Our General Manager Anthony celebrates 10th year in the post!

Our General Manager Anthony has celebrated his 10th year in the post. So, we thought we’d catch up with him and find out more about his past decade.

What have been the highlights of 2018 for Ellingham Hall?

There are three things that stand out: we’ve had our busiest ever summer with weddings! Our Head of Weddings, Wendy, was named Wedding Co-ordinator of the Year in the North of England Wedding Awards. And we officially launched the venue for corporate events. It has been very eventful, but I’ve enjoyed it.

What has been your biggest challenge this year?

As this has been the busiest summer, the biggest challenge has been on logistics. It was essential to ensure our guests’ expectations were met or exceeded, but it was equally important to look after and support our team.

What has been your proudest moment?

It was when Wendy, our Head of Weddings won her award! As well as being proud of her, I was also proud of the fact the whole team had been recognised for the service we deliver. We pride ourselves on our service, and this award highlighted that effort.

What are you currently working on?

I’m currently working on an exciting new venture! We will be launching our sister venue Lemmington Hall, as an exclusive-use event space next year, so I’ll be very busy with that. We are also arranging a calendar of events to enable the public to experience Ellingham Hall. As an exclusive-use venue, there isn’t the same chance to visit like you can with a hotel. If you’ve been a guest or a client in the past, we want to welcome you back. It will give you the chance to relive some great memories! We’re also working on building on the success of the corporate launch.

Tell us about your team?

I’m fortunate to have in place strong Heads of Departments, all of whom have been with me for between four and nine years. I appreciate it’s quite unusual in this industry to work with people for so long, and I hope that length of service shows how well we get on, and that we are a genuine team. I also think the key is mutual respect and listening to them. Their opinions and work are valued, and that’s what has helped make Ellingham Hall what it is today.

As we plan for further growth in 2019 and 2020, I recognised that we needed additional experience in marketing and sales and have made two new appointments in Lynn Sanderson and Rachel Barlow. I’m looking forward to working with them for many years to come!

How do you keep ahead of the competition in such a competitive sector?

We were one of the first exclusive-use wedding venues in Northumberland, and in that time, we’ve focused on customer experience, retained our exclusivity, and our attention to detail hasn’t wavered. It’s important to move with demand and offer a high-quality service at a good price. We listen to our customer feedback to help us improve where we can.

What services do you offer?

Exclusive weddings, corporate and special events; private parties; private dining and holiday cottage breaks.

Where do you see the business in 12 months’ time?

We should have experienced the planned growth and launched our second venue, Lemmington Hall, ready for trading in 2020.