Coronavirus And The Broads

[Lastdraft]

I absolutely agree, it is a lot of money. I was trying to make it more acceptable by breaking it down 

I am sure you will enjoy. Have a great holiday.

[Oddfellow]

3 hours ago, TheBands said:

I could book a caravan with Hoseasons for less, I could do the same to France with Eurocamp including ferry/tunnel. All holidays in peak season are expensive and the broads is no different in that respect. My original post wasn't comparing the broads against other types of holidays however, it was simply stating that £1900 is a lot of anyone's money. 

Yes, it is a lot of money, but it's really not a lot per head. 

 

You can't find prices on our web site because we are not taking bookings and plan to close down by the end of the 2020 season. 

[Chelsea14Ian]

I do feel for you Andy this virus  has robbed us all.I wish you well.

[ChrisB]

Holiday costs regardless of type are subjective. If a chalet, boat, cottage etc costs £3000 per week and 6 working folk are sharing it is £500 per week each...Not too bad.

If a single breadwinner family with four children hire the same it is still £500 per week each....But that is one hell of a lot of money for the Mother or Father picking up the whole tab.

[Jbx5]

Sorry to hear that Andy, you have put a lot of work into getting your boats to a great standard over the last few years. All the best in what ever you decide to do on the future.

John

[JennyMorgan]

Andy, I am so sorry to read of your decision to finally wind up your business after thirteen hard years. We both know that the industry is a lifestyle and that you were never going to be able to step back and relax, landlords and customers won't allow that! However, having thirteen years of hard work snatched away from you is tragic. Whatever you choose to do I wish you well.

[trambo]

Andy, Peter has said it all. Whatever you do in the future I wish you better luck.

Fred

[Oddfellow]

Thanks for the kind words, everyone. But don't feel sorry for me. We built a moderately successful business and brand over 11/12 years. We were the ONLY company to have done this successfully in over a decade unless you count Len Funnel at Ferry Marina and all his financial might. We achieved most of what we did organically and mostly with our own money though we had to initially finance a couple of boats and rented a few too. We've seen other small operators come and go in our time. More went than came. Those that came, went.  

The business isn't being snatched away from me. It is a decision based on many years of being at somebody else's beck-and-call with a pretty low remuneration. It's 10 years of never-to-be-recovered family holidays that could not be taken. 12 years of having to deal with the public, most of which are lovely, but some are the kind of people you'd gladly throw a mudweight to if they fell in. The pandemic has brought out the best and the worst of people and, more commonly now, the worst of people is being uncovered (the discussion about face coverings and news of MPs telling us all what an imposition it is to make them wear one to help protect others really brings this to the fore). 

The pandemic has cemented a decision that I have deferred for the past three years or so.

I will still be a Broads river user for as long as I live in the area; our longer-term plans are by no means settled (or even started), but I am increasingly disillusioned with the path this country has chosen to hike. I really don't know what I will be doing next year apart from YouTube channels on Photography and Videography (and on that note, please take a look at a video that I have put together to streamline our handovers). 

If you wish to feel sorry, feel sorry for the Broads Hire Boat Industry which will have lost another player and so much more over the last 6 months.  

 

 

 

[Chelsea14Ian]

As I said Andy wish you and your family  well,hope to see you somewhere  on the river.On a personal  note its worrying now few hire yards on the southern  broads  and Brooms no longer  building  boats. We are based at Cove Brundall, even though  we are private  owners. The loss of many yards in the last few years is sad.

Good luck Andy best wishes Ian.

[JennyMorgan]

Apparently Maffetts is no longer hiring, Brooms is no longer building, Freedom is winding up, the BBC is no longer, not sure about Sandersons. 2021 will be an interesting year. 

[Oddfellow]

22 minutes ago, JennyMorgan said:

Apparently Maffetts is no longer hiring, Brooms is no longer building, Freedom is winding up, the BBC is no longer, not sure about Sandersons. 2021 will be an interesting year. 

Maffets ceased 2 years ago. Richardsons not building now either. Brooms will be a large residential complex in a decade or so and this is now all-the-more-likely with the level crossing being automated. 

After a spurt of growth, the Broads, like many industries, will have to adjust to the new norms which, unless the world gets a real grip of the virus, will not be anything like the old norms for a number of years. 

