Fresssh Image
Established in 2013, Fresssh Image provides complete design, installation and maintenance services to the UK hospitality sector. Co-founded by Keith and Annika Hobbs, Fresssh Image was created with an aim to ‘change the face of hospitality’ by offering venues with a brand image experience.
From its base in Nottingham Fresssh Image boasts a team of highly-skilled fit-out and refurbishment specialists working with clients throughout the country.
Since 2015 Fresssh Image has been involved with the refurbishment of McDonald’s venues around the UK. The company is also currently working very closely with Anglo-French restaurant chain, Bistrot Pierre.
Premier Hospitality recently sat down with Fresssh Image Managing Director, Keith Hobbs to find out more about the company and its values. Keith spoke about the company’s involvement with McDonald’s and Bistrot Pierre, as well as the importance of strong working relationships.
Hi Keith, thank you for taking the time to speak to Premier Hospitality. Please tell us all about Fresssh Image – what is it that you specialise in?
“We started off by owning a franchise business that concentrated on repair and restoration. This particular franchise was deeply involved in servicing the needs of the hospitality sector. After about 13 years we became inspired by the growing importance of brand image. It was then that we set up our own company, Fresssh Image, in early 2013.
“Our strapline is ‘changing the face of hospitality’ and the objective is to create venues that offer a brand image experience. Where we’re somewhat unique is that our repair and restoration background means we can also give owners and management the opportunity to maintain an investment. We found that a lot of people invested a huge amount of money on reimaging a venue or creating a brand image but then didn’t do anything about looking after it.”
McDonalds
You have a longstanding relationship with McDonald’s. How has this partnership developed?
“The current fit out programme started in 2015 and it’s called ‘Experience of the Future’. We got involved because we were already working with individual McDonald’s venues, looking after day-to-day maintenance.
“Originally, we started off just with the furniture but now we maintain pretty much everything on the customer side of the counter including the dining area, toilets and the crew rooms. Crew rooms are quite a big focus at the moment because the view is that if you’ve got a happy crew then you’ll have improved customer satisfaction.
“On the reimage side we are currently servicing somewhere in the region of 250 McDonalds restaurants. The thing that’s benefitted us is the fact that we’ve been doing the actual installation work with the contractors in this current reimage programme.”
Restaurant chain Bistrot Pierre is a very different offering to McDonald’s. How did this relationship begin?
“That’s an interesting one. We originally got invited in by the property managers and then within a year of that Bistrot Pierre had an £80m investment to expand and improve. The chain started in Nottingham with one restaurant and there are roughly 20 restaurants now and they’ve just brought in new senior management so they can expand across the UK.
“From our point of view, what’s good about it is that it’s totally at the other end of the spectrum to McDonald’s. This gives us a much more rounded perspective on the hospitality side of things and it’s a very different experience. Rob Beacham, who is one of the co-owners, spends his time going round the UK looking for Grade II listed building he can change into the Bistrot Pierre concept.
“We originally got called in to look after the brand image by keeping the properties in good shape. Since then we’ve migrated to become Bistrot Pierre’s bespoke seating supplier and we also refurbish existing restaurants and new restaurants. We’re currently working on a site in Ilkley which is a restaurant, hotel and pub housed in a Grade II listed building.”
Bistrot Pierre: Mere Green
How important is it to build a strong relationship with your clients?
“I would say one of our fortes is the fact that we work very hard at relationships with our customers. That’s really worked for us with McDonalds and is one of the reasons we’ve been able to escalate our relationship with Bistrot Pierre. They saw that we understood what they wanted and so we built a relationship. We’re very keen on building and nurturing long term relationships.”
And finally, what areas of growth do you hope to see in the coming year?
“We also work in cooperation with a number of different shop fitters who often need bespoke upholstery capabilities. We see this as another area of growth for us. We are hoping, and are fairly confident, that the kind of profile we want to build with Bistrot Pierre will encourage more companies to work with us.”
For more information about Fresssh Image, please visit: www.fressshimage.co.uk.
