After almost two weeks of speaking with local business owners involved in the tourism sector, I have come to find that a broad spectrum of attitudes exist when it comes to running a business in Great Yarmouth’s current economic climate.

Smaller business owners tend to be more cynical about local tourism – often mentioning their frustration with a significant drop in foot traffic and the difficulty of attracting customers in the winter months. However larger local business owners, like Albert Jones of Pleasure Beach or Peter Jay of the Hippodrome, have a more positive view of local tourism. These movers and shakers of the local economy (as characterized by local economic experts) tend to view their position as one of power and one which allows them to bring in a surge of tourists during the summer months. While places like Pleasure Beach and the Hippodrome are what initially attract tourists, during my time here I have found mom and pop Bed and Breakfasts’ are a significant support network and play a dominant role in making the vacation experience enjoyable. The role they play in the local tourism industry can often be forgotten as tourists get caught up in the dazzling casino lights littering the Marine Parade store fronts – but that doesn’t make it any less important.

The Bed and Breakfast: A complement to Yarmouth Amusements

Yarmouth tourism-based businesses range from small to large with some falling in between. This middle ground is where the Bed and Breakfast industry falls. Running a Bed and Breakfast in Yarmouth can be profitable if done right. Bed and Breakfasts’ serve as a complement to seaside amusements like rollercoasters. Simply put, if people are coming to gamble at the arcades and spend an afternoon being twirled around on roller coasters, they will need a place to stay. I spoke with the owners of the Kilbrannan guesthouse on Trafalgar road (just two houses down from the bed and breakfast I have stayed at throughout this trip). Gary Smith and his wife Julie have been operating the Kilbrannan guesthouse for the past six years and had nothing but positive things to say about Great Yarmouth tourism. A visit to the Great Yarmouth seaside as a kid is what inspired Gary to move here and start a business. He enjoys the lifestyle here and the fresh sea air. In the dining room where he and his wife serve breakfast, he keeps an on old clock he bought on one of his childhood visits.

For Gary Smith, a decline in the tourism industry is no reason to be cynical or become disheartened. He and his wife live and breathe their work at the Kilbrannan guesthouse. They graciously allowed me to stop by and film during their afternoon chores and even breakfast the next morning. Gary, like many local business owners, acknowledges the decades long decline in tourism but chooses to stay optimistic. During our interview he made a conscious effort to mention every positive experience he has had in Yarmouth. His guesthouse is one of the more successful ones in town – rated as #1 on Trip Advisor – so his perspective is obviously different from someone who runs a guesthouse lower on the food chain but Gary still faces similar struggles. He simply sees it as a challenge – and one that can be overcome. Despite a decades long decline in foot traffic on the coast, the Kilbrannan Guesthouse is usually completely booked.

Becoming the Customer

To be a successful Bed and Breakfast owner in Yarmouth, Gary says one must think like their customers and adapt to modern tastes. For Gary, this has meant renovating the rooms to include en suite bathrooms and incorporating modern dishes in his breakfast menu. Back in the 60’s and 70’s, British Bed and Breakfast menus did not stray from a traditional English breakfast – toast, poached egg, baked beans, tomato, and mushroom. But now, if you open up one of Gary’s menus you see items like fruit parfaits and various types of fish. When people visit seaside resorts like Yarmouth, more and more expect quality and are willing to pay for it.

According to Gary, customers not only expect better quality but more diversity nowadays – something a Bed and Breakfast owner must deliver if they are to survive to the changing tourism climate. The tourism industry has gone from massive amounts of “day-trippers” who would flock to bed and Breakfasts’ (some would even sleep in bathtubs if rooms were full) to having to compete for new customers and keep the regulars coming back. Back in the late ‘60s, quality was not an issue or a concern because demand was so high regardless. Now, with a significant decline in foot traffic even during peak season, quality is what counts and makes you stand out, says Gary. Gary and his wife pay attention to every last detail at their Guesthouse. When I stopped by, Gary was sweeping the front porch and Julie was polishing wood on the dining room furniture. He pointed out that the small things are what count – like using cloth napkins, “not the paper ones.”

Gary believes tourism is an industry that is not going to die out. But, local business owners who don’t find a way to appeal to the changing tastes of customers who now have more choices (thanks to internet and cheap air travel) will surely die out.

Stay tuned for my full report on my time at the Kilbrannan Guesthouse and other businesses later this summer.

Successfully running a restaurant on the British seaside coast requires an outgoing and engaging personality that many Britons aren’t used to, according to Tony Smith, who runs a tea stall called Sara’s Tearoom in Great Yarmouth, UK.

I had the honor of speaking with Tony on Saturday afternoon – a day full of sunny weather and a larger crowd of tourists than usual on the Marine Parade, which is Yarmouth’s main road along the sea. His shop, a small building that was used in the early 1900s as a shelter to protect members of the upper class from the sun, was painted white with light wood floors and windows that allowed the sun to seep through and warm the seats.

