up until
return to something close to pre pandemic
inevitably it didn’t.
normality for our business. Just Eat, Uber and Amazon have changed First of all everyone is coming to work at a
the way things work and in our sector
desk in the office in a really old fashioned
we have the rise of Airbnb. The original
2019 way. We are all set up to work at home
concept is brilliant – hosts welcome you
and it’s useful for the occasional flexible
cope with the extra capacity and we had
to their home or a second property round
day but we are back to sitting together as
to pay more for everything, especially the
the corner and spend the sort of time and
a team. There’s no reason why at least half
labour intensive side of the business.
effort looking after you that a Jurassic agent
of the office couldn’t work from home, in
never can. Over time however the site has
fact we are pushed for space but we are
If you’re a long time reader of this column
become more of a marketing channel and
there because we want to be.
Studies
you may remember me talking about the
agents like us started listing on it. As the
have proved that many people are more
day after VE day 2020 when Britain woke
pandemic market went nuts we chose to
effective at home without the distractions
up and decided to book a staycation,
take all our bookings directly but that makes
in the office and I’m definitely one of them
there was a similar huge spike in demand
me a bit of a dinosaur – why bother with all
but I don’t care. Working in the same space
in February 2021 as the country realised
that marketing expenditure and effort when
as a group of people that have become
that summer travel would be disrupted
you can just list on Airbnb and watch the
more friends than colleagues doesn’t feel
again.
This year’s pivotal date was 23rd
money roll in? A new breed of agent has
like work to a certain type of character and
January when it was announced that the
emerged that doesn’t even bother hosting
that is the sort of individual that delivers
requirement to test before returning to the
bookings on their own website, some don’t
great customer service.
UK would be scrapped. Traffic and demand
have a website or even a phone number
fell dramatically and we had 3 or 4 weeks of
and it’s all gone very well.
Lockdown has taught me that physically
very low bookings.
being with people makes me happy and it
The snag here is that Airbnb is not free, they
turns out I’ve recruited like minded people.
Now we are getting back to some sort of
take roughly the same proportion of the
It’s also made me realise what I would miss
normal and the good news is that it’s still
guest’s money as an agent so the guest is
if I retired so all that gardening and visiting
better than pre pandemic normal, it’s just
paying twice and the owner can end up with
National Trust properties is going to have to
that we are going to have to focus more of
barely more than half of the holiday cost.
wait a few more years. (Say 20?!).
our energy and investment on marketing and
This is not a problem as all you need to do is
yes actually selling rather than taking orders.
hike the price on the platform to cover the
Selling Again
extra cost and you end up with the same
There’s a perception that those of us in the
Return of the Dinosaur?
money without any marketing expenditure
UK holiday business have been on the end
About 20 years ago my main business
or expertise.
of a staycation bonanza, charging any price
was buying and refurbishing properties
market has carried this concept but I’m not
and defending ourselves with pitchforks
in Cornwall and it went really well. With
so sure it will this year. Maybe it’s time for
from hoards of people fighting to throw cash
hindsight I wasn’t actually very good at
dinosaurs like us to rise again, whether we
at us. At certain times it felt a bit like that,
it – costs would spiral, work would run
will be a Diplodocus or Tyrannosaurus Rex
especially during school holidays and whilst
over time but the market rose so fast that
remains to be seen.
it still needed marketing effort to fill the
it compensated for my deficiencies and
shoulders and low season we were definitely
I still came out on top. Then the financial
Simon Tolson owns Rumsey of Sandbanks.
pushing at an open door. The big challenge
crisis arrived and it didn’t end well! I knew
Contact Simon on 01202 707357.
for the last two seasons has been delivering
some people who quit their jobs at the time
simon@rumseyofsandbanks.co.uk
the service as the whole infrastructure
to become day traders, picking stocks and
supporting hospitality was stretched to
watching their capital grow through a bull
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For the last two years the
www.rumseyofsandbanks.co.uk
H O U S E- M AG .C O.U K