It's hard to predict what will happen next, but the outlook isn't rosy unless you have special-specs.

The wave of unemployment that's coming needs to merely lap at our shores rather than be a tsunami wall of water that floods the economy with jobseekers with little initial prospect. That has a chance of really hitting luxury providers like holiday companies, many of whom are being forced to carry over holidays from this year to next which impacts significantly on next year's cashflow too. Sorry, this is gloomy stuff, but it's what is happening now and we are powerless to prevent it. We just need to predict the wave, try to ride it or let it swamp us. 

Or move to higher ground now. 

 

[vanessan]

2 hours ago, JennyMorgan said:

Apparently Maffetts is no longer hiring, Brooms is no longer building, Freedom is winding up, the BBC is no longer, not sure about Sandersons. 2021 will be an interesting year. 

Sanderson’s are still hiring, unless the few boats I have seen have been sold but names not changed. 

[Oddfellow]

9 minutes ago, vanessan said:

Sanderson’s are still hiring, unless the few boats I have seen have been sold but names not changed. 

Sandersons is still operating,.

[JennyMorgan]

I have just had a look at Sanderson's website, seeming they might have three boats for hire but for whatever reason they don't appear to have any vacancies. https://www.sandersonmarine.co.uk/booking

As for Andy's summery, I'm afraid that he is probably bang on the money although I'm not quite certain where his predicted spurt is going to come from. I'm quite confident that the likes of Richardson's will weather the storm but as their boat building is now on hold for however long I suspect it might be a year or two before they re-invest as they have in the past. 

My doom and gloom prediction is that I rather fear that Europe will be awash with pre-owned boats.

[DAVIDH]

Sandersons use Waterways.com to market their boats now. Just had a quick look and they have no vacancies for one week  in the School holidays until the 14th August on Sandfly, and nothing after that. Of course they could have short breaks available.

Gosh, everywhere is sold out for the school holidays. Hoseasons, Ferry Boatyard, Herbert Woods. And there's not that much left for September either! 

[Oddfellow]

38 minutes ago, JennyMorgan said:

I have just had a look at Sanderson's website, seeming they might have three boats for hire but for whatever reason they don't appear to have any vacancies. https://www.sandersonmarine.co.uk/booking

As for Andy's summery, I'm afraid that he is probably bang on the money although I'm not quite certain where his predicted spurt is going to come from. I'm quite confident that the likes of Richardson's will weather the storm but as their boat building is now on hold for however long I suspect it might be a year or two before they re-invest as they have in the past. 

My doom and gloom prediction is that I rather fear that Europe will be awash with pre-owned boats.

I am not predicting a spurt: we've had it. It was the likes of Richardsons, Barnes and Wood's building programmes, Freedom's launch, DRL, BBC, Ferry's launch and build programmes etc. We shall see how these continue. 

 

[DAVIDH]

46 minutes ago, JennyMorgan said:

I have just had a look at Sanderson's website, seeming they might have three boats for hire but for whatever reason they don't appear to have any vacancies. https://www.sandersonmarine.co.uk/booking

Sorry Peter, didn't notice the link to the booking page. 

[JennyMorgan]

Seemingly the big boys are going into a relatively immediate survival mode, just as will a great many privateers and hirers.  If the High Street is anything to go by then it seems that a return to normality is further around the corner than maybe many of us had predicted. It's going to be a long winter, especially if there is a second spike of Covid 19. Better start building up my stock of toilet rolls and flour again!

[Poppy]

Can't get any masks ?  Here's how to do it - but best you wash 'em first 

 

[Ray]

42 minutes ago, Poppy said:

Can't get any masks ?  Here's how to do it - but best you wash 'em first 

Looks pants to me 🍺

[Hylander]

https://www.northnorfolknews.co.uk/news/norfolk-coronavirus-cases-increase-by-19-1-6782037?utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Newsletter&utm_campaign=DM29247

[Ray]

Any increase is a concern sadly, although thankfully it is still low. Understandably lots of people have been heading for the coast in the warm weather and I guess it's down to feeling healthy in the sun, but social distancing and mask wearing seems to be largely forgotten in the hotspots.