Boathouse: Owners 'took a risk' and opened at a 'bad time'

But they are staying hopeful for their other establishment, the Old Mill in Harnham.

Following the closure of the Boathouse restaurant on Monday, February 27, the Harris family have spoken out about what went wrong at the Boathouse. 

The River Park Project was previously partly blamed for the gradual decline of their business.

Read more: ​Salisbury Boathouse closes blaming costs and footfall

Marketing director Nathalie Harris told the Journal that the family "weren't aware of how significant the works would be" and delays negatively impacted footfall.

Nathalie said: "We worked closely with the project managers of the works and of course, delays can’t be helped.

"But it started to have a negative impact on the footfall around the Boathouse which meant we weren’t seeing the customers we forecasted and projected.

"There was no one walking by and the car park situation makes it really difficult for people to find us and park their cars conveniently to come and see us."

See more: 'I Want To Live' statue: Police investigating vandalism

Despite the Boathouse's failure, Nathalie said the family "don't have any regrets" in opening it.

"If we'd have known and could've guaranteed how long the project would've taken then we may have delayed opening. We took a risk and it didn't work out unfortunately," she added.

Maria, Steven and Nathalie Harris. (Image: Boathouse)

The cost of living crisis alongside the recent spate of cold and rainy weather created a "bad time" for bringing in customers.

Nathalie explained that she has noticed people like to know exactly what they're getting when choosing where to spend their money, especially when times are tough.

She said: "With the Boathouse being a fairly new establishment I think people were choosing to spend their money in places they had already eaten instead of taking a chance."

Lessons have been learned and the "market research" of the Boathouse will carry over to the upcoming relaunch of the Old Mill, which Nathalie is "very confident" will be a success.

The Harris family also run the Stag Hotel in Lyndhurst and Nathalie said the Old Mill will be more in line with what they're used to, with the Boathouse being a "wild card".

The Boathouse. (Image: Spencer Mulholland)

"We've used our experience at the Boathouse as market research and we're implementing a lot of the most popular things for the menu at the Mill," she added.

Staff working at the Boathouse were offered jobs at the Old Mill.

A spokesperson for the Environment Agency, which is responsible for the River Park Project, said: "Our project team has spent time engaging the owners and addressing their concerns.

"The scope and impact of the scheme was known at the time the lease was sought and the duration of construction has not significantly changed, with completion expected in the spring next year."