Hospitality Group Appoints New Managing Director

Sean Donkin has been named as the new managing director of The Inn Collection Group as the North East hospitality and leisure specialist prepares for further expansion.

With an 18-year career in the hospitality sector, Sean has been promoted to managing director from his previous position as operation director for the company which has a growing portfolio of eight pubs with rooms in prime locations across the North of England.

Sean joined the business as general manager of the group’s top-performance unit, The Bamburgh Castle Inn in Seahouses in 2008.

Business founder, Keith Liddell, who is moving across from CEO to serve as the award-winning group’s executive deputy chairman, said: “Sean has an outstanding track record in the market and I am delighted to see his career develop in tandem with the growth of the group.

“The Inn Collection Group has a policy of promoting talent from within, which has led to exceptionally strong staff retention rates. In Sean’s case, this policy has resulted in an individual who has unparalleled knowledge of the industry as well as the group and its ethos through his hands-on involvement with our growth at every stage.”

As well as maintaining the high quality, service and facilities for customers that mark out the group’s estate of pubs, Sean’s focus is leading the growth and expansion of The Inn Collection Group, both within and further afield from its North East heartland.

A major refurbishment of The Seaton Lane Inn near Sunderland is underway while 2018 will also see the opening of the new £4.2 million Northumberland unit, The Amble Inn in October. The recent acquisition of properties adjacent to The Bamburgh Castle Inn will introduce a further 13 bedrooms to this high-profile site.

Sean said: “The Inn Collection Group has carved out an excellent reputation becoming a trusted brand in the sector. I am delighted to be stepping up to the position of managing director as a year of exciting development lies ahead of us.

“We are already one of the largest private providers of accommodation in the region. During 2018 we will continue to seek out new premises – including sites beyond the North East and Yorkshire – that fit with our philosophy of offering pubs with rooms accommodation and classic homemade meals at great value for money prices.”

Sean sees the group’s 250-strong workforce as a key component of the company’s vision for growth and is rolling out a new training academy for staff which will introduce a company intranet for online training and development.

Sean said: “We are proud to have established an ambitious team of customer-focused staff. Having been promoted through the ranks of the company myself, developing our people to meet their full potential and enjoy long and successful careers with us is close to my heart.”

The Inn Collection Group, which is backed by Kings Park Capital, includes four Northumberland inns: The Bamburgh Castle Inn at Seahouses, The Lindisfarne Inn near Holy Island, The Hog’s Head Inn in Alnwick and The Commissioner’s Quay Inn at Blyth as well as the under construction The Amble Inn. Elsewhere, the group’s estate includes The Kingslodge Inn in Durham City, The Seaton Lane Inn near Sunderland and The King’s Head Inn at Newton under Roseberry in North Yorkshire.