Open Air Business April 2017

a clear day, the Exmoor Hills and
coastline, and Rampisham Down in
Dorset.
How did you tackle getting
planning?
The actual planning permission
was not difficult, the challenge
came with getting approval from
the Highways Department. From
initially submitting plans to
obtaining permission was a period
of more than 18 months.
We obtained permission to
locate three huts on-site and, after
completing the first hut, we decided
to alter the location of the second
and third hut sites. This decision
was made so that the location of
the first hut was not compromised.
What glamping accommodation
do you offer and why did you
choose it?
We have two shepherd’s huts, Len
and Ted. Len was designed and
built by hand in-situ, whereas we
purchased Ted to our specification
then created the interior. Both
“FOR US, IT
HELPED THAT
JULIE HAD
EXPERIENCE
AS A PROFESS-
IONAL IN THE
CONSTRUCTION
INDUSTRY,
SO WE DID
NOT HAVE
TO RELY ON
CONSULTANTS”
huts offer luxury glamping
accommodation, and the newer
hut ‘Ted’ enables guests to have a
real retreat as it is off-grid without
power points (although you can
charge your e-book reader and
gadgets through USB charging
points). Both huts have modern
comforts such as an en-suite
shower, flushing toilet, fitted
kitchen, and a luxury mattress
supplied with all the bed linen and
duvet, as well as eco wood-fired hot
tubs. ‘Ted’ also has an outside oven.
I chose shepherd’s huts because
I love the look of them and the
idea of compact living. We have
managed to fit a lot into our huts.
Describe how you researched and
sourced your units
When ‘Len’ was built, there were
only a handful of shepherd hut
manufacturers, and we visited
them all. We wanted to create an
en-suite hut, which wasn’t available
at the time, which is why we built
‘Len’ ourselves. Our hut supplier,
Blackdown Shepherd Huts, was a
relatively new company at the time,
but they helped us to self-build one
of the first 18ft huts in the country.
How do you publicise yourself?
Since opening our first hut, we have
enjoyed coverage in publications
such as Somerset Life, West Country
Life, Conde Naste Traveller, the
London Evening Standard, and The
Times. We advertise on a number
of glamping websites and have our
own website. We use social media
(Facebook, Twitter and Instagram)
to share news and images with our
followers. We also have leaflets
which are displayed in local venues.
Recently, we have begun
advertising in wedding fayre
programmes, as weddings,
honeymoons and anniversaries are
a key market for us. In fact, we have
had another engagement occur
during a stay in the past month.
How would you describe your
‘style’ or unique selling point?
We offer a real retreat from the
modern world. Our huts offer
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