Case Study: Cannister Hall Apartment

Meet Cannister Hall Apartment

After careers in nursing and bio-sciences, Sarah and Steve Clerk now run Cannister Hall Apartment, a bespoke holiday let apartment above their triple garage in the village of Selling, near Faversham, Kent. The property sits in the heart of the Garden of England, close to the Domaine Evremond Vineyard, and has built a loyal following of guests thanks to exceptional reviews across direct bookings and the major online channels.

Guests come for all sorts of reasons.  Sarah explains:

"Guests book mostly for a short-term break to visit friends and family, or to visit splendid local attractions and wineries. Others stop by to and from the channel ports, or on business."

Before Bookster: overwhelmed and new to hospitality

The apartment was built between 2021 and 2023, originally intended as a work-from-home space and somewhere family members could isolate during the pandemic. Construction was delayed repeatedly by the pandemic, Brexit and the Suez Canal obstruction, all of which affected labour and materials.

By 2023, the pandemic had passed and the apartment stood mostly empty, used occasionally by family and friends. When Sarah retired that year, two years ahead of Steve, she had time on her hands and began looking seriously at turning the space into a holiday let.

With no background in hospitality, Sarah spent a year researching the legal and regulatory requirements, marketing choices and general red tape involved in running a furnished holiday let. Horror stories shared by owners in Facebook hospitality communities nearly put her off the idea altogether.

Discovering Bookster

Everything changed after networking with PASC and other local holiday let owners, which is how the Clerks came across Bookster.

Choosing Bookster wasn't a difficult decision. As a team that built its own booking system, Bookster brought both IT expertise and system intelligence, alongside proven experience in holiday let marketing. As Sarah puts it, "They knew what we needed and understood our many questions."

Onboarding: live within months

With Bookster's support and guidance, the Clerks set up their website domain and booking systems, taking their first booking in July 2024. Going from no hospitality background to a live, multi-channel booking business was a significant step, and having an experienced team guiding the setup made it manageable.

Bookster in action

Cannister Hall now advertises across four routes: their own website, hosted by Bookster and found via Google direct search, alongside Airbnb, Booking.com and VRBO through Bookster's channel manager. Everything is logged in the Bookster system, which the Clerks find invaluable for audit trails and day-to-day insight.

The availability calendar syncs across every channel and through to their Outlook calendar on their mobiles, so Sarah and Steve can manage bookings remotely and block out dates whenever they have personal commitments or guests of their own to host.

Day to day, the Clerks rely most on the availability calendar and the guest area. Among the features they value most:

• Mobile and email notifications the moment something happens
• A responsive team on hand for queries
• Secure payments through Stripe, with GDPR protection for guest details

The results

Bookings have doubled in Cannister Hall's second year, with many guests now returning to book direct rather than through a channel. Having Bookster in place has changed the Clerks' routine entirely: with everything in one place, they are reassured that all bases are covered day to day, freeing up time to focus on customer service, the part of the business that matters most to them.

What's next?

Sarah and Steve have found a balance that suits their retirement, using Bookster to manage the business around their lifestyle rather than the other way round. With the admin under control, they can keep their focus on the guest experience that has driven their growth so far.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did Sarah and Steve have any hospitality experience before starting?

No. Sarah and Steve came from careers in nursing and bio-sciences and were entirely new to holiday letting when they began researching the idea in 2023.

What almost put them off setting up a holiday let?

The legal and regulatory requirements, marketing choices and general red tape felt overwhelming, and horror stories shared by other owners in Facebook hospitality communities nearly discouraged Sarah from proceeding.

How quickly did they get up and running with Bookster?

With Bookster's support setting up their website domain and booking systems, they took their first booking in July 2024.

Which channels does Cannister Hall advertise on?

Their own Bookster-hosted website found via Google direct search, plus Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo, all managed through Bookster's channel manager.

Would they recommend Bookster to other holiday let owners?

Yes. They describe Bookster as an all-in-one property management system covering marketing, reservations, availability, guest information, policies, messaging and calendar management, backed by an expert team available to help by phone.