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Rooms 32-42

Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:18:44 -0700

Well it finally happened ! We managed this week to roll out another 10 rooms, taking the total now to 41 rooms. In the next two weeks we expect to release a further 12-14 rooms and then a week after that the final 5 rooms - making a grand total of 60 bedrooms.

It's been almost a year but we are getting there now.

Thanks to all our guests. When you're at the Icon, you're at home and you're family.

Franco

release of further bedrooms

Sat, 14 Aug 2010 08:58:05 -0700

The release of further bedrooms is now imminent. The top floor (12 bedrooms) of the 3rd Wing is a day or two away from release whilst the 2nd floor is two weeks away now. The ground floor which will host a fitness suite, therapy room plus a further three conference rooms will be completed by the end of September.

I'd like to thank the hard work of the entire Icon Team for working all hours this week including through the night on Tuesday/Wednesday morning. Without your dedication we would not have achieved the goal we set ourselves - well done and thank you.

Tripadvisor cheats

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 23:16:27 -0700

My GM told me yesterday that in one of his last posts in Cornwall, he interviewed someone who told him it was one of her weekly duties to post false tripadvisor comments both about her place of work and therefore good reviews and about their competitors (therefore bad).

This is a practice the Icon has never done and never will although I understand it's very widely used by many hotels.

Nope. The road to success has to be an honest one becuase getting somewhere in a crooked way means you won't last long when you get there.

2nd on Tripadvisor

Sat, 10 Jul 2010 11:26:11 -0700

It is with great pleasure that I announce that we are now up to 2nd place on Tripadvisor. The pride is oozing out of me and now for the top spot.

From us all at the Icon Hotel Luton we thank our gracious guests once again for continuing to have faith is us.

Wayne Rooney - PART 1

Tue, 29 Jun 2010 14:57:23 -0700

On holiday in May 2005 I was staying at the same hotel as Wayne Rooney on holiday. At this same hotel were also Phil Neville, Andy Cole, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbank, Chris Coleman and Martin O'Neil. Even Stelios was there for a day. Wayne was with his then fiancée Coleen and his and her brothers.

I have to say I was mortified of the prospect of literally being next to Wayne on the sun lounger on the beach for 2 weeks. Because Lefi & I had got married at this same hotel the year before and I had got very friendly with the Head Beach Attendant, this year he put our umbrella and loungers on the very best position on the beach. Therefore Wayne was to my right & Neville to my left. We could not help but talk to each other etc.

Now, my perception of Wayne was that I didn't like him at all because quite frankly on the pitch I thought he was an animal. This was when he first went to Manchester United and he lost his temper all the time.

Although the beach and hotel we were at was very secluded, the beach itself was not private and members of other hotels walked along the shore line of our hotel beach. I would see Wayne all the time, either on the beach, in the pool, at breakfast, lunch or dinner.

For you non-believers, take a look at the Facebook page. That's Wayne holding my daughter.

Now, every time I saw Wayne he would say hello and this surprised me. But an even bigger surprise was yet to come..................................

My new TV & England

Sat, 19 Jun 2010 04:04:41 -0700

Imagine my joy when my dated 50" plasma TV died on me just five weeks before the start of the World Cup. I was ecstatic by the fact that I could finally replace it with a 60" because up until then I had no reason good enough for the wife !

Us blokes, we really are sad when it comes to football & gadgets.

So I searched the internet for the best deal. I don't mind admitting that I was looking for the most economical option because I actually don't have the money (it's all gone into the hotel .... and more) but I was not about to buy a Matsui or Mickey Mouse model.

Bingo. 60" by LG for £1,400. That'll do nicely. I used the wife's credit card (with her permission) and pressed the OK button on the Dixons.co.uk website. It arrives on 14th May 2010 and I install it myself on the same evening.

On Thursday night whilst watching France lose 2-0 to Mexico my brand new, 40 day old, TV went blank. I tried everything. My immediate thought was for the England game versus Algeria the following night (last night) and panicked.

So yesterday morning at 09:00 hrs on the nail when Dixons.co.uk opened their telephones lines I was on the case. After 55 minutes (no exaggeration, I timed it) of being put to several different departments and me having to callback no less than 4 times and fighting with automated systems they would not help me before the England game. Didn't even try.

What gets me is that I, like many others, put trust in the adverts that bombard us telling us to "buy a new HD Ready TV to watch England win the world cup". I did this like the little lamb that I am and look where it got me.

I blew my top on the phone and as a consequence got a migraine and had to go home to bed from 1pm until 19:15 just in time for the game. I ended up watching it on a old 32".

