COURTESY / STONEHOUSE CAPITAL
Jeff Broaden is president and managing partner for Stonehouse Capital, which bought the Spruce Point Inn last year.
June 2, 2020
Spruced up Spruce Point Inn adapts its marketing to the times
Courtesy / Spruce Point Inn
Spruce Point Inn in Boothbay Harbor is promoting the “staycation” for Mainers looking for a getaway.
Spruce Point Inn in Boothbay Harbor, a year away from being acquired, is promoting the vacation possibilities there to Mainers.
The team there sees the staycation as an opportunity for Maine residents to visit a part of the state they might not have ever seen before, the inn’s general manager, Gil Hartman, told Mainebiz.
The seasonal inn will open June 4 to Mainers and to out-of-staters who meet the 14-day self-quarantine guideline, he said.
Historic roots
The original Spruce Point Inn was built in the late 1800s as a private hunting and fishing lodge.
Stonehouse Capital, a private investment firm headquartered in Chicago, bought the inn in February 2019. Located at 88 Grandview Ave., it consists of 55 waterfront acres surrounded by spruce trees, nine guest rooms in the inn, 15 New England-style cottages and cottage rooms, 56 modern lodge rooms, five town homes and 8,000 square feet of meeting and event space.
Stonehouse was interested in buying the property because of its location, history and charm, the firm’s president and managing partner, Jeff Broaden, told Mainebiz at the time.
Since then, the inn has undergone a “refresh” that includes new paint, carpets, cushions, fabric and artwork, said Sales Manager Lisa Walby.
The restaurant was renamed, from Bogie’s, to the Salty Stag, and Rick Koplau was hired as the new chef.
Since the start of the pandemic, said Hartman, the inn has focused on safety precautions, such as extending dining onto the Grandview Deck and offering take-out meals as well as safe dine-in options.
Inherent distancing
The acreage and low-density, private accommodations inherently lend themselves to social distancing, he noted.
Room rates range from $221 a night in June to $324 in July and August, according to the resort's website, though the accommodations vary in size.
The inn created a staycation package and an “elopement” package when requests started coming in from small groups that had originally planned to travel elsewhere but pivoted to staying in Maine due to the pandemic, said Walby.
“We had a lot of inquiries coming in for elopements, so we created a package,” she said.
The elopement package includes a photographer, wedding cake, flowers, officiant and lodging.
Marketing for both packages, through social media, press releases and the inn’s website, started about two weeks ago. Over a dozen combined inquiries have come in, said Hartman. Incentives include a $50 dining credit and a flexible cancellation policy.
Courtesy / Spruce Point Inn
Rick Koplau was hired as Spruce Point Inn’s new chef.
“We want everyone to feel safe,” Hartman said of the cancellation policy. “If the guests are from out-of-state or in-state, we want to make sure they feel secure with their decision.”
Clientele typically includes generations of families.
“Sixty to 70% have visited us before,” said Hartman. “Some started when they were kids. Now they’re married and they’re coming with their kids.”
The inn has lowered its occupancy level for its 81 units to 25% to 30% for now, he said. In a typical June, the inn is 60% to 70% full. The inn continues to see postponements of events and weddings, with some registrants rescheduling for August, September or October and others looking to 2021.
The facility has two restaurants that will help support the business despite lagging room reservations, he said. One is opening June 4 and the other will likely open the weekend of July 4. They typically attract diners from surrounding towns, as well as lodging guests. The dining areas have been reconfigured with six-foot spacing.
Other precautions include antibacterial hand-sanitization stations throughout the resort, reduced capacities across outlets, and increased frequency and depth of cleaning.
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