The hotel’s owners, Tessa and Geoff Sellick, began renovating the property in February 2020 with the aim of finishing the work the following winter. They planned to use income generated over the peak summer months to support the project.
In response to the coronavirus lockdown, the couple secured £50,000 from the government’s Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) through Natwest.
The facility has been used to completely revamp the hotel, including modernising the restaurant, bar, and its 10 guest rooms. Part of the funding was also invested in hospital grade sanitisation machines and stations, as well as other measures to make the establishment COVID-19 safe.
Tessa Sellick said: “We bought Furzeleigh Mill with the aim of it being a long-term business for us, so even though the hotel is currently trading at around 35 per cent of what it was during the same period last year, we’re hopeful we’ll get through this difficult period.
“Doing the renovation work ourselves in the middle of a pandemic was challenging but we now have a business that we’re really proud of and one that reflects our personalities. Bedroom bookings have started to pick up and we’re hopeful that we’ll see demand increase further as more people look to holiday in the UK this year.