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The Hotel Inspector's Alex Polizzi leaves bed and breakfast owners squirming with a brutal ultimatum after spotting a major red flag with their business.
In the latest episode of the popular Channel 5 show saw owners of the Gatwick Turret dad Ram, 62, mum Anj, 61, and their son, Rai, 37, ask for help from hotelier Alex, 54.
Ram and Anj got into the hotel trade 22 years ago, and Rai joined the family business 10 years ago and they are keen to let him take over in the future.
The airport hotel is just a mile down the road from Gatwick airport, but there are a lot of other hotels in the area, meaning that there is a lot of competition.
Rooms at the budget bed and breakfast, which is a 10-bed Victorian property, are priced at £50 to £80, and guests have to pay extra if they want breakfast.
But the trio were struggling to make profit.
The Hotel Inspector's Alex Polizzi leaves bed and breakfast owners squirming with a brutal ultimatum after spotting a HUGE red flag with their business
Ram and Anj got into the hotel trade 22 years ago, and Rai (pictured) joined the family business 10 years ago and they are keen to let him take over in the future
In the latest episode of the popular Channel 5 show saw owners of the Gatwick Turret dad Ram, 62, mum Anj, 61, and their son, Rai, 37, ask for help from hotelier Alex, 54
'All the costs, all adds up, money is coming this way, and going another way,' Anj told the camera.
'When you're working so hard, and you check at the end of the month, and you're like... "Really?"'
Alex told viewers: 'The family are having to run the hotel almost single-handedly to keep staffing costs down.
'But despite their hard work, their business is barely breaking even and the family are struggling to pay themselves.
'Anj and Ram have moved out from the hotel and moved down the road to retire, but with limited savings, they are relying on the hotel's non existent profits to see them through their sunset years.'
Before Alex got stuck in, they sat down and talked about their numbers.
Alex asked: 'What kind of percentage profit are you?'
'We don't make huge margins,' Rai said.
In our previous year, we did a turn over of a quarter of a million. But we only made a net profit of £15,000.'
Alex replied: 'I'm sure quite a lot of your profitability goes on commission, doesn't it?'
Rai explained: 'A big chunk of our bookings are through the agency, they charge 15.'
Alex wanted to know what it costed them to put on a room, and Rai told her: 'Each room costs around £4.20 for the linen. The tea, coffee tray, a bottle of water... £3.20.'
'Adding to cost per room are roughly £6 on housekeeping; £9 towards the £350,000 pound mortgage; £24 on utilities and taxes; and £9 commission for those pesky online booking sites,' Alex told viewers.
Alex then told the trio: 'So, the grand total of that, my dears, is £56.'
'Lucky lucky you, all this work and all this headache and you're making a profit of about £4 a night per year - not quite enough for retirement!'
The expert was also keen to know if they pay themselves, to which Rai revealed that they got £1,000 in the bank each month.
A shocked Alex said: 'A £1,000 each a month. Gosh darling, I mean, I’m surprised the government allows it, you’re not even making minimum wage!'
Alex then told them: 'So we either need to make more money or sell it off.'
After a good nights sleep, Alex shared some of her ideas, such as charging more for their on-site parking, getting rid of their expensive water bottles in the room, and transforming some of the rooms with an air-line theme.
At the end of the episode, Rai told viewers: 'We've been making an extra £140 a week in our breakfast room, from the takeaway boxes, also we've gained some great feedback from our premium room.
'We've got some great press; there is a whole article here on how we have updated our rooms and more engaged with our guests.
'The business is now heading in the right direction.'