‘Challenging, worrying, rewarding’ - Norfolk man celebrating 35 years running seafront hotel

Nick with Sammy the dog in front of the hotelNick Mobbs, who runs the Imperial Hotel in Great Yarmouth, with his dog Sammy. Picture: Storrhouse Ltd. (Image: Archant)

Over the last three and a half decades, Nick Mobbs and his family have run the Imperial Hotel in Great Yarmouth.

In 1984, the hotel was graded 2 star and it is now 4 stars.

Mr Mobbs, 56, almost did not join the business which has been managed by his family for three generations.

After graduating from the Scottish Hotel School at the University of Strathclyde in 1984 with a degree in Hotel & Catering Management, he was ready to head off to South Africa where he had a hospitality job lined up.

But the Imperial's hotel manager handed his notice in at the same time and Mr Mobbs' father Roger asked his son if he could step into the breach.

His wife Aileen joined the team when she and Mr Mobbs married in 1987.

Mr Mobbs said: "I have always felt incredibly driven by my vision for the hotel to be the best in the local area.

"Our drive to be the best and to do things the Imperial way has led us down all sorts of paths over the years, from redesigning the reception area in the 1990s, to winning Wine Waiter of the Year, to adopting energy saving innovations, to continually investing in staff and in the hotel, adding on the terrace in 2011 and reworking our à la carte menu in 2019.

"Many of our team have worked with Aileen and me here for twenty or thirty years, and they all know my favourite motto, 'if something is worth doing, it's worth doing well,' which applies to absolutely everything here at the hotel, from customer service to cooking and cleaning.

"As a hotelier, every day is different, that's what keeps you on your toes.

"The last 35 years have been challenging, worrying, rewarding, hard work but full of fun, together with a fabulous team who are like an extended family to Aileen and me. I look forward to what the 2020s will bring."