THE staff carried on business as usual delivering the same high standards of service despite the doors closing for good on one of Penarth’s most famous hotels.
The town was rocked when Edinburgh Woollen Mill, who owned Holm House, announced at the end of January they were shutting the hotel.
That day has past when the doors of the popular wedding venue - where a plethora of famous stars including Anthony Joshua, Harry Styles, and David ‘The Hoff’ Hasselhoff stayed - shut for good.
Despite having to work for two months under the cloud of job uncertainty, general manager of the hotel Dan Jones said he was immensely proud of the level of service delivered by staff as hundreds of people flocked back to the venue in its remaining weeks to bid a fond farewell.
In good news, Mr Jones said most of the staff have found alternative employment.
The hotel ended its existence fittingly, with a wedding on Sunday, March 31, with 50 guests invited for the ceremony and a further 70 people for the evening.
Mr Jones paid an emotional tribute to his staff, saying: “The staff have been amazing,” said Mr Jones.
“We wanted to continue business as usual to the end and I am so proud of the staff and the way they just carried on with a smile. They delivered the same level of service to the end.”
When we spoke to Mr Jones days after the initial announcement, he put his finger on Covid and a loss of “business travellers” who used to use the hotel for short spaces of time on business trips, but now WFH-ing (working from home) as one of the reasons trade fell at the established venue.
Mr Jones did say that after the announcement, there was an upsurge in bookings.
He paid tribute to patrons old and new who came to use the hotel and spa for the last time.
“We’ve had a lot of support from our regulars and previous wedding couples over the years,” said Mr Jones. “Lots were at Holm on the Friday doing their final farewell.”
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On the future of the hotel, Mr Jones says nothing has been confirmed.
And on his future, after six years running the hotel and having to deal with celebrity demands including those of one Mr Harry Styles (the hotel was cleared for Styles' overnight stay while he performed in Cardiff), Mr Jones says he is taking a well-deserved break.
“I’m taking a little break now,” said Mr Jones. “I’ll take a few weeks off before thinking about what I’ll do next.”
What did you think of the news Holm was shutting? What are your memories of the place? Will you miss it? What do you want to see go there next? Do you think more flats will be built or could it become another venue?
Let us know in comments, on our Facebook, or emailing harry.jamshidian@newsquest.co.uk.
Got a story in Penarth? Email harry.jamshidian@newsquest.co.uk.
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