All this for a 0 - 0 with Algeria ! Now this is my silly story of what I went through to watch England but.... spare a thought for the thousands of real fans who have travelled to South Africa to watch England.

3rd on TRIPADVISOR

Wed, 16 Jun 2010 13:11:54 -0700

Our dedication to quality and customer service is having a continued positive impact on our guests. This week we have gained a place on Tripadvisor and are now up to 3rd out of 22 hotels recommended.

Once again I wish to thank Team Icon for their hard work and commitment to our mission of providing the very best accomodation in Luton & surrounding areas.

Above all, the real thanks go to our guests, to whom we have the very serious pleasure of accomodating.

Whitehaven & Hackney

Tue, 08 Jun 2010 10:47:32 -0700

My thoughts at this time are with the parents of twins from Hackney, London who discovered a fox mauling the precious little wonders in their home and to all the family & friends of the victims of Derrick Bird who went on a killing rampage in Whitehaven, Cumbria.

For whatever its worth, this Blog is dedicated to them.

NHS

Thu, 27 May 2010 08:26:32 -0700

This week someone very close to me needed an ambulance. In short the emergency response unit & the hospital they were taken to saved this person's life.

I don't mind admitting that I am fortunate enough to have medical insurance and I also don't mind admitting that my experience of the NHS is limited but WOW have I been blown away this week.

I don't ever recall criticising the NHS and if I have then I feel ashamed. I have at first hand witnessed how fortunate we are here in the UK. This person must have easily received £30,000 worth of treatment - all of it free of charge.

Forget the money; a life was saved ! When I sought out the 5 or so persons who operated on the individual in question and I shook their hand one by one to thank them with tears in my eyes - to them it was just another day in the office.

I am totally in awe.

How would you feel knowing you just saved someones life ?

Finally

Tue, 18 May 2010 14:08:32 -0700

Today we started works to complete the bedrooms in the 3-Wing block. I was forced to halt works back in November of last year and for the first time in over 7 months I am allowing myself to see the end is in sight.

This will give the Icon 60 bedrooms in total plus 2 to 3 conference rooms & an excellent sized fitness suite.

Last week we were finally able to launch the Linton Suite - our executive bedroom with seperate lounge, 50" plasma TV, luxury sized bath & shower room, King size bed, seperate sofabed and dining area.

Shortly this suite will be viewable on the 360 degree viewer via this website.

Cornwall

Sun, 09 May 2010 06:08:54 -0700

We all needed a tiny break and so last weekend went to Cornwall for a few days. We trained down from Paddington and the scenary is stunning. I hired a vehicle and drove around the single track windy roads purposely getting lost - beautiful.

A site I saw will stay with me forever.....

A large farmhouse with it's boundary meeting the road had an egg stand on the edge of the main road. The stand had a sign on it that read "Box of 6 eggs £1.50. Please put money in the tin - Thank you".

Not a sole could be seen and not only were there eggs still for sale but there was also money in the tin from previous sales that day ! I was left in awe of the Cornish and totally jealous of their wonderful way of life and of the magnificant England of old (perhaps no more than 35-40 years old) and I tried to explain this amazing site to my children but I'm afraid it was lost on them. After all the youngest is only 3.

Luton Town Football Club - Part 2

Wed, 05 May 2010 22:52:48 -0700

OK so Luton lost and I agree that there were disgraceful scenes at the end of the game. The crimes (because they are crimes) were committed by a tiny minority of senseless fools but how can this reflect badly on a whole town ?

What really gets me - what I can't understand for the life of me is why I would receive no less than 2 phone calls from persons (refusing to give their names) the following day berating me for 'being a proud sponsor of the club'.

Unbelievable ! Don't people have jobs to go to or more important things to do in life ? For the record - Luton Town FC is my childhood club - my dad took me when I was a boy - and they will always be my club.

So. To the two of you who called me, shouting abuse at me for being born in Luton, berating me for putting money into the club when they needed it the most I say to you..... please look for a job and be happy with life.

Luton Town Football Club

Fri, 30 Apr 2010 07:59:28 -0700

My beloved Luton Town FC have a chance to go to Wembley this season to play in the final of the playoffs to gain promotion. Last night's result in the first leg of the semi-final was not a good result for us but not a bad one either.

Come on you Hatters ! I reckon 2-0 on Monday night.

April Fools

Mon, 26 Apr 2010 06:09:24 -0700

Just when I thought we had turned a corner ............ an incident in another country goes and buggers it all up. I really had high hopes for this month but what with the Easter break and the Eyjafjallajokull volcano (I had to look the spelling up) we've been very quiet.

Are we all the subject of a belated April Fools joke d'you think ? If we read & believe the papers over the past few days then the ash cloud that was, well wasn't. So for the many thousands stranded (for some good news but for most not) could it all have been avoided ?

