If you've ever been on the hunt for a dreamy staycation, chances are you've come across Handpicked Cottages! Covering Cornwall to Scotland and everywhere in between. We are in love with their collection, and we know you will be too. It was a pleasure to catch up with one of the owners, Rob. Below you can read our conversation and learn more about how it all began, future plans and some golden nuggets of advice for aspiring entrepreneurs! Without further ado, we hope you enjoy, let us know your thoughts and if there is anyone in the industry you think we should speak to next, we'd love to hear about it, leave a comment at the end of the blog, or on our socials...

Luke: Can you start off by telling me a bit about your journey, when was Handpicked Cottages born, and how did it all begin?

Rob: Well, we’ve been involved in cottage and holiday marketing for a long time now, since 2003. But we started off doing county holiday advertising, so we had Handpicked in Devon, Handpicked in Cornwall etc. Then in 2018, the natural step was to launch a national site. So, we launched handpickedcottages.co.uk with just a handful of independent luxury cottages on board. Now, 4 years later, we’re close to 1,500 luxury cottages and lodges from across the whole of the UK.

Luke: Brilliant, so what made you choose luxury cottages and holiday homes in the UK as your focus?

Rob: Most of these websites that work well tend to have some kind of niche, whether they just do hot tubs, or they’re accessible or even budget. So, our niche we thought let’s go for the high end of the market. But it is not just about looking for the most expensive properties out there, we are simply about finding beautiful places in incredible locations. We find some really great places, that you may not come across just searching on Google yourself.

Luke: What has been your proudest moment so far, since running Handpicked Cottages?

Rob: Well, we have two sides to our businesses, two groups of people who we need to make happy you could say. That is the potential guest, who is looking for a property, and the advertiser, who is looking to promote their property. Our proudest moment is it is seeming to work for both parties. Guests are finding the properties on our website easily. We make it easy to search for cottages effectively and make an enquiry or a booking. Our advertisers seem on the whole to be happy, judging by our strong renewal rate. We don’t charge an ongoing commission, just an annual fee to list with us. The fact that it works is the thing we are most proud of.

Luke: Why should a UK self-catering property choose to market with Handpicked Cottages?

Rob: There are many reasons. The biggest thing, and the thing we have found frustrates holiday cottage owners the most, is the commission rate they are charged to market their property. Some sites charge close to 30% commission. As I said before, we have an annual fee allowing advertisers to easily budget for this marketing cost. Our current annual fee is less than £200 plus vat for one year’s advertising. There are also further possible reductions based on how many properties you list with us. We don’t do very well if you’re searching ‘Budget Cottage Devon’ for example but are found all over Google if you are looking for quality, luxury self-catering accommodation across the country. If you know you have a quality, luxury property, then we would say, come to Handpicked Cottages, who promote exactly that.

Luke: Definitely, both seem like very important points. Especially at the minute with the cost of living and prices of everything being so uncertain, the assurance that their annual fee cost is locked in will be a great pull for these places.

Rob: It seems to be more and more important that they can count on that yes. Whether they are with us for one year only or ten years, that is our commitment to them.

Luke: Why should someone looking for the perfect UK getaway start their search with Handpicked Cottages?

Rob: We have a really good variety of accommodation. We have properties such as manor houses, palaces practically and castles that sleep up to 40 people. But on the other side, we’ve also got off the grid lodges that are in secluded locations with stunning views that you would describe as luxuriously rustic. So, our variety and our locations. We go out of our way to find the coolest locations as much as we do the coolest properties.

Luke: Sounds like something for everyone!

Luke: Do you have a Hidden Gem in the UK that you would like to shine some light on? This could be anything from a particular place, a landmark, holiday cottage, restaurant, pub, or anything you like…

Rob: I do, and we don’t like to do this! All of our properties we think have something very special about them, to be on our site. Having said that, we’re all human, and have ones which we have been to and have found extra special. If you were to twist my arm and make me suggest just one, I would say The Temple, at Stancombe, which is in Gloucestershire. My wife and I were lucky enough to be invited by the owners there. It is basically a beautiful folly, romantic place for two, with its own lake. You can impress your other half with your best rowing skills! It is possibly the most romantic place you can go, certainly in the UK I would say.

Luke: Wow, sounds amazing, you’ve certainly sold it to me. With that being said, if you could only holiday in one part of the UK again, where would you choose, and why?

Rob: That is also extremely difficult! I would like to shine a light on some of the less visited parts of the UK. It is great to try somewhere different. We have come across some incredible places in Herefordshire, Lincolnshire and of course, not too much a surprise, but some fabulous places in the Isles off Scotland, the Isle of Skye particularly. Having said that, we do have some amazing places in the Peak District, in the Lake District, and all over the southwest of England.

Luke: We are great supporters of UK businesses and want to do all we can to guide the next generation of entrepreneurs. I know this is something you are great believers in too. Is there any advice you would give to someone thinking of launching their own start-up right now? Particularly in the sector of UK Travel, Tourism & Hospitality.

Rob: First thing I would say is if you have a great idea, and you’re committed to it, the first thing to do is get started. People often spend a lot of time thinking about it and planning it, as you should, but it is important to get it going, get moving on the concept. The biggest thing that we found over the years is that many people, just as they are about to succeed, give up! Just as they are about to crack the market, so to speak, and if I am honest, there were times when we thought we weren’t going to make it. I think this leads to tenacity, you get an understanding that there will be many bumps in the road, many things out of your control. Things such as where you rank on Google for example. They only need to change an algorithm overnight, and your business is not as popular as it was before. I think many entrepreneurs would appreciate that, that when things are not in your control, that can cause stress, but that is when you need to dig in. Our motto here is that, try, sometimes you fail, but don’t keep making the same mistakes. Adjust, do something slightly different, but most of all, don’t give up.

Luke: Perfect, thank you for that. So, looking forward, what is up next for Handpicked Cottages? Is there anything on the horizon we should look out for?

Rob: We never stop doing something to the website to improve it, and that is a multitude of things. We have never once looked at the website from the day we launched and said that’s it, finished. I would honestly say, 2 days have never gone by where we haven’t tweaked something, made something better, because we are all about improving the user experience. I could tell you numerous things, but we are always doing things to improve the site. I think the message from that is the second you sit on your laurels and think you’ve cracked it; somebody has probably just gone past you!

Luke: Finally, where can we find Handpicked Cottages online?

Rob: www.handpickedcottages.co.uk is the website, and our Instagram is @handpickedcotts Facebook is @HandpickedCottages  

Thank you Rob, we appreciate your time!

Don’t forget, you can check out all of our previous blog posts here!