GLOBAL UPDATE : PROFILE
Pig with new spots
Hotel du Vin ’ s founder is looking to grow a unique , middle-market , ‘ kitchen garden ’ concept .
By Jeff Weinstein , editor in chief
The Victorian greenhouse garden restaurant at The Pig in New Forest
Robin Hutson and Jim Radcliff recognized in 2010 that outside of U . K . city centers , the middle market was void of interesting and identifiable hotel concepts , especially anything branded . “ In the U . K ., there are good high-end country house hotels , but in the middle of the market it is pretty dire , to be honest ,” says Hutson , who trained with the Savoy Group in London , created Hotel du Vin in the mid-1990s and then spent three years as executive chairman of
Soho House Group before joining Radcliff to develop the Lime Wood Group of hotels .
Sitting in the Lime Wood portfolio was the Whitley Ridge in New Forest , a property with one redeeming quality : a kitchen garden , which provided the essence of a new brand , The Pig . “ We call it kitchen garden food and rooms . We don ’ t refer to it as a hotel ,” Hutson says of the 26-room property .
The Pig , which Hutson says could grow to a portfolio of five or six within five years , grows its own food in a walled garden or in its extensive vegetable and fruit beds , and sources everything else within 25 miles ( 40 kilometers ). Head Chef James Golding prepares simple British garden food , true to the micro seasons and influenced by the forest , with the emphasis on fresh , clean flavors .
Guestrooms designed by Judy Hutson provide shabby-chic comfort similar to guests ’ homes and offer conveniences such as in-room espresso machines . “ The overarching spirit of the hotel is
12 HOTELS March 2012 www . hotelsmag . com