Someone somewhere in a massive office overlooking the Thames perhaps knows - but we never will huh !?

Enough of Politics - by the way just look at Clegg now - and back to the Icon Hotel Luton.

100 persons turned up on Saturday night at the Icon & Capello's to honour the fallen & the wounded in Afghanistan. Whether you agree with war or not, I simply honour the millions of men & women around the globe who take their job seriously and carry it out to the best of their ability.

And so from a Soldier to a Road Sweeper - Well Done !

Part 3

Sun, 18 Apr 2010 13:32:54 -0700

With Spring now firmly here (and this is my favourite time of the year) I'll make this the final part of February's difficulties. I want to look forward (not much point looking backwards huh?) but I did promise I'd tell all and so here goes.................

I will be ridiculed for admitting to the public that in February and the first week of March we received complaints regarding the slow service in Capello's. This was heart breaking for me.

I can clearly see that a few regular customers have since stopped coming and this was because of one main error: We launched the Capello's Express Menu which was designed to allow local business persons to come in for lunch, order & eat all within the magic 1 hour. In many cases this just did not happen and was simply down to the staff.

I admit I knew we had weaknesses with some staff but I was sure that with training we could quickly bring them up to speed. My commitment to Luton to (a) recruit locals and (b) recruit University/College students [to reduce unemployment numbers for Luton] has back-fired a wee bit but I don't regret it and will continue in this vain. I just need to juggle the mix better from now between inexperienced/experienced team members.

I have since made (and continue to make) changes to key personnel, bringing in stronger and obviously more experienced staff. Lorraine (GM) and Icon have parted company by mutual agreement with James starting on April 20th as Operations Manager. James has agreed to leave his current post after 3 years at a 200 bedroom Heathrow hotel.

Furthermore I recruited for Capello's last week an extremely proactive senior waiter; Vasile. His impact has been immediate and already we've had compliments for him. Hedi has been on nights but he's now back in Capello's and all these events (plus with the introduction of our new Head Chef Tim in the kitchen) have had a very positive effect.

So. You've had from me all the bad news you're gonna get ! My next blog will only be GREAT news.

By the way - ELVIS is appearing live at the Icon Hotel Luton on 19th May. Book now as we have only a limited number of seats - £29 inc. dinner.

Ciao !

Part 2

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 02:25:06 -0700

Following on from the last blog, February proved to be a most difficult month. We received a few complaints which I have to say devasted me. I have taken them personally.

The main areas of complaint was the heating. We've had serious teething problems with a system that has cost nearly £300,000. The rooms were either too hot or too cold and we just could not get it working properly. The problem was an updated piece of software required from Japan. It took forever to get it and this only after I threatened legal action against Mitsubishi. Can you believe me taking the giant Mitsubishi to court ?!

We were therefore manually trying to set the room temperatures for our guests which proved both time consuming and costly. Couple the software problem with the freak winter and we had a very stressful period.

It's working perfectly now.

Part 3 next week.

It's been a while

Sun, 21 Mar 2010 09:21:09 -0700

It's been a while since my last blog - and for this I apologise.

I have to admit that from mid February up until only yesterday has been the toughest test for the Icon Hotel Luton to date. So much has happened (I will tell you) but I've decided to do it in parts over the next few blogs.

Part 1

We parted company with our Head Chef Neil (wish you the best of luck by the way) who is an excellent cook. His food really can grace any 5-Star establishment. I will admit we struggled a bit in the kitchen for a few weeks. Second in command Lucasz adapted and reacted very well but it almost killed his fantastic attitude. He held the kitchen together but only just.

I've tried so many Chef's over the weeks but none of them could match Neil's cooking. After a long search I'm pleased to say that we now have a new Head Chef Tim. After trying him out for 3 weeks solid he's proved he's ICON stuff (or stuffing).

He's a good guy. Really knows his trade and is very fussy about the cleanliness of the kitchen. Thanks Tim becuase the kitchen cost nearly £100,000.

I have to say, finding the right staff (who share my vision for the Icon) is very, very hard.

100% occupied & 4th on Tripadvisor

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:30:35 -0800

Our focus on quality and customer service is having a positive impact on our business. This week, we've now jumped to 4th position on Tripadvisor. Last month the Icon Hotel in Luton was nowhere out of 22 hotels recommended and now we're 4th !

Our occupancy rate is now running at the highest level since we opened allowing us to continue our investment to continue with the final phase of our development.

At this point I would like to thank all the staff for their hard work but above all our guests without whom this would not be possible. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to serve you and we look forward to welcoming you again.