Operation Management
Holly Farm
In 2003, Charles and Gillian Giles decided to open up their farm to the paying public, in response to diminishing profits from their milk and cereal activities. They invested all their savings into building a 40 space car park and an area with spaces for 40 seater buses, a safe viewing area for the milking parlour, special trailers for passengers to be transported around the farm on guided tours, a permanent exhibition of equipment, a rare breads paddock, a children’s adventure playground, a picnic area, a maize maze and a farm shop. Behind the shop they built a small factory making real dairy ice cream, which also provided for public viewing. Ingredients for the ice cream, pasteurized cream, eggs, sugar, flavourings etc. , were bought out, although this was not obvious to the viewing public.
Gillian took responsibility for all these activities and Charles continued to run the commercial farming business. Through advertising, giving lectures to local schools and local organizations, the numbers of visitors to the farm increased steadily. By 2006, Gillian became so involved in running her business that she was unable to give so much time to these promotional activities, and the number of paying visitors levelled out around 15,000 per year. Although the farm opened to the public at 11am and closed around 7pm after milking was finished, up to 90%of the visitors in cars or coaches would arrive later than 12.30 pm, picnic until around 2pm, and tour the farm until about 4pm. By that time, around 20% would have visited the farm shop and left, but the remainder would want to wait to view the milking then visit the shop to purchase ice cream and other products then depart.
Gillian opened the farm to the public each year from April to October inclusive. Demand would be too low outside this period, the conditions were often unsuitable for regular tractor rides, and most of the animals had to be kept inside. Early experience had confirmed that mid-week
In 2003, Charles and Gillian Giles decided to open up their farm to the paying public, in response to diminishing profits from their milk and cereal activities. They invested all their savings into building a 40 space car park and an area with spaces for 40 seater buses, a safe viewing area for the milking parlour, special trailers for passengers to be transported around the farm on guided tours, a permanent exhibition of equipment, a rare breads paddock, a children’s adventure playground, a picnic area, a maize maze and a farm shop. Behind the shop they built a small factory making real dairy ice cream, which also provided for public viewing. Ingredients for the ice cream, pasteurized cream, eggs, sugar, flavourings etc. , were bought out, although this was not obvious to the viewing public.
Gillian took responsibility for all these activities and Charles continued to run the commercial farming business. Through advertising, giving lectures to local schools and local organizations, the numbers of visitors to the farm increased steadily. By 2006, Gillian became so involved in running her business that she was unable to give so much time to these promotional activities, and the number of paying visitors levelled out around 15,000 per year. Although the farm opened to the public at 11am and closed around 7pm after milking was finished, up to 90%of the visitors in cars or coaches would arrive later than 12.30 pm, picnic until around 2pm, and tour the farm until about 4pm. By that time, around 20% would have visited the farm shop and left, but the remainder would want to wait to view the milking then visit the shop to purchase ice cream and other products then depart.
Gillian opened the farm to the public each year from April to October inclusive. Demand would be too low outside this period, the conditions were often unsuitable for regular tractor rides, and most of the animals had to be kept inside. Early experience had confirmed that mid-week