The Bristol business behind one of the city’s top golf courses and the ‘big wheel’ in Millennium Square has signed up waste management firm Grundon as its new refuse partner.
Golf & Leisure Group said bringing in Grundon was essential to improve its waste collection activities as its visitor numbers increase.
Grundon, which has opened a depot in St Philips and introduced a £300,000 state-of-the-art electric collection vehicle since launching in Bristol in 2020, has already doubled waste collections for Golf & Leisure from fortnightly to weekly since its appointment.
As well as the Bristol Golf Centre in Hambrook, which it acquired in 2020, and the Millennium Square wheel, it also operates two other observation wheels, a permanent adventure golf site in Weston-super-Mare and a number of temporary food and drink sites.
The business, which is owned by James and Candice Rogers, has invested heavily in Bristol Golf Centre since buying it from former golf professional Nicky Lumb and his wife Kathryn, including more than £2m spent on a new café, upgraded bays and a radar ball tracking system on the driving range.
The site is also home to a popular golf store and bike shop, which together with the other facilities, are producing increasing amounts of food, cardboard, recyclable glass and general waste as footfall grows.
In total, the Hambrook site produces more than 700 kilograms of waste in an average month.
Bristol Golf Centre general manager Darren Fairchild , pictured, right, with Grundon sales manager Nick Malvern, said: “Our visitor numbers are rising consistently and it’s important to us that we maintain our reputation through good customer experience.
“Food hygiene ratings quickly disappear if things aren’t under control, and reputation does too.
“So we wanted to make sure we were offering the best for our customers within the financial constraints of our business.”
He said the company decided it was vital to have a waste management partner that matched the quality of service it provided.
“It’s difficult to run a business when the bins aren’t up to scratch,” he added.
“Since we’ve been with Grundon we’ve already been impressed by their flexibility and the comprehensiveness of what they offer.
“Our collection frequency has grown as we’ve grown but we’re still saving money compared to our previous contractor.
“As a business with a million things to do every day, you don’t want to be spending time chasing waste contractors. Grundon’s communication has been excellent, which is key.”
Grundon sales manager in Bristol, Nick Malvern, said: “It’s good to be working with companies that share our values of quality and customer service.
“We’ve already struck up a responsive relationship with Darren and we look forward to continuing our work as the company grows further.”
Berkshire-headquartered Grundon, which was founded in 1929, works with customers across the South of England to provide a total waste management service for the reduction, reuse, recycling, recovering and disposal of waste.
It manages waste streams at a catalogue of major events and sporting occasions, including Royal Ascot and the British Grand Prix, as well as sporting clubs such as Forest Green Rovers and Gloucestershire Cricket Club.
