A Weston-run company which organises corporate events, festivals and concerts all over the world has turned its attention closer to home, helping vulnerable people in the town.
ConciergeUK, owned by Weston man Wayne Hadley, is assisting those self-isolating by collecting prescriptions and groceries, as well as NHS staff by collecting their groceries ‘to keep up their energy levels whilst they are assisting the sick’.
The business, based in Boulevard, usually provides high-end hospitality to the sporting world and individuals, including the Cheltenham Festival, Farnborough International Airshow, European Golf Tour and Rugby 6 Nations, as well as local events on the Grand Pier, Brean Country Club and the Winter Gardens.
But when the coronavirus crisis hit, grinding the hospitality and events industry to a halt, Wayne decided to put his team to work in the community instead. They have been kept busy delivering prescriptions and groceries to the housebound, enlisted via word of mouth and social media and provided free-of-charge to grateful recipients.
The news soon came to the attention of bosses at Tesco, in Station Road, who tasked Wayne to form a Social Distancing Team to promote awareness of the two-metre rule in and outside the store.
Wayne said: “We came up with a slogan, Don’t Be A Space Invader, and this has been very popular with the customers. We have managed to limit the wait in queues outside the store, with the right number inside to allow the customers to shop freely, while keeping two metres apart.”
Store manager Ian McNally said: “Across the UK Tesco has created 35,000 more jobs and we’ve had some great people join our teams.
“Among those are ConciergeUK as their experience in running events and looking after VIPs meant we knew who to turn to when it came to helping our customers to queue safely.”
The team has had support from The Grand Pier and Weston Support Services, who provided sanitisers and disposable gloves.
Wayne has also enlisted cricketers Peter Trego, Marcus Trescothick and Roelof van der Merwe, plus Bristol City manager Lee Johnson and international footballers Ray Parlour and Keith Gilliespie to promote the service.
The ConciergeUK team has received positive feedback from those who have benefitted from their time and encourage others in need to contact them by emailing wayne.hadley@conciergeuk.co
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