Home: Issue 4 2009 › Luxury Leisure
Luxury Leisure
03/11/2009 | Channel: Business
Having recently undergone a multi-million pound makeover, Grand Jersey has emerged as an in-demand five-star hotel and spa resort
Grand Jersey’s dedication to ensuring guests enjoy an exceptional experience is evident in every aspect of its recently perfected offering, from its fine dining restaurant to its award winning spa. The hotel is one of the finest, most talked about properties in Jersey thanks to its recent £15.2 million transformation to bring the five-star hotel up to date. Boasting 123 unique and stylish bedrooms, including six luxurious suites and the island of Jersey’s only private cinema, the hotel has considered every detail to impress guests and ensure a memorable stay.
Even before its transformation into a contemporary deluxe hotel, Grand Jersey benefited from occupying a commanding position on the Esplanade in St Helier, with spectacular views across St Aubin’s Bay. Now in addition to this, guests can enjoy the hotel’s modern brasserie, Victorias, and the renowned Tassili fine dining restaurant, which boasts acclaimed master chef Albert Roux as consultant chef.
Venture spoke to Grand Jersey’s business development manager, Lynne Capie, to find out what the renovations have achieved and how Grand Jersey stands out as a destination: “The hotel, acquired by Hilwood Resorts and Hotels in 2006, was an old and run down property before we invested £15.2 million to move into a period of renaissance. A lot has happened in the last three years and the entire hotel has been completely transformed. We developed our new brasserie and fine dining restaurant, which we hope will achieve a Michelin star. We also created a new Elemis spa, which won Residential Spa of the Year at the Professional Beauty Awards in 2009 after only being open for seven months.”
Created in collaboration with award winning British spa and skincare brand Elemis, the critically acclaimed spa fills 8000 square feet over two floors and is the only outlet in the Channel Islands to offer ghd spa – the world’s first spa treatments for the hair and scalp.
A feeling of opulence permeates every room in the hotel, with each en-suite bedroom coming equipped with a 42-inch flatscreen LCD TV, a CD and DVD player, complimentary wireless internet and air conditioning – as well as the usual array of essentials included in upmarket suites.
Discussing the improvements made to every aspect of Grand Jersey, Lynne says: “In October we launched our new website to highlight the hotel as a premier destination for the corporate market at an executive level, though we don’t exclusively cater to this market because we’ve identified the short stay market as massively important to us. Our revamped website lets people know we’re a glamourous hotel, providing luxury leisure.
“Jersey is a destination that is moving forwards and the island’s hospitality industry has benefitted from £125 million being spent on it over the past three years. Jersey’s attracting a different demographic and, for us, it’s about bringing in a younger clientele whilst retaining our loyal visitors.”
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Considering the hotel’s strengths, Lynne cites its unusual credentials: “We’re forward thinking and our offering is unique – there’s nowhere else in the Channel Islands that has a champagne lounge offering 101 different vintages as well as an abundance of luxury canapés and caviars. We’re the only Jersey hotel to have hosted dinner for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip, which we did five years ago as part of the Liberation 60 celebrations to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the island’s release from German occupation.”
The hotel’s popularity is set to soar over the coming seasons, particularly with the media reporting on a growing trend for choosing ‘staycations’ over expensive long-haul holidays – meaning that more people from the UK and Ireland are looking closer to home when booking holidays. Jersey and the hotel alike have capitalised on this growing preference. “As a destination, Jersey has benefitted from the economic situation, through people looking to save money by booking ‘staycations’,” Lynne asserts. “The island is accessible and low-cost airlines fly to Jersey several times each day, thereby encouraging people to look closer to home.”
Continuing, Lynne outlines Grand Jersey’s dynamic approach to keeping its guests amused: “Entertainment is key and we have in-house DJs every Friday. We organise Terrace events every month with Rob Wilder, the man behind the hugely successful Hed Kandi Ibiza. As our musical director, he has designed music for all the different areas in the hotel, including a soundtrack for our restaurant and music for the new website.”
Grand Jersey isn’t limiting itself purely to the ‘travelling for pleasure’ market however, as the island has become an attractive destination for the short stay, conference and event markets. Lynne reveals that Grand Jersey has been proactive in making the most of such an opportunity: “We undertake huge amounts of work with the Jersey Conference Bureau and we tell international buyers about Jersey as an amazing destination. We’ve devised specific initiatives and programmes for the corporate market, enabling us to understand executive travel, and we’ve worked on customer relationship management throughout Jersey’s finance and business community.”
Forging bonds within in its local community is extremely important to Grand Jersey as the hotel strives to cultivate a philosophy of mutual support among local businesses. The running of the hotel is made possible through obtaining services within Jersey, from marketing and web-design to sourcing fresh fish. Elaborating, Lynne comments: “Supporting our local community is the ethos in everything we do; we focus on local suppliers, local products and local partners to benefit our region. Everyone we work with has a like-minded attitude and we do anything we can to benefit our suppliers.”
Besides supporting Jersey’s economy, the hotel pays close attention to its corporate social responsibility, as Lynne explains: “We consider CSR to a great extent in terms of suppliers and affiliations with charities that benefit on-island causes. Every year we host Jersey’s £1million lottery, for which there are only 300 tickets, sold at £300 each – with the winner receiving £1million and the proceeds all going to Jersey Hospice.”
