Buriton pub turns into boutique hotel with gastro menu

The Village Inn in Buriton, near Petersfield, has opened its doors after the new owners secured a six-figure finance package from HSBC to buy the empty premises.

Rachel Jameson and Chris Cooper, who trade as Jameson Cooper Ltd, have completely revived the former pub which has been empty since April last year.

They have created 12 new jobs for the local economy in the process after agreeing a £516,000 commercial mortgage with HSBC.

The renovation turned the premises into a 14-bedroom boutique hotel with gastro pub.

Chris said: ‘HSBC has been incredibly supportive of this venture and was quick to put the funding we needed in place to purchase the premises.

‘Our relationship manager, Robert Egerton, has shown a keen interest and understanding of the business.

‘Now that we’ve officially opened, we are able to offer customers a greater range of services and facilities that won’t have been available at The Village Inn before.’

The boutique hotel stocks a variety of wines from the area, beers and spirits and is turning to local food suppliers to provide ingredients for the contemporary, seasonal menus on offer.

The new Gin Shed also features 25 different types of gin, all personally chosen by Rachel and Chris.