THE Hoff stayed there, Jo Wicks, Anthony Joshua and of course Harry Styles, however the stars that used to flock to Holm House will flock no more after one of Penarth’s most popular hotels announced it was shutting its doors.
When we met general manager Dan Jones days after the shock announcement, he wanted to emphasise that Holm did everything right and will continue to do everything right to the final whistle.
In a fitting end, Holm’s finale will come with a wedding on the last day it is set to exist - March 31.
Despite winding down, and until then, there is a lot of work to be done. Mr Jones said bookings have gone through the roof with people scrambling to have their chance to use the hotel’s superb restaurant and spa facilities, and experience that view one final time.
The boost in trade is a thin silver lining to the dark cloud cast over Holm, with more hours on offer for staff before the business closes for good.
And it’s the staff that will be affected most, all 50 of them – front of house, housekeeping, kitchen, spa, full-timers and part-timers.
Also affected is 40 weddings which were set to be hosted at the venue – Holm will host three weddings before shutting its doors.
For the rest, the team have been working tirelessly with fellow wedding companies to ensure couples still get the most important day of their lives.
Holm has been working with Oldwalls wedding venue based in the Gower, which also owns Fairy Hill – also in the Gower – and Sant Ffraed House in Abergavenny. All have agreed to take on the majority of the weddings at a discounted rate (weddings at Holm come in at £10k to 15k while weddings organised under the Oldwalls brand can come in as much as £25k).
Mr Jones said it was a busy day when Holm announced it was winding down (January 31).
All day the team were contacting couples to tell them the news with Mr Jones insisting they didn't want their clients to hear their special day could be in jeopardy via social media.
Eventually, the hotel did make the announcement, something that Mr Jones says has been a shock.
“Everybody is disappointed,” said Mr Jones. “Ten of us worked here four/five years so there is a core team here.”
In the statement released on their Instagram page, Holm said despite surviving Covid it was the cost-of-living crisis which was the nail in the coffin.
Mr Jones described how Holm particularly lost “business travellers” – reps and the like on jobs where they needed to stay in a location for a short space of time.
“That was the biggest concern,” said Mr Jones. “Monday to Friday, the trade just did not return after Covid.
“Companies moved online and then they realised they didn’t have to put their staff up in hotels with food and drink allowances.”
While this might have saved money for some companies, it came at a price for others, including Holm and Mr Jones.
- Read more: Holm House Hotel Penarth to close in emotional announcement
- Watch our Facebook live clicking here as we were outside Holm on February 1
The GM says the company is working hard to try reemploy the staff and said urged any company in the Cardiff, Penarth, Sully area with vacancies to get in touch with him.
For himself, Mr Jones says he doesn’t know what his future holds. Right now, he says he’s got enough on his hands managing the winding down of Holm.
If companies in the local area do have vacancies available, they can contact Mr Jones at generalmanager@holmhousehotel.co.uk.
What did you think of the news Holm was shutting? Surprised? What are your memories of the place? Will you miss it? What do you want to see got 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.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here