Bubbles, snacks and fun; it is a busy day for entrepreneur Jos Wijland. After forty years, he called it quits at De Havixhorst castle hotel in De Schiphorst near De Wijk. Today Wijland passes the baton to his son and daughter-in-law.
With Chris Wijland, a new generation of the family takes the helm at the former havezate. He will run the company with his girlfriend Fleur Holterman. “I’ve nagged my father for years,” laughs Chris, who will be doing business in a very special place for him. “This is my house. I was born here, grew up here and have worked here since I was young. I was allowed to help out a little when I was 14.”
And how is that for Holterman, the new castellan lady? “I worked here when Chris temporarily worked elsewhere. When he came back, the spark flew. It’s super exciting to embark on this adventure!”
For forty years it was not just rose scent and moonshine for father Jos, as, for example, in recent corona years. De Havixhorst has also had difficult times. “Continuing, continuity is the most difficult”, says father Jos. “Doing something extremely well temporarily is easy. Keeping up with that is difficult. You have to meet expectations every day.”
According to Chris, that is also the challenge for the coming years. The hotel, employer of 45 people, is feeling the pressure on the tight labor market. “That’s tough. We have to make sure we have the best people around us. We have a very good team and we want to cherish that.”
A lot is involved in the takeover, but Wijland senior mainly hopes that the new couple will choose their own path. “It is their primary task to change something. If they imitate that is the beginning of the end. You have to walk your own way”, says Jos, who is proud of what he has achieved. “When we came here, it was not charming and sweet. We renovated a lot and created a beautiful combination. We combine the nature of the Reestdal, the canal, this building with gastronomy. And we added culture with the sculpture park. in the early years no one walked through the woods. That has increased enormously now.”
Chris and Fleur mainly want to work on the small things, such as renovating the rooms and making work easier for the staff. De Havixhorst’s recipe remains the same. Chris: “It is a concept that has been running very well for forty years. We especially want to keep it that way. It is stupid to completely change course.”
For Jos, the adventure ends in the hospitality industry. “It’s not that I just sit in the garden, but I’m not going to do anything in the catering industry anymore. That is not the intention.”