With such a wide involvement in Jersey life and a vested interest in promoting the island, Grand Jersey is taking its future success very much into its own hands. The renovations have given the hotel a new lease of life and unleashed its potential for attracting large numbers of guests from various markets. Summarising Grand Jersey’s aims with regards to its development, Lynne concludes: “We want to see our business evolve from a revenue perspective and to keep current, to be the leading hotel when it comes to hosting events and visiting dignitaries.”
Even before its transformation into a contemporary deluxe hotel, Grand Jersey benefited from occupying a commanding position on the Esplanade in St Helier, with spectacular views across St Aubin’s Bay. Now in addition to this, guests can enjoy the hotel’s modern brasserie, Victorias, and the renowned Tassili fine dining restaurant, which boasts acclaimed master chef Albert Roux as consultant chef.
Venture spoke to Grand Jersey’s business development manager, Lynne Capie, to find out what the renovations have achieved and how Grand Jersey stands out as a destination: “The hotel, acquired by Hilwood Resorts and Hotels in 2006, was an old and run down property before we invested £15.2 million to move into a period of renaissance. A lot has happened in the last three years and the entire hotel has been completely transformed. We developed our new brasserie and fine dining restaurant, which we hope will achieve a Michelin star. We also created a new Elemis spa, which won Residential Spa of the Year at the Professional Beauty Awards in 2009 after only being open for seven months.”
Created in collaboration with award winning British spa and skincare brand Elemis, the critically acclaimed spa fills 8000 square feet over two floors and is the only outlet in the Channel Islands to offer ghd spa – the world’s first spa treatments for the hair and scalp.
A feeling of opulence permeates every room in the hotel, with each en-suite bedroom coming equipped with a 42-inch flatscreen LCD TV, a CD and DVD player, complimentary wireless internet and air conditioning – as well as the usual array of essentials included in upmarket suites.
Discussing the improvements made to every aspect of Grand Jersey, Lynne says: “In October we launched our new website to highlight the hotel as a premier destination for the corporate market at an executive level, though we don’t exclusively cater to this market because we’ve identified the short stay market as massively important to us. Our revamped website lets people know we’re a glamourous hotel, providing luxury leisure.
“Jersey is a destination that is moving forwards and the island’s hospitality industry has benefitted from £125 million being spent on it over the past three years. Jersey’s attracting a different demographic and, for us, it’s about bringing in a younger clientele whilst retaining our loyal visitors.”
')";>Considering the hotel’s strengths, Lynne cites its unusual credentials: “We’re forward thinking and our offering is unique – there’s nowhere else in the Channel Islands that has a champagne lounge offering 101 different vintages as well as an abundance of luxury canapés and caviars. We’re the only Jersey hotel to have hosted dinner for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip, which we did five years ago as part of the Liberation 60 celebrations to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the island’s release from German occupation.”
The hotel’s popularity is set to soar over the coming seasons, particularly with the media reporting on a growing trend for choosing ‘staycations’ over expensive long-haul holidays – meaning that more people from the UK and Ireland are looking closer to home when booking holidays. Jersey and the hotel alike have capitalised on this growing preference. “As a destination, Jersey has benefitted from the economic situation, through people looking to save money by booking ‘staycations’,” Lynne asserts. “The island is accessible and low-cost airlines fly to Jersey several times each day, thereby encouraging people to look closer to home.”
Continuing, Lynne outlines Grand Jersey’s dynamic approach to keeping its guests amused: “Entertainment is key and we have in-house DJs every Friday. We organise Terrace events every month with Rob Wilder, the man behind the hugely successful Hed Kandi Ibiza. As our musical director, he has designed music for all the different areas in the hotel, including a soundtrack for our restaurant and music for the new website.”
Grand Jersey isn’t limiting itself purely to the ‘travelling for pleasure’ market however, as the island has become an attractive destination for the short stay, conference and event markets. Lynne reveals that Grand Jersey has been proactive in making the most of such an opportunity: “We undertake huge amounts of work with the Jersey Conference Bureau and we tell international buyers about Jersey as an amazing destination. We’ve devised specific initiatives and programmes for the corporate market, enabling us to understand executive travel, and we’ve worked on customer relationship management throughout Jersey’s finance and business community.”
Forging bonds within in its local community is extremely important to Grand Jersey as the hotel strives to cultivate a philosophy of mutual support among local businesses. The running of the hotel is made possible through obtaining services within Jersey, from marketing and web-design to sourcing fresh fish. Elaborating, Lynne comments: “Supporting our local community is the ethos in everything we do; we focus on local suppliers, local products and local partners to benefit our region. Everyone we work with has a like-minded attitude and we do anything we can to benefit our suppliers.”
Besides supporting Jersey’s economy, the hotel pays close attention to its corporate social responsibility, as Lynne explains: “We consider CSR to a great extent in terms of suppliers and affiliations with charities that benefit on-island causes. Every year we host Jersey’s £1million lottery, for which there are only 300 tickets, sold at £300 each – with the winner receiving £1million and the proceeds all going to Jersey Hospice.”
With such a wide involvement in Jersey life and a vested interest in promoting the island, Grand Jersey is taking its future success very much into its own hands. The renovations have given the hotel a new lease of life and unleashed its potential for attracting large numbers of guests from various markets. Summarising Grand Jersey’s aims with regards to its development, Lynne concludes: “We want to see our business evolve from a revenue perspective and to keep current, to be the leading hotel when it comes to hosting events and visiting dignitaries.”
