LUX April 2017

LUX - April 2017 19 Edinburgh Hideaways: Combining Luxury with Independence Established in 2013, Edinburgh Hideaways gives visitors to Edinburgh the opportunity to enjoy very special holidays by providing the most luxurious, self-catering apartments in the city. These sumptuous properties are ideal for short breaks, holidays or corporate lets. The firm is owned by property, interiors and travelling enthusiast Melanie Kane. She discusses her own background and how she channels her passion for the local area and how this is transferred into every aspect of her work. “Personally, I spent much of my early childhood traveling the world, but having lived in Edinburgh for 25 years it comes as no surprise to me that my parents decided to settle in the beautiful city of Edinburgh. “Through Edinburgh Hideaways my aim is to provide everything that I look for on my own travels. As such, Edinburgh Hideaways offers stylish, but comfortable, luxury 5-star self-catering accommodation but at affordable prices. Currently the company is still in its infancy, and therefore our portfolio is small; we currently offer three luxury properties a one bedroom, two bedroom and a three bedroom, each of which are in the very centre of Edinburgh. Two of these properties are owned by me personally, and the other is owned by another landlord. “Each of the properties has been refurbished to an extremely high standard, using an award winning interior designer to ensure only the best fixtures and fittings. Luxury Scottish toiletries are provided, as well as the highest quality shortbread from the Edinburgh Shortbread House. The bed linen is hotel quality and the apartments provide extra special features such as underfloor heating in the bathroom, and anti-steam heat pads behind the mirrors. We also provide a babysitting service and have secured discounts from a number of restaurants in the local area for guests to enjoy meals out at top quality restaurants, ensuring that they have the very best experience tailored to meet their needs when they stay with us.” Central to the firm’s success is its focus on quality, and it is this that has ensured that so far the Edinburgh Hideaways has only received 5-star reviews from review sites. Melanie outlines the firm’s approach to ensuring that clients always receive top quality amenities and have a fantastic time when they stay in one of her properties. “Whilst each apartment from Edinburgh Hideaways features bespoke interiors, guests can be assured that they will always experience the same warm welcome and high standards of service. In addition, no matter which luxury apartment they choose, they could not hope to find a better location to discover all of the delights of Edinburgh. Historic palaces and castles, luxury or independent shopping, ancient streets and wynds, fascinating museums, artisan food or fine restaurants; all are on our doorstep or can be easily explored on foot. We even offer child-minding services from our own highly experienced baby-sitters so visitors are free to indulge in all Edinburgh has to offer by day or night.” Among the challenges Melanie faces is finding landlords willing to work with her firm; however, her strong business plan, client focused approach and dedication to excellence have already bought one landlord on board, and as such she is optimistic about attracting more partners to collaborate with in the future. “The next step for the business is to take on other landlords’ properties in Edinburgh. The difficulty is convincing landlords to bring in an interior designer to advise them on doing up their property so that it meets the high quality demanded by Edinburgh Hideaways guests. The benefits to landlords are huge though - by spending a bit of money bringing their property up to the quality required, they are adding to the value of their property, and will be attracting higher quality guests, and have almost 100% occupancy on their property if advertised and managed through Edinburgh Hideaways.” Looking ahead, Melanie has a number of exciting plans in the pipeline which she is keen to share with us in her concluding comments. “Over the coming months and years, our portfolio will grow as we continue to seek out stunning but affordable apartments in prime central locations to suit all travellers, from romantic couples to families and groups of friends. We are also looking at expanding into other cities within the UK so that we can bring the Hideaways quality accommodation elsewhere. This presents us with many exciting opportunities which we are looking forward to taking advantage of.” Edinburgh Hideaways offers stylish and individually designed self-catering holiday apartments in the historic capital of Scotland. We invited Owner Melanie Kane to tell us more about the firm and how it works to provide guests with the very best accommodation so that they can enjoy a truly unforgettable Edinburgh experience. Combining Luxury with Independence Company: Edinburgh Hideaways Phone: +44 (0) 7985 795 268 Email: [email protected] Website: edinburghhideaways.com