Is There Such A Thing As Downtime?
Running a business, even one as fun as ours, is hard work. Not only are there regular, weekly jobs to do for each and every wedding and event that takes place at The Great Barn Devon, but even when the season slows a little (i.e. January) there is a mountain of work to be done to keep the barn and grounds in tip top condition. We never know when a potential client may want to come and see the venue and so we always like to keep it looking fresh and clean and wedding ready.
The barn itself is the centre of all the activities and therefore needs cleaning from top to bottom, inside and out. And as well as the weekly upkeep, our busy team can be found…
- balancing on top of a tower with torches and dusters attached to long poles, attacking the cobwebs that hide in the dark corners of the ceiling.
- removing the old sealant from the floors, sanding the wood and resealing.
- sealing the grand doors on either side of the barn.
- removing, repairing, cleaning and recovering 150 chair covers.
Then there’s the grounds, the walled garden, the cottages, the car park and all the extra outbuildings where we store furniture and linen and crockery. Our lovely Susie has been spending many an hour squirreled away in the stores, designing new ways to keep everything in order. There’s the grass to mow, the beds to dig and sew, the gravel to weed, the lawns to treat. We have a year’s supply of wood that arrives, that we use to burn and keep the barn and other buildings heated and we take every single candle we’ve used to a local candle maker who recycles all our waste and turns them back into candles.
And, we also live on site so need to keep in mind that our own home is on view and needs to look its best. As do our two beautiful flat-coated retrievers!
Talking of home, we are currently working on a very exciting build that will mean we will move out of our house and turn it into ‘Place’ – a stunning dwelling that will accommodate another 14 guests, bringing the total of places available for pre and post wedding rest and relaxation to 27. This will be ready for weddings taking place after Easter 2020, so if you are looking to add accommodation to your package, please talk to us and we will show you all the facilities available to you.
