07/09/2009
AN enterprising Blackburn landlord is confident he can ride out the recession - after coming up with an ingenious way of utilising a vintage double decker bus!
Ron Lambton, who runs The Britannia Inn on Haslingden Old Road, recently bought a 1981 Leyland Olympian double decker, and promptly transformed it into an ice-cream parlour for children!
The brightly coloured attraction, which has been affectionately christened Grandma Dolly’s, has become a permanent fixture on The Britannia car park.
And after persuading the makers of Mrs Dowson’s famous ice-cream to jump on board, Ron is hoping his latest project will help to attract more families to The Britannia.
“We wanted to try something a little bit different,” explained Ron, who has worked in the licensed trade for 40 years.
“I heard the bus was for sale through a friend of a friend, so we decided to buy it and then came up with the idea of transforming it into an ice-cream parlour for the kids!"
“I did most of the work myself and the end result looks great. The kids certainly seem to love it.”
With the licensed trade feeling the full force of the recession, Ron says landlords need to be increasingly creative in their attempts to entice more customers through the doors.
“In tough times like these, you’ve got to look at ways of diversifying, otherwise your business simply won’t survive,” said Ron.
“For a while now we’ve been putting on children’s entertainment on Saturday evenings, which has proved a big hit with children and parents alike."
“We have a guy called Christopher Cotton, who is actually a barrister by trade, but as a bit of a release from his day job he likes to put on kiddies’ entertainment shows."
“We get upwards of 30 children and their families coming in on Saturday evenings, and we hope those numbers will increase now that we’ve got the bus as well."
“It’s a place where children can basically hang out and have a bit of fun. We’ve decorated it in bright colours, taken all of the seats out on the top deck, and kitted it out with chalkboards and other stuff."
“We’ve had to make sure it complies with health and safety legislation too, which means parents can relax and have a meal, knowing their children have got a safe and fun environment in which to play.”
Mike Jepson, Area Business Manager for Daniel Thwaites, who own the Britannia Inn, said: “We think it’s a great idea. In tough economic times like these, it’s important to explore as many avenues as possible in the search for extra income. This is certainly an innovative and imaginative way of attracting the family market.”