A Worcestershire company, which provides a bespoke evaluation service for the luxury hospitality and leisure industry, is taking its expertise to the southern hemisphere – with help from UK Trade & Investment.

Established by four partners in 1996, The Mystery Partnership uses mystery guests to monitor every aspect of customer service and the guest’s experience in hotels, from reservation to check out, and benchmark their service against similar hotel service levels internationally.

It also evaluates every measure of performance within the industry, especially sales effectiveness and personalisation of service.

Based in Hanley Swan, the company comprises four partners and about 11 report writers, and has a pool of about 1,400 mystery guests around the world.

Managing partner Graham Hardiman has more than 20 years’ experience managing hotels in Barbados, Bournemouth, Australia and the USA. He used a mystery guest system when he started as general manager of a Barbados hotel, and realised the business potential.

The Mystery Partnership now operates programmes throughout the UK, Europe, the USA and the Caribbean.

It turned to UK Trade & Investment for help in setting up an operation in South Africa, which was launched this month by the British High Commissioner to South Africa, Rt Hon Paul Boateng.

Company partner Colette Herlihy, who is leading the new business in South Africa, said: “Our international trade adviser, Linda Smith, has been a real star. She has provided practical help and made the whole process of accessing support very easy.

“Through UK Trade & Investment’s links with the British High Commission in Cape Town, she arranged for the commercial team to hold a reception at the High Commissioner’s residence for the launch, and he said he would like to host it.

“For a small company such as ours, this was extraordinary service. As well as meeting the High Commissioner, the reception was an invaluable opportunity for us to make face to face contact with about 50 major players in the hotel industry in southern Africa.

“Following the event, we have already signed up a group of seven hotels and had 14 other appointments to follow up before our return to the UK. We have also had enquiries from a number of large groups, including one that has 35 hotels across South Africa, Namibia, Tanzania and Kenya.

“There is massive potential in this market – wehave a target of achieving £200,000 sales in South Africa this year and £280,000 next year.

“Graham and I went out to Cape Town for the launch with support from UK Trade & Investment’s Passport scheme, and we were also helped by commercial teams in Durban and Cape Town, who provided us with excellent market information and leads.”   

At the launch, the British High Commissioner to South Africa, Rt Hon Paul Boateng, said: “I am delighted to welcome The Mystery Partnership to South Africa. This new business demonstrates the strong links between the UK and South Africa, and provides exactly the type of service that all hotels could benefit from.”

The Mystery Partnership joined UK Trade & Investment’s flagship Passport initiative, which gives novice exporters the training, planning and support they need to succeed overseas, in April 2006.

UK Trade & Investment’s international trade manager Linda Smith, based at Herefordshire and Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce, said: “This is an unusual service-based business with a track record in the luxury hotel market. Passport has been used creatively to launch the company into South Africa, which I believe will bring real results.”  

For more information about how UK Trade & Investment can help your business expand into new markets abroad, contact the international trade team at Herefordshire and Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce on Tel: 0845 641 1613.

Picture captions:

“The Mystery Partnership 1”: From left, Graham Hardiman, managing partner of The Mystery Partnership, Linda Johnson-Keka and Doreen Hendricks from Villa Via Hotel in Cape Town, and Rt Hon Paul Boateng, the British High Commissioner to South Africa.

For more details about The Mystery Partnership, contact the company on 0870 9007073, or visit the website www.the-mystery-partnership.co.uk