Accountants assist Vagabonds!

Date: 20 June 2007

NORTH West chartered accountants and business advisors Mitchell Charlesworth, has helped a Chester-based businessman recreate his world famous Vagabond bunkhouse in North Wales.

David Sharrock, the creator and former owner of the internationally known Gite Le Vagabond in Chamonix, Mont Blanc, France, has opened a brand new accommodation venture in the heart of Snowdonia National Park.

The 48-year-old recently returned to the region after 20 years living in France and searched for a suitable location to launch The Vagabond, an independent low-cost bunkhouse.

Mitchell Charlesworth’s specialist in finance projects Greg Harris assisted by Gemma Judson assisted their long-standing client by putting together a business plan and secure funding from Nat West Bank to acquire and refurbish a run down detached Victorian property in Betws-y-Coed to get his new business up and running.

David, who divides his time between Chester and Betws-y-Coed, is also an established photographer with two businesses, DSImages and Ezeeweddingphotos.com, based in Chester.

He said: “I started out working in Chamonix as a photographer but I soon realised that the town was missing a hostel or a bunkhouse – even though Chamonix was attracting 150,000 visitors every week. The town desperately needed somewhere different for people to stay, so I opened Gite Le Vagabond – and it was exactly the same scenario here in Betws–y-Coed, where there was a huge gap in the market for alternative accommodation catering for 16-year-olds to the over 70s.

“The Vagabond is going very well indeed and we are already typically a third to half full during the week and at capacity most weekends. It has exceeded our expectations and we are very pleased.

“Mitchell Charlesworth played a big part getting the finances in place to get the new bunkhouse up and running and give us the opportunity to make it a success.”

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