Business Strategy Notes

Braemar Tourism Group – Strategy 1.   Development Issues

 POSITIVE FACTORS

1.       LOCATION:  quiet, relaxed, rural, easy access to hills & outdoor pursuits ,historical sites & National Park Gateway. Also a unique (if undeveloped) historical location as the focus for the start of the 1715 Jacobite Rebellion.

 

2.       VISITOR  ACTIVITIES : Wide variety of  tourist/ visitor interests ; history, golf , hill-walking, fishing, nature watching, Braemar castle, Balmoral Castle, Glenshee Ski Centre & Distillery.

 

3.       COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT : Wide range of Community Activity (E.G) Castle volunteers / Braemar Community Ltd.; Castleton Dancers; Buzzard;Panto; Highland Dancing; Junior Games; Braemar Gathering; Jacobite Events, Community Website, Community Council, Tourism Group; Hill walking Group,  Book Clubs ,Scouts, Mountain Rescue, Fire brigade.

 

4.       EXISTING ORGANISED ACTIVITIES/ EVENTS : Balmoral Visits, Balmoral Road Race; Royal Lochnagar Distillery, TGO Weekend, Scottish Country Dance Weekend,Braemar Castle, Jacobite Day,Junior Games,Creative Arts Festival, Mar Lodge Weddings, Mar Lodge Organised walks/ open days, Wildlife Safaris, Caravan Park, Hunting/Fishing on Estates, Skiing, Braemar Golf Course ,& Highland Gathering.

 

5.       EXISTING FACILITIES: Games Park, Golf Course, Mar Lodge, Braemar Castle, Balmoral, Caravan Park, Bowling Green, Two Village Halls, Medical Centre / Pharmacy, Tourist Information office.

 

6.      BUSINESS SECTORS :

 

6.1   ACCOMMODATION: Diverse range of accommodation (hotel, guest house, B&B, Hostel, Bunk House, Caravan, Camping, holiday homes/rentals).

6.2   FOOD : Diverse Range of Eating places : Restaurant, Hotel, Tearoom, bar food & snacks & Fast food

6.3   RETAIL : Diverse range of retail & service:  Petrol & Garage & shop; gifts; Specialist Ski & Climbing shop, Outdoor clothing, Tourist gifts; Art gallery, Quality Butcher , Pharmacy, General Store/food, Ladies Clothing, Highland Outfitters & bespoke clothing.

6.4   TOURIST SERVICES: Visit Scotland Office, Garage, Mobile Hairdresser, Wedding Venues, Guided Tours/ Safaris.

6.5   MARKETING: Individual businesses, Braemar Website www.braemarscotland.co.uk, DMO, Cairngorms business Partnership, Visit Scotland, Commercial Marketing Companies all contribute.

 

 

NEGATIVE FACTORS

 

1.       LOCATION:  Remote from urban centres and main transport hubs. Lack of Public transport to South. Weather can have a major impact on activity (e.g. snow blocking roads which are not cleared by Aberdeenshire Council. National Park gateway status and the links to the 1715 Rebellion are not being exploited.

 

2.       VISITOR ACTIVITIES:   Many activities are seasonal, many shut from Oct to March. We also lack indoor activities / facilities.

 

3.       COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: There is a lot of community involvement/ engagement however there is a core of ‘willing volunteers’ that contribute a lot and these resources are stretched. This limits the extent that some community facilities (e.g. the Castle) can operate and contribute to the development of tourism.

 

4.       EXISTING ORGANISED ACTIVITIES / EVENTS: Again many of these activities and events are centred around the summer months and are often of short duration. Many are also outdoor events and subject to weather problems. There are also gaps in key sectors ( e.g. Cycling / organised walking) & Niche Markets such as music festivals or Arts & Crafts).

 

5.       EXISTING FACILITIES: Again many of the key fixed tourist facilities are seasonal & mainly focused on the summer months. This Lack of facilities and the impact of adverse winter weather limits the potential attractiveness of the area over these months.

 

6.       BUSINESS SECTORS:  At a macro level there is a very difficult trading environment. In particular the high cost of fuel will impact on the attractiveness of such a remote village.

 

6.1   ACCOMMODATION: Accommodation providers have to cope with large swings in demand from almost zero demand to significant over capacity for short periods. Much of the hotel/ B&B & hostel demand is for single night accommodation.

6.2   FOOD: Food providers also have to deal with significant swings in seasonal demand and the lack of a strong underlying ‘local ‘ demand due to the small population base of the village. There are issues around the viability of extended opening hours.

6.3   RETAIL: Retailers also have to cope with seasonal demand and a lack of ‘local’ volume. The viability of extended operating hours is also undermined by sporadic demand.

6.4   TOURIST SERVICES: The lack of local influence over the focus and operation of the VS centre is an ongoing issue for local providers. Again there are a number of markets not being serviced/ developed ( e.g.) taxi service, organised hill-walking tours, small bus tours, mountain biking tours/ guides.

6.5   MARKETING: There is a lack of connection between the various strands of marketing activity. Also competition for , and duplication of resources.

                      SOLUTIONS AND BARRIERS

 

1.      LOCATION: Continue to lobby through strategic channels for improved public transport. However If in the current climate the provision of public finance for transport links is unlikely explore in collaboration with DMO & National Park the opportunity for commercial providers to offer  a ‘tourist transport service’ as stand alone services or as part of a mini tour package(s).

Support, encourage and resource the development and marketing of Braemar as a gateway destination for the National Park.

 

2.      VISITOR ACTIVITIES: Explore with activity providers the viability of increasing their tourist season and collaborate with these businesses and marketing agencies to promote and drive demand for these products through national, regional and local marketing. Explore the opportunities for creating new small business / employment  by increasing the range of activities in hitherto underdeveloped markets (e.g.) guided walking tours; cycle tours; arts & crafts, historical / Jacobite interpretation.

In the longer term develop business cases for new ( indoor)tourist products such as a Jacobite centre to capitalise on the unique historical connection with the 1715 Rebellion.

 

3.      COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT : If a number of the key community ‘services’ to tourists are to develop it may require the development of ‘social enterprise ‘ models of delivery where staff are employed to extend the range and timeframe of service delivery. Again this will require collaboration between local voluntary services and key agencies including DMO, Cairngorms Chamber of Commerce, Aberdeenshire Council, Education and training Providers, Visit Scotland and Scottish Enterprise.

 

4.      EXISTING ORGANISED ACTIVITIES EVENTS: There are, for our purposes, two categories of Activities/ events, first fixed attractions and second annual/ periodic events. Many of the current annual events are very successful however, even these (e.g. Highland Gathering) constantly require to review the viability of their events and some rely on public sector subsidy. A key issue for the local tourism sector is it’s ability to harness these events to attract, retain and increase the overall spend of visitors across the maximum range of sectors, and if there is scope to develop additional events based on niche markets.

 

 

 

5.      EXISTING FACILITIES : Towards this end the strategy should focus on identifying ways in which the viability of these fixed attractions can be enhanced and their season(s) and visitor access extended to increase the totality of the ‘’tourist season’’ and their contribution to the total spend across sectors is maximised. The vision should look at the opportunities for collaboration with nearby communities and complementary businesses.

 

 

6.      BUSINESS SECTORS :

 

6.1   ACCOMMODATION :

6.2   FOOD :

6.3   RETAIL:

6.4   TOURIST SERVICES:

6.5   MARKETING: