The Carrollee Hotel was first built in 1904 by the Carroll family, is a grand two-story building with a federation style construction, typical of the regional hotels offering accommodation upstairs. Despite the original hotel being destroyed by fire, it was rebuilt in 1913 and many of those original features still remain today.

The last renovations were carried out in the 1980s and were a traditional layout with separate bar, bistro, office, gaming room and beer garden on the ground floor.

The first exercise was to identify which demographics to focus on. This followed a survey of all the other competition in town and identifying where we wanted to focus our business, which lead to the final design concept, layout and service. We were engaged to design and upgrade the hotel who also offer advice on identifying the market.

Bearing in mind the age of the building and the obvious heritage features of the building, the exterior was designed in sympathy with the charm of the original architecture.

To improve the flow of the building, the office was moved to the first floor, by removing the walls we created a lounge area in its place. The design also included removing the walls between the lounge, public bar and bistro, the gaming was also extended by removing the wall between the existing gaming room and a small function room, which was underutilised. By opening up the venue, the new design created an improved flow throughout. This also has made it more efficient for the staff to service all areas. All the lighting was replaced with low energy LED lighting.

As part of the realigning the hotel service to what we believe the market expected, the design of the bistro included bi-fold doors to the full width of the entrance, creating a café area between the two main bars and banquette seating to the opposite wall. This was highlighted by wide blackbutt flooring and totally redesigned bars and furniture.

As there were doors between each area of the hotel, removing all the doors and walls has made it easier for our staff to provide service to all customers. By opening up the foyer, creating the lounge area and designing a new cashier counter, the gaming room is no longer separated from the rest of the hotel.

The beer garden roof was lined with natural timber finish and insulated, plus the installation of new café curtains has created better comfort for the patrons from the cold in winter and the hot summers. Kingaroy experiences the extremes of temperate.

As the hotel is over 100 years old, with some non-compliant modifications, we discovered many structural and electrical issues which had to be re-engineered, rectified and certified.

They have already seen a dramatic improvement in business. In the first three weeks after re-opening, revenue increased 40-50% in all areas.

Not only do they have the best hotel in Kingaroy, but the best in the area. Congratulations for having the vision of restoring a great hotel.

Design renders from a previous job, of a small Shanghai themed restaurant.

We are excited to be part of the hospitality and gaming industry’s biggest trade event of the year – the Keno Australasian Hospitality and Gaming (AHG) Expo – when it returns to the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre on March 27-28, 2019.

Expo visitors will find more than 200 stands showcasing innovations in entertainment, technology, gaming products, construction, education, furniture and more. On the back of a successful launch in 2018, the AHG Tastes precinct will also grow from 55 to 75+ stands, focussing wholly and solely on food-related industry exhibitors.

As per usual, Expo visitors can extend on their Expo experience by taking in the various additional educational and/or networking opportunities on offer during AHG Expo week. Again in 2019, there’s the National Governance & Management Congress with keynote speeches from some of our industry’s thought leaders, hosted ‘Party Bus’ tours across Brisbane and the Gold Coast, a cocktail party and more.

For more on the 2019 AHG Expo and those key events in Expo week, or to register to attend the expo, visit www.ahgexpo.com – we hope to see you at our stand 101!

This article by Sam Elliott resonates with us, as we’ve spent the past 20 years renovating hotels, bars, restaurants and clubs. While the director, Ken Ross, has been in the hotel industry for 40 years …

Soft renovations (new finishes, carpet, paint, lights, wall treatments, etc.) are an essential part of keeping your venue looking modern, fresh and appealing to your patrons. Whilst major renovations may only be affordable every 5-6 years, venues should be engaging in soft refurbishments in different outlets almost constantly to maintain relevance.

We started life as designers & interior architects, however throughout the years of projects not being finished well, we expanded into having a project management and construction teams. This way we can see our clients vision through to the end. The surprising bonus, is this process is cheaper and quicker than alternative of employing architects, engineers, plumbing, electrical, project mangers and a building company. Employing one company, instead of 6 is also more efficient on our clients time.

The traditional method of renovating using an architect, quantity surveyor, engineer, project manager and builders can be overwhelming, and is usually a drawn out procedure costing loss of trade, profit and distracting you from actually running your business.

When adding up the true cost of an upgrade project, few owners or managers include the downtime for management and staff and what negative result it has on your business by being distracted from what you do best, run your business. There are also the time delays in having to co-ordinate all the above consultants who all work independently, let alone errors and oversights, which will all be at your cost. Due to these delays I have seen crucial deadlines not kept, costing further income and profit to your business.

There is a growing trend towards Design and Construction specialists to deliver a renovation where the business continues to operate during the project as you only have to deal with one company and you have a much better chance of getting the project completed on time and on budget.

Dr Donald Charrett, a barrister practising in building and engineering, wrote in the Australian Construction Law Newsletter about the trend towards design & construct (or ‘turnkey’) project delivery in Australia.

He points out that the advantage, from the principal’s perspective, is that there’s a single contract that delivers the entire project. The contractor carries the risk, not the principal.

The traditional method of project delivery separates design and construction contracts – and the principal carries the risk.

Unfortunately all design and construction companies are not alike as some are merely builders who subcontract the design which does not provide you with the combined experience to provide a truly successful outcome.

Hot Concepts is different, we have the business consultants, designers, architects, project managers, builders and fitout tradesmen on staff plus we work with a loyal team of sub-contractors who not only understand our passion to deliver you the best result, they consistently provide the best pricing and service.

We take care of the project from start to finish ensuring you save time and money without distracting you from running your business.

Master Planning is establishing a clear direction for a business to grow into the future. To develop or improve through a high developed plan that balances and designs all elements. Developing a plan for a business is not only about the bricks and mortar, but how to build the premises to cater for constant growth improvement. In business it is long been accepted that there is no standing still, you are only moving forwards, or backwards.

From a marketing prospective, every business needs a sustainable point of difference to set them apart from their competition with your premises designed to cater for this growth. With combined skills in advertising, marketing, architecture, Graphic and Interior Design and Construction, Hot Concepts is arguably the only company equipped to understand how to combine all the elements necessary to build a successful business.

It starts with understand what the owners want to achieve, establishing what is the market for the business, what are the physical and financial limitations and working with all stake holders to achieve a plan which can be staged to suit these constraints. This process ensures that you have a clear path for the future in the most efficient way.

The Process of Developing a Master Plan

Depending on the role of the master plan, it could have various sections and be developed in several ways. However, some common denominators for a good master plan are explained in this section (see figure).

Feasibility Study

The feasibility study is an objective review of available options for development. It includes findings, analysis, and conclusions from the visioning and scoping exercises for a given site or inner-city area. It indicates whether the chosen site is suitable for the intended function, taking into account the financial, social, and environmental aspects of each proposal. Many comprehensive master plans start with a feasibility study in order to understand the site’s geographic, environmental, and historic context. This process builds on the information collected and analysis developed during the scoping phase. Any background reports that are deemed necessary (that is, hydrology, environment, cultural heritage, transport, and so on) should also be commissioned at this stage to inform the master planning process (Blackmore 1990).

Architectural and interior design renovations are bankable. Like anything in life, the more you put into, the more you’ll get out of it. And builders cannot build without design and drafting.

Thoughts by MD, Ken Ross

Interior Design, Graphic Design & Branding, Full Fitout.

Setting the standard in their marketplace, another great fit-out and renovation of a Persian cafe, with beautiful food. This renovation was not only done to stay up to date and fresh, but to improve functionality for the staff and owners. The project has been a great success for their business.