As a serviced apartment operator, experience is everything. It builds trust, brand awareness, and helps you stay ahead of the competition. House of Fisher has been in the game for 20 years, and takes a family-orientated approach to accommodating its guests.
A UK-based provider, they pride themselves on delivering an exceptional service, and boast a friendly, personable team.
Aneal Sadiq, House of Fisher’s Head of Business Development, had this to say about their brand:
What are your plans for the coming year?
We’re expanding our reach locally and growing our property portfolio within the Thames Valley and along the M3/M4 corridors.
We hope to have planning approved and building commence on a couple of new aparthotel schemes we have in the pipeline. These properties will feature all the value added extras you have come to expect from House of Fisher apartments such as Sky TV, coupled with our unrivalled service levels and 24-hour guest support.
Why have you chosen to operate in the locations that you do?
As a founding member of The ASAP, House of Fisher have been operating now for 20 years.
We started out in Reading, given our property roots with TA Fisher, and now have 13 properties across seven locations and three counties including Berkshire, Hampshire and Surrey.
All of our properties are strategically placed in key commercial hubs, well-connected by public transport, and within walking distance of railway stations. Reading, in particular, is increasingly attractive from a business travel standpoint, due to its transport links, talent pool and technology/software companies.
What’s a typical House of Fisher guest like?
Corporate - most are mid to senior management level people who are either relocating or undertaking work-related projects and require corporate accommodation. That said, there are small variations on the types of people who book with us, depending on their length of stay, and we are recognised for our flexibility and ease of doing business with.
How would you describe your relationship with SilverDoor Apartments?
I would describe our relationship as more of a friendship. It’s open, honest and mutually beneficial. This not only allows us to easily convert individual client opportunities but also collaborate at a strategic level to provide the best possible solution to clients. Oh, and we have a few memorable familiarisation trips!
Talk us through the in-house apprenticeship scheme that you offer?
House of Fisher’s apprenticeship scheme gives young people the opportunity to work for a great company while studying at the same time. Our programme is 12 months long and includes fixed-term employment.
I’m a good example of how House of Fisher invests in its people: I first joined House of Fisher as an intern, completing a one year placement as part of my degree, and have been with HOF since 2011. I’ve been promoted several times and work closely at board-level with the Owner - John Fisher, Managing Director -Trine Oestergaard and Financial Director- Duncan Mayes.
We pride ourselves on investing in people, and have witnessed a number of staff promotions in the Reservations and Operations teams.
We’ve now taken this further and have a number of employees obtaining NVQ qualifications in Business and Team Leadership. We’ve also invested in a tailored, City & Guilds recognised, leadership programme for our managers and supervisors across all business functions.
Given the chance, where would you open new properties?
Wherever demand is outstripping supply! I would say Oxford and Guildford are particularly hot at the moment. Both are popular commercial hubs and would benefit from a dedicated aparthotel scheme. The feasibility studies we’ve conducted have identified them as suitable areas to operate in at a greater capacity.
And now for the quick fire round:
Surrey, Berkshire or Hampshire?
Berkshire
PC or Mac?
PC
iOS or Android?
Android
Morning or evening?
Twilight!
