Bethnal & Bec: A column for owners, by owners

Vicky - Planning ahead for the Christmas season

As I look out of the window, the rain is pouring; my tomato plants are struggling to stay upright against the wind and I believe the heating has just come on. Perfect weather for tackling the next task: planning and ordering - for the 'C' word.... no, not that C word... Christmas!

As much as I love Christmas in our family, it's an expensive time. This is why I start planning early - it allows me to save money!

As a business hell bent on sustainability, I'm keen not to buy plastic and single use items. We also don't go overboard with decorations - opting for the 'less is more' approach, and stylish, sustainable options. We all know that prices increase dramatically for anything Chrismassy after October 31st, so here’s some of the things I do for my festive preparations:

#1 Look at what I put up last year and deciding what to reuse, update or enhance

#2 Look what I can use from our garden to create natural plant and flower wreaths

#3 Look at the August sales to see if I can find anything I want to use such as more candles, wooden christmas decs, wreath displays and spray paint

#4 Look at eco-friendly Christmas trees by renting a real tree from a British farm. ‘Love a Christmas tree’ offers real Nordmann Firs delivered to your door from their Leicestershire family farm from £20.

#5 I'll check fairy lights and buy batteries (batteries increase threefold during december!!)

#6 I've decided to start using vinyl (reusable) lettering on our windows and doors with personalised messages and branded designs. I've ordered this now so it's here ready for me to apply on December 1st, and one less thing to think about

#7 We have a varied client base - many religions, backgrounds & ages, so we're respectful of the terminology we use for messages and displays. We tend to say 'Jolly Holidays' etc instead of 'Happy Christmas'! Which keeps it open and welcoming to everyone.

#8 I'll also start to contact our local suppliers and start discussing their Christmas products and launches

#9 Early ordering can mean better negotiating power

#10 December fun - Create a list of festive activities happening locally for your guests to enjoy

I'm also writing to all magazine editors looking for Christmas Gift ideas. For us we want to promote vouchers as the perfect gift for someone that's hard to buy for, or loves to take UK holidays. The leg work needs to be done now, as press work a minimum 3 months ahead of publication. Vouchers are a great gift idea, and this year I'm creating pre-printed vouchers on beautiful paper embedded with wildflower seeds. The plan is to post them, so the recipient has something tangible, and to plant and remember after their stay. Personalisation is becoming so important to consumers, and our industry can make memories for people - so let's embrace it!

Merry Holidays!

Chris - EV chargers - a future necessity for accommodation providers

Our eldest daughter has just turned 16 and thanks to covid we celebrated by cancelling her birthday party and going for PCR tests instead - but that’s another story. In 12 months time we will be booking driving lessons for her and we are seriously considering persuading her to only learn for an automatic license.

Being someone who did not learn to drive until they were in their 30’s, I can still remember the crunching of gears, and the “bunny hopping” of my clutch control.

I think I would have loved learning to drive an automatic and being able to forgo all the extra stress that a manual car gives the learner driver.

But what’s this got to do with EV chargers?

Well, all electric cars are automatic, and while our daughter’s first car may not be electric, it is highly likely her 2nd or 3rd cars will be.

This is a scenario that’s going to be in many people’s minds, and not just 17 year olds. Many of your guest’s next car, or the one after next will be electric.

For the accommodation owner, providing an EV charger in the near future will be a no brainer.

By 2025 it is predicted that half of all new cars sold in the UK will be electric, by 2030 it will be 100%.

The 2020 figure was already as high as 15%. So even though only 1% of current vehicles in the UK are electric, the numbers are growing.

Speak to an electric car owner and you will quickly discover that in the vast majority of cases, they will only book accommodation that provides an EV charger.

“No EV charger, no booking.” - It’s as simple as that; and while currently you may only be missing out on a tiny number of bookings, this will not be the case in the coming years.

Plus it boosts your environmental credentials, which are also becoming an important consideration for potential guests.

We are converting our last stable into our third self catering property and had always planned to install an EV charger, but we were still “pleasantly” surprised to see that one of the conditions of our planning permission was compulsory EV chargers.

So if you are planning developments to expand your business, then be prepared that an EV charger may be compulsory.

That all sounds good I hear you say, but what are the practicalities, and more importantly how much is it going to cost me?

1. There are £350 installation grants available, but be aware that you need to have an Electric Car, or be a business registered at Companies House. Installation could also cost more than £350 depending on the location of your EV charger

2. EV chargers are easy to order and can be picked up or delivered within 24 hours

3. Prices range from £400 - £2,000, plus installation

4. There are 3 speeds/power of charger affecting how fast you can charge. The fastest is 22kw but only a few cars can actually take this power, and you must have a three phase power supply that very few domestic properties have

5. You can pay more for your EV charger to include the ability to take payment, but this will cost an extra £1,000 on average.

6. A lot of EV chargers work via an app that will unlock the charger for specific users.This stops anyone stealing your electricity and also allows you to see when guests have used it.