Northern Ireland’s largest hospitality group honours over 60 staff with over a decade of service

Founded over 45 years ago, Beannchor’s diverse portfolio includes The Merchant Hotel and Bullitt, Belfast venues, The National, The Dirty Onion, The Second Fiddle, and Ulster Sports Club, 10 Little Wing Pizzerias, as well as Jennie Watts in Bangor, and The Hillside in Hillsborough.

The group’s next project will see Beannchor venture south, with planning under way for the development of a new Bullitt hotel and a range of new hospitality venues in Dublin.

In 2021, Beannchor was named as one of Ireland’s Best Managed Companies by Deloitte. The group, which employs over 450 people, across its estate of popular hotels, restaurants and bars, celebrated its long-serving staff that have been with the business for more than a decade at a special event in The Merchant Hotel, Belfast recently.

Honouring the 60 plus people that have served 10 years, over a quarter of whom have been with the company between 15-20 years, managing director Bill Wolsey said Beannchor’s trademark hospitality is built by its people.

He said: “This business is nothing without its people. The passion, enthusiasm and commitment of our people is responsible for creating places and memories that matter to the people of Northern Ireland, and that is something of which we should all be exceptionally proud.

“There is no barrier to entry in this industry; I am an example of that in practice, but there are so many more people in our business that can tell a similar story. That we have retained the exceptional talent that we are celebrating 10, 15, even 25 years on, is testament to the lifelong careers that hospitality offers today.

“Not everyone stays and that’s ok. We’re proud that this business has been the launchpad to help talented people to go on and do their own thing. We’re proud to say that people who started here are now at the helm of top venues in New York, London and all around the world, and we helped them on their way.”

Gillian Adams began her career with Beannchor in 1997 in her native Bangor, as the office manager for Café Ceol & the Boom Boom Room, before becoming PA to managing director, Bill Wolsey, a role she still holds today. Over the last 26 years, she’s had a front row seat and an important role in supporting the growth and development of the group’s varied hospitality portfolio. But there’s one venue that stands out in particular, as she explains.

“Moving to The Merchant Hotel in 2007, shortly after it opened in 2006, stands out as a highlight,” explained Gillian. “The Merchant was – and still is – such a transformative project and means so much, not just to the staff but the people of Belfast. It signalled a real turning point for Belfast and Northern Ireland and was symbolic of the fact that we were moving forward and there were good times ahead.”

The recipient of a prestigious Hospitality Hero award in 2022, over the last two plus decades, Gillian has played a key role in supporting MD Bill Wolsey and the group’s directors to deliver an impressive community outreach programme, facilitating visits, talks and guest lectures at universities, schools, community groups, and prisons, and supporting hundreds of charity fundraising events and initiatives.

“This community outreach and charitable endeavours are central to how we do business at Beannchor,” continued Gillian. “Giving back and playing a positive role in our local communities, as well as inspiring people to consider careers in hospitality are a big focus for Bill and the entire Beannchor senior team, and that ethos is encouraged and filters down throughout the business.”

Tim Herron, originally from Bangor, now based in Belfast, also began his career in Café Ceol and the Boom Boom Room, as a bar back in 1998, and has worked for Beannchor, in various roles, ever since. A well-timed discussion when he was getting ready to leave school essentially decided the trajectory of his career.

“As I finished school, I could have gone to university, but I asked Bill [Wolsey] for advice; I asked would he prefer someone with qualifications, or someone with experience. He said experience, so I went full time and became a supervisor shortly after,” stated Tim.

Over the next two decades, Tim progressed into other venues within the group, landing his first management role as assistant manager of The Cocktail Bar in The Merchant, before moving into other roles within the hotel. In 2010, he became general manager of The Cloth Ear. He then played a leading role in the opening of venues such as Cuckoo on the Lisburn Road, followed by The Dirty Onion/Yardbird in 2013, which grew to become one of the group’s busiest venues.

The continued growth of the group’s portfolio led to a series of career progression opportunities. As operations manager, in recent years, Tim has overseen and ensured the smooth running of multiple venues including Ulster Sports Club, The Second Fiddle, Jenny Watts and the latest project, Out of Office brewery and taproom.

“Professionally, highlights have been opening successful venues and building them up from scratch - The Dirty Onion and Ulster Sports Club in particular,” added Tim. “Personally, it’s been rewarding working with staff at the start of their career and helping them develop and progress too.

“I like that we are always looking to improve, innovate and challenge ourselves. That and the people who work with us, a lot of whom have worked for us for a long time. We’ve made many good friends along the way.”

Jamie Mendez began his career with Beannchor in those early days of Café Ceol/ the Boom Boom Room, going fulltime when he left school in 2002, when he worked as a barman in the evenings, whilst completing a business management diploma in Bangor’s South Eastern Regional College.

As the company grew, opportunities presented themselves to advance his career, beginning with junior management roles in Café Ceol, Ollies nightclub and then The Cloth Ear, before progressing on to a bar manager role at The Salty Dog hotel and Bistro in Bangor, before moving on to Little Wing where he worked his way up from GM to operations manager, a position he has held for the past eight years

Over the last 21 years with the company, Jamie says there have been many highlights: “I have had the opportunity to work with some fantastic people and am proud to have helped the development of a number of colleagues to management roles within Little Wing Pizzeria. I’ve enjoyed being part of the growth of the business and the many successes and awards we have achieved over the years.

“As a brand and a business, we do so much more than serve pizza – and great pizza at that! We are firmly embedded into the communities in which each of our 10 Pizzerias are located, and I’m proud to have played a part in supporting hundreds of charity and community initiatives over the years. Making sure we have a positive impact in our local communities is a priority for Little Wing. Hearing first-hand from local charities and community groups that have benefitted from our Little Wing bursary schemes and countless other fundraising initiatives over the years, has driven us to continue to grow and do more that will help local people thrive.”