Independent wedding venue owner/operators, The Oldwalls Collection, today signed a £3.5 million-pound deal to open a brand-new wedding venue. The wedding specialists have acquired former country house hotel and restaurant, Llansantffraed Court Hotel based in Abergavenny. The new owners plan to invest an additional £1.5m into the Grade 2 listed property and create over 50 jobs. Work on the major refurbishment and restoration of the property is already underway.
Managing Director, Andrew Hole Said: “Its no secret that the wedding and events industry has been one of the most badly disrupted. We have had to postpone over 500 weddings across the group during the past 18 months and some couples are on their third or fourth date! As we’ve prioritised the business on the books, we are extremely limited in terms of accommodating newly engaged couples, especially if they are looking for weekends in 2022 and so we sought a solution to provide more choice. Some may consider this a bad time for a hospitality business to expand, but as the economy and wedding industry bounces back we feel the timing has never been better. A wedding is a rite-of-passage and there is a pent-up demand due to couples not wishing to book during lockdown, abroad wedding plans disrupted and of course couples are getting engaged every day. All quality venues across Wales are pretty much fully booked for the next two years – a new wedding venue is just what Wales needs! ”
In keeping with the groups reputation to offer an unrivalled, exclusive wedding experience. Sant Ffraed House by Oldwalls will offer a reception and ceremony space for at least 150 guests, substantial on-site accommodation , two bars and an evening entertainment space, the property is set within 330 acres of historic estate with views of Sugar Loaf mountain, the high-end market town of Abergavenny is just a 10-minute drive away.
When in full operation, the groups current, all year around wedding venues attract up to 40,000 wedding guests per year to Gower.
Andrew Hole continues: “We are working with local councils, planners and consultants to ensure we inject our signature ‘Oldwalls magic’ not just into the property but into the area as well. Monmouthshire County is widely considered as the gateway to England and the property is perfectly positioned to attract couples and their guests from all over Wales and the rest of the U.K. The Severn Bridge or the M5 can be reached within 25 minutes.
We hope the local tourism attractions, restaurants, bars and hotels will also benefit from the secondary spend of our visitors. We are committed to spending and employing local where possible and plan to build a brand-new team of at least 50 over the next 12 months. We know recruitment is going to be one of our toughest challenges given the resource shortage in the hospitality industry at the moment. Our aim will be to attract the best and develop new local talent by offering above and beyond hospitality standard wage and the promise of training.”
Established in 2008, by Swansea born brothers, Andrew and Simon Hole, The Oldwalls Collection, currently compromises of two of Wales’ most popular wedding venues, Oldwalls Gower and Fairyhill. The group also offers seven luxury holiday cottages. The new property will be renamed, Sant Ffraed House by Oldwalls and will accelerate the group’s property portfolio beyond £20million.
They brought you the Gower coast, now for the country, the group are planning to deliver the first wedding at Sant Ffraed House in Summer 2022.
