2020 has been an extraordinary year in so many ways…
It has been difficult for everyone, both personally and professionally, and we have all had to adapt and explore a new way of doing things and a new way of living in the grips of a pandemic.
I am incredibly proud of our wonderful team here at The Montenotte that have stuck with us through thick and thin, through lockdown and reopening. Every time that they have been allowed to do what they do best, which is look after our guests, they have done a wonderful job.
The support and feedback which you have provided to us during the year has been invaluable in helping us to navigate our way through the toughest of years for the hospitality industry, so I would also like to thank you our valued customer for your continued support of The Montenotte. We look forward to welcoming you back in the very near future as brighter and better days lay ahead.
As we bid farewell (finally) to 2020, we look back at the best bits and remind ourselves of our achievements and the brilliant projects that we worked on throughout the year. As Seamus Heaney put it ‘If we winter this one out, we can summer anywhere’. Happy New Year!
Brian Bowler,
General Manager at The Montenotte Hotel
We refurbished...
During the closure of the hotel we refurbished the botanical Panoramic Terrace. The lavish new look created by designer Jane Gilloway, takes inspiration from the hotel’s sunken Victorian Gardens with living walls, lush greenery, and a floral symphony. We also refurbished several elements at Motion Health Club, such as our locker rooms and Pool Deck area.
We introduced new services...
We developed our “Call & Collect Afternoon Tea at Home”, designed to lavishly treat two people, featuring sweet and savoury treats curated by our team and presented on a three-tiered carryout box. During Lockdown 1.0 the hotel donated €5 from every order to Hospital Heroes at The Mercy Hospital Foundation here in Cork raising €1,500. We created our high-end bespoke intimate Wedding Package for 28 guests in our Gallery Suite. Huge thanks to the Irish staycation market, you came, you enjoyed our resort... and our new “Corkcation” market loved us too.
We supported the Arts…
In September, we hosted Ireland’s Largest Sculpture Exhibition at the hotel in our Victorian Gardens. A stunning exhibition in association with The Kildare Gallery officially opened by the Lord Mayor of Cork took place, which was in keeping with our commitment to support Irish art and culture with 39 sculptures by 18 Irish artists. We hosted guided tours on Cork culture night. During the year we also hosted two artists in residence Karen Wilson and Debbie Chapman.
We won awards...
In a year like no other, our ambition to be the best at what we do continued. In June we won Ireland’s Best Boutique Hotel 2020 by the Irish Hotel Awards. Then in October we won 3 awards in the Cork Chamber Cork Digital Marketing Awards including Overall Digital Marketing Titan. In the same month, we were the winners of 2 Awards at The Sockies 2020 National Social Media Awards, which included the Gold Medal winner for Best Instagram for a Brand in Ireland and Bronze Medal winner for Best Facebook for a Brand in Ireland.
We welcomed new team members...
Ray Kelleher joined our team as Director of Sales & Marketing, Tabrez Shaikh joined as our Executive Head Chef, Gaetan Chemin joined as Bar Manager, Aoife Finn joined as Events Manager and we had several new senior members join our Front Office and Motion Health Club teams. This re-enforces our commitment to excellence in service and business development over the next 3 years.
We welcomed new followers...
The exceptional work done by our Sales & Marketing team means that our social media footprint has doubled in the past 12 months, especially on Instagram with 22,500. In 2021 will see us launch “The Full Monty Cork Blog” a must read for all the latest news on The Montenotte Hotel and travel information on Cork.
We enjoyed great TV coverage...
We have really appreciated our TV exposure this year. Call & Collect Afternoon Tea was featured on Virgin Media TV in their #backingbusiness slot back in April. In October we hosted live “Cork” coverage from budget day 2021 for RTE at the hotel. I was a regular contributor ar Nuacht ar TG4 and Raidio Na Gaeltachta. In December, Ireland AM was broadcast live from the hotel on Thursday 3rd December with their Cork #backingbusiness show. Ray our Director of Sales & Marketing along with hotel were featured on RTE’s 6 o’clock & 9 o’clock news on the 22nd December 2020.
We adapted...
We Innovated…and introduced exciting new packages such as our Green Fingers Getaway which included a guided tour from our Head Garden Ann.
We Reacted…To ensure that we have the safest environment possible for our guests we installed Perspex screens throughout the hotel, Hand sanitising stations and face coverings and we even take our employees temperature on arrival to work and we successfully completed the Fáilte Ireland COVID-19 19 Safety Charter.
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