In a passionate but critical tone, Tony explained to me that the British seaside resorts were seeing much less foot traffic from tourists in recent years. His business is one of many that has had to find new ways to attract customers. Back in the 60s and 70s, swaths of people would come to Yarmouth to enjoy a weekend getaway – meaning establishing a customer base was not difficult. However now, a day and age when cheap air travel is prevalent, Tony has had to change his business model from one of appealing to the masses to appealing to the regulars. He is more focused on quality versus quantity and bringing the best experience possible to his customers. Tony, like many local business owners, is proud of Yarmouth and its history and wants it to be a town that thrives. However, he worries about how a decline in tourism could affect the town’s quality of life. Yarmouth is very dependent on its tourism industry and must find a way to move forward and become the village that its people want it to be.

On Friday I had the chance to talk with one of the main economic drivers in town, Albert Jones, the owner of Pleasure Beach. Pleasure Beach is a local amusement park that has been in Yarmouth for over 100 years – most of that time owned by the Jones family. Albert Jones agrees with Tony that tourism culture in Yarmouth is changing – fewer people are making the trip to coastal resorts and those who are expect better quality than they used to. I discovered that Tony and Albert Jones actually have a partnership – Tony runs his tea stall on land owned by Albert Jones. Albert Jones was the one who encouraged Tony to start up the stall and name it after his wife, Sara.

After spending the past few days focusing my attention on local heritage, it was nice to get to talk to a few business owners whose livelihoods depend on whether or not the tourism sector is doing well. Most of my sources here agree without a doubt that local tourism is struggling to survive and business owners must find a way to adapt to a changing industry. While Yarmouth suffers from a very real decline in foot traffic, a lot of the negative stigma surrounding the town is just perception, according to Tony (Owner of Sara’s teastall). He argues that a negative image of Yarmouth as dirty and crime-ridden has spread along the east coast and is contributing to a decline foot traffic. Recent media coverage and academic reports released about the “dreary” state of British costal tourism has definitely added to this stigma.

Most people who are living and working in Yarmouth are proud of the town. They are proud of the fact that it was once home to people like Charles Dickens who declared it to be a marvelous place. Yarmouth was once the king of seaside resorts – a place where people of all ages and all backgrounds would come to escape. While this reality likely cannot be reached again, locals believe Yarmouth can survive and will survive as long as its people adapt.

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Covering Great Yarmouth as a one-woman band (aka I’m organizing, filming, writing, and editing everything on my own) has been an extraordinary learning experience. Not only have I learned an incredible amount about what journalism means in the 21st century, but I’ve also learned so much about what it’s like to live and be a part of the British seaside resort of Great Yarmouth.

Initially I had trouble finding people who were willing to speak with me about their business on camera, however yesterday and today I had much better luck. I met one woman named Tracy Manning – who owns a chips (French fries) shop in Great Yarmouth’s town centre. I ventured over there to buy some fresh fruit and happened to notice her setting up her stand, She had a tired look on her face – as if she had been running this business for years and had become extremely entrenched in her daily routine.

I approached her cautiously – not wanting to get in the way of her daily routine. She ended up being very receptive to me and allowed me to film her as she helped the delivery man carry in a fresh sack of potatoes for the day’s sales. Tracy ended up being very kind. She is 40 years old and was born and raised here in Yarmouth. She runs a chips stand alongside her brother – who runs a fruit stand just beside her. Tracy, in my opinion represents the essence of local tourism. She is someone who has lived in Yarmouth all her life and has decided to stay here and adapt to the changing tourism industry –which she admits has lost a lot of people in recent years. As I film her boiling oil to fry the potatoes, she nervously comments to me that I should come back in a hour – around 1 or 2pm- when there are more customers.

Her expression tells the rest of the story.

Locals who are involved directly in the local tourism industry – aka they run tourism dependent businesses like chip stands or ice cream stands- face the constant struggle of a wavering truism industry. Fewer and fewer people are coming to British coastal seaside towns like Yarmouth and its taking its toll on businesses run by people like Tracy.

For the last few days, I have had the great fortune of getting to meet the people of Great Yarmouth, learn how they live their lives, and understanding how tourism- an industry that accounts for about 30 percent of the economy- affects their lives. Today I also ventured away from the seaside and endeavored to explore the heritage part of a Yarmouth – a huge component of the tourism industry.

In fact, most locals tell me, most buildings in Yarmouth are over 100 years old – making history a major selling point. Ernie and Karen Childs run a local art and pottery business where they sell paintings and pottery as well as run a museum and give classes. The type of business Ernie and Karen run – one that has had to adapt to an industry that has seen a dramatic decline in customers- is one that has adapted and has fund new ways to appeal to tourists.

Their secret – heritage. “ Ice cream stands are only popular when the weather is warm” Karen said, “Heritage and Yarmouth’s history are interesting any time of the year.” To help their business survive, Ernie and Karen had made it their mission to promote heritage-based tourism in order to attract customers all year long – not just during the summer months. When I arrived on scene to film my story, Ernie and Karen treated me like  grandchild. I felt instantly at home and appreciated their willingness to open up about their business and the struggles they have faced.

A decline in tourism had taken a toll of a variety of tourism businesses in the area – but locals are finding a way make it work.  During my coverage so far, I found that the people of Yarmouth are resilient. Many are passionate about the heritage here – one that dates back to the 16th century. They have vowed to fight for the local tourism industry and believe it can survive the tough road that lies ahead.

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