One East Lothian hotel urges supporting your local businesses this Mother’s Day
Hannah Renton re-opened The Royal Mackintosh Hotel in Dunbar in 2011 and says that the support of local people this Mother’s Day and beyond can help businesses to stay open.
A busy mum and owner of The Royal Mackintosh hotel is taking part in a ‘mums love local’ campaign encouraging people to think local when they spoil their mum this Mother’s Day, supporting local businesses at the same time.
Hannah said: “The Royal Mackintosh Hotel is a 16 bedroom hotel in the centre of Dunbar, offering breakfast, lunch and dinner, with a bar and restaurant that is also open to non-residents. I bought the hotel when I was 26. It was a whirlwind. I remember when I got the call saying the offer had been accepted, I couldn’t believe it.
“As the hotel had been closed since 2009, there was a lot to do before we could open it again. We gave ourselves 2 months to do the work, and opened at the beginning of May 2011. When I first opened I worked as many hours as I possibly could to save on wages. I can now turn my hand to any department, however I am definitely getting better at delegating, or trying to! I’m lucky to have a great team and very supportive family and friends. I think they’ve all taken a turn on the bar at some point over the years.
“The hotel was built in the late 1800s and, being an old building, definitely gives me some fun moments. There was a moment last year when we had an undetected leak cause considerable damage. I walked in that day and cried but I’ve built up good relationships with tradespeople and got it fixed.
“I’m a single mum to my daughter who is nearly 10. In the early days, juggling being a mum and running a business was busy to say the least. When she was a baby, she’d be there sleeping in her pram whilst I did some work. Now, my daughter is at school, I try to do as much work as I can when she’s at school. Work-life balance is always a juggle, especially in the holidays, but I wouldn’t change a thing.”
The Royal Mackintosh Hotel is one of the 130 plus businesses who are part of the East Lothian Gift Card. Hannah says that support for local makes a huge difference:
“We’re part of the East Lothian Gift Card because it’s really easy. Staff redeem the gift card like a debit card and we get the money in the same way. It doesn’t cost us anything. We also display the East Lothian Gift Card in the hotel for people to pick up and load with value.
“It’s a great gift idea for Mother’s Day or any other time, especially with all of the businesses it can be spent at. My perfect Mother’s Day is being with my daughter and with my mum too. My team will always try and make sure I get the day off, and we’ll do the same for any other mums in the team. If I had an East Lothian Gift Card I’d use it to do an activity with my daughter, go to a nice restaurant or for drinks with friends.
“In Dunbar we are lucky that we have lots of independent traders and it makes a huge difference when people support local because it keeps money in the town and helps us to stay in business. Businesses have had a lot to deal with, from Covid to the current cost of living crisis. Every pound spent locally benefits local businesses.”
The East Lothian Gift Card launched in November 2018 as part of East Lothian Council’s commitment to support and encourage small businesses.
Cards can be purchased online or picked up in person at the Royal Mackintosh Hotel, Dunbar Garden Centre, Flux, Turnbull’s Home Hardware, Secret Boutique, Tyneside Tavern and Mazzoli Italian Kitchen, J.S Main and Sons, The Malt Kiln, Blueberry, Adam Smith Healthcare, East Lothian Camera Shop and Veermans Pets & Co.
Devon Taylor from East Lothian Council, said: “We introduced the East Lothian Gift Card to showcase our independent businesses here in East Lothian. As the gift card can be spent with over 70 shops and retailers, 20 food and drink establishments, over 10 health and beauty venues and plenty of accommodation providers, it’s a Mother’s Day gift that can be spent in so many ways. Best of all, it’s supporting our small business owners like Hannah, and keeping our area vibrant.”
East Lothian’s gift card is part of the award winning Town & City Gift Card initiative from Miconex active across the UK. Local gift cards giants Town & City Gift Cards are leading the national ‘mums love local’ campaign alongside East Lothian Council.
Colin Munro is the managing director of Miconex: “Our ‘mums love local’ campaign is a timely reminder that when we shop local this Mother’s Day, we are also supporting mums running businesses in our area, who in turn are employing local people and providing much needed services and experiences for locals.”
