It must have been some 10 years ago (we
hadn't yet found Mazzard Farm) that we were looking at a holiday property for
sale, when the owner proudly told me that "He never had to pay a penny in
the local pub." He explained that as he sent 'every guest' to that same
pub, and by making sure the guests told the landlord who had sent them, the pub
reciprocated by never charging him when he and his wife would pop in for
something to eat or drink. "Just one of the perks of running this
business" he added.
"So is it the only decent pub around
that you send everyone there?" I asked him. "Oh no, there are some
great places, but none of the others offer me this benefit, and also, it only
works because of the volume I send to this one." I contemplated for a second
or two to challenge him and ask whether possibly his guests would be better
served by a more independent attitude to the advice given, but I quickly
decided that this conversation would probably not go anywhere. He was way too
proud of his little arrangement, as his rather significant paunch paid
testament to....
The 3 years or so (!) we spent looking
before we finally stumbled upon Mazzard Farm taught us a lot about the industry
we were about to enter. Some really useful insight (best tip: have Friday as
your changeover day, as you just won't find cleaners for the Saturday!), some
less so. One clear (and rather sad) message we came across rather too often was
the notion that people felt they were very much 'on their own', with little
cooperation amongst people in their industry locally. People seemed to feel
everything was just down to them.
So when in July 2008 we opened Mazzard
Farm, the one thing we had at the top of our minds was that we wanted to break
through that. Our start wasn't encouraging though: the 30 or so local tourism
businesses we invited to our opening party decided to collectively ignore the
invite (bar one that is: thank you Alistair and Lorna!), and we seriously asked
ourselves what we had done entering this world.....
Yet it didn't stop us from having the
strong intention to work with others, and we made sure that when we advised our
guests on what to do, where to eat/drink, etc., that we listened to what they
were after, before giving them our best and fully impartial advice. In fact, we
quickly developed a Guide to the area, ensuring there was something in it
for everyone, and making clear we had absolutely zero personal interest in
anything we recommend. We just want to make sure our guests have the best
possible time. Drop us a note if you want us to send you a copy. We also added
a page to our website aiming to inspire potential guests about our local area,
and one listing our favourite local pubs.
And it works: we know our guests love it,
and it makes them want to come back! And over the years, we have been able to
build a great network of local tourism businesses, and the people behind it,
meaning we are kept informed of new developments, are sometimes given discount
passes to pass on to guests, and generally work towards East Devon as a
fantastic place to stay, eat, drink and discover.
So the images you see here highlight some of the great local attractions we know our guests like and enjoy, just as we have a list longer than our arm of places to eat and drink, with the added knowledge of which one is best for a given occasion. Likewise, we know and appreciate that a growing number of these businesses have started developing a similar attitude to working together, meaning between us we support, encourage and serve. People appreciate when they are offered suggestions from those who know, and who better to provide such advice than people right at the heart of things?
In tourism in particular, there are very
few platforms remaining that collectively support the 'industry', so we have to
work together to achieve results. As much as we may regret the 'death' of
'tourist boards' as many people still think exist, reality is we need to do it
ourselves. Thankfully, more and more of our colleagues realise that too, and
(East) Devon will be a better place for it! Will you come and discover for yourself? We
look forward to it!
Ruud Jansen Venneboer
Mazzard Farm holiday cottages
Ottery St Mary, Devon
