Lessons From a Life in Hospitality
Catherine Lawson
Sitting in the beautiful lounge of Lochgreen House Hotel with Bill, sipping coffee and trying my best not to polish off the petit fours sitting pretty on a plate in front of me, I take a moment to enjoy my surroundings before getting down to the business of hospitality. I find myself taking in the paintings which are all around us; a carefully curated collection of classic and contemporary works from well-known artists including some of Bill’s own still life paintings. It’s clear that art plays a significant role in his life.
“Art was actually my first love. I wanted to go to art school but I was discouraged by the school despite being top of my class every year. My teachers told me there was no future in art – only a select few people ever made it. Cookery was a better choice.”
Art may have been sidelined as a career option but as a personal passion it’s one which Bill continues to nurture to this day and paintings aside, his artistic flair proved to be one of his defining strengths as a pastry chef.
Shifting the focus back to hospitality, and the Costley and Costley Hotelier’s journey, which now has three generations of the family on board, Bill reflects on the hard work and sacrifice it took to build a business which could not only outlive its fair share of competitors but also change the face of hospitality across Ayrshire. I ask him what it takes to survive in what is arguably one of the most unpredictable sectors.
“Hard work, an eye for a business and no ego. If you’ve got an ego forget it. I didn’t have an ego at the start but I did later on. Everything I put my hand to was successful and I thought I could do no wrong. Highgrove took off from day one and so did Lochgreen. I went on to buy Cochrane Inn and Brig O’Doon and they both flew too, so I bought a football club and a Bentley – several Bentleys in fact. Eventually there was a day of reckoning. When everyone tells you you’re great it can go to your head and that’s when you make mistakes.”
Bill’s quick to point out that taking your eye off the ball and being distracted by things like football clubs, is one of the biggest dangers. Learning from those mistakes though, and knowing when to re-focus, was key to survival.
“Looking back I should have stuck with just Highgrove and Lochgreen and in fact that’s the focus now. Knowing when and if to buy or sell can be difficult. It’s as much a skill to sell as it is to buy. When you get a taste of success it’s easy to take it too far but after a few hard lessons you quickly develop a resilience and focus which comes from the fear of losing what you’ve got.”
As we go on to discuss, Bill’s resilience comes not only from a determination to protect what he has built but also to keep the hardships of his childhood behind him.
“I was raised by a single mum who was taking care of three kids. Money was tight but she was a grafter. It was tough on her and we had very little. When I was twelve, I got up at 5am every morning to do a milk round. I would finish that, go to school, then do an evening shift in the local fish shop where I worked as a messenger boy. I did that for three years and by the end I was filleting fish and prepping poultry in the back which gave me an excellent foundation for the professional cookery college course which I started at fifteen.”
By the time he was 21, Bill was head chef at the Caledonian in Ayr, a position which also gave him the opportunity to train at a prestigious pastry school in Versailles and subsequently win what would be the first of several illustrious international awards for his pastry work. With his next move being the best experience of his career, starting his own business was only a matter of time.
“When I approached Chapletoun they weren’t recruiting but Alan Russell (owner) created a job for me and took me on based on my reputation. High standards, exceptional quality, the chance to be creative and slick systems in the kitchen made it the best experience I’ve ever had in hospitality. When I went out on my own, creating another Chapletoun House was my vision.”
After a successful short spell as joint owner of Decanters in Prestwick, Bill sold up and moved up, buying into Highgrove and significantly changing his prospects. Those early days in Highgrove meant huge family sacrifices, though, and they were sacrifices which were particularly hard for Bill’s wife.
“We leased our house out in Prestwick for six months as we refurbished Highgrove and we slept on the floor during that time. Highgrove was derelict. My wife Cath was pivotal in all this. She worked incredibly hard and was completely behind me. Her parents practically raised our two boys in the first two years at Highgrove which was hard, especially as she’s such a home bird. And it was years before the boys ever had a holiday.”
When Bill’s relentless hard work and drive to succeed won him a gold medal at the food Olympics in Frankfurt he hit the front page of the Glasgow Herald and that sealed Highgrove’s success. It wasn’t long before expansion was on the horizon and Lochgreen was on the market. Based purely on Bill’s reputation, and one phone call to the bank, the funding for Lochgreen was approved and the next stage of the journey began.
I ask Bill if he has any regrets looking back.
“I was a tyrant in the kitchen. I regret that. I was a perfectionist and I couldn’t handle mistakes. Age and experience have mellowed me but for a long time absolutely everything had to go through me. Being able to hand over the reins as I grew, and trusting others, was difficult for me.”
What makes it easier and gives him hope for the future, he tells me, is knowing he’s handing them over to his son and the younger generation of the Costley family. They’ve learned the hospitality trade at his heels and are set to take the business forward, further developing what Bill and Cath started.
It’s not just Bill’s family who benefit from his experience, though. Although he rarely talks about it, he has supported many newcomers to the industry because he knows how tough it can be when you’re starting out. I’m keen to know what inspires him to help others.
“It’s the sparkle,” he tells me. “You can tell immediately the ones who have it. And as long as I know I’m not shouting up a hollow close, it’s a joy to support them and watch them do well.”
So what would his one piece of advice be to anyone starting out in hospitality?
“You’ve got to be resilient and you’ve got to be a hard worker. You’ve also got to be genuine. What helped us was Cath’s kindness. She wasn’t about the money – she was all about the customer experience.”
And that, he assures me, is what hospitality is all about.
After a successful short spell as joint owner of Decanters in Prestwick, Bill sold up and moved up, buying into Highgrove and significantly changing his prospects. Those early days in Highgrove meant huge family sacrifices, though, and they were sacrifices which were particularly hard for Bill’s wife.
