If you’d told me a few years ago that I’d be running a multi-location glamping brand turning over millions, I probably wouldn’t have believed you.
Like many founders, my journey didn’t start with a polished business plan or investors waiting in the wings. It started with a simple idea and a lot of graft.
The Secret Garden Glamping began during lockdown. Like many people, I suddenly had time to think about what I really wanted to build.
I’d always loved creating things, building spaces and thinking about how people experience places. The idea of combining nature with luxury hospitality kept coming back to me.
The first unit I built was called The Hideout. It was never meant to be a business. It was something I built for my children, a space where we could escape into the garden, sit around a fire, watch films outside and slow down.
But when it went viral from a news story and people started messaging me asking if they could book it for a holiday, my first thought was: why would anybody want to do that? I sat and thought about it for a while and asked myself a simple question: “Why not list it online?” So I did.
Very quickly, I realised something interesting. People weren’t just booking somewhere to stay. They were booking the experience.
The outdoor cinema. The hot tub under the stars. The feeling of having your own private woodland retreat. That’s when I realised this could become something much bigger.
Instead of copying other glamping sites, I focused on doing things differently.
Every unit we built had its own personality and features you wouldn’t normally expect in the woods, such as outdoor cinemas, bars, saunas, cold plunge pools and pool tables.
The goal wasn’t just accommodation. It was creating somewhere people felt excited to arrive.
Growth happened faster than I expected.
Before appearing on Dragons’ Den, the business was turning over around £450,000 from a single site.
After the episode aired, things accelerated dramatically. Within two weeks, we had secured an additional £500,000 in bookings and the visibility completely changed the trajectory of the business.
Today, The Secret Garden Glamping has grown into a multi-site brand across the UK and Ireland, with several more locations in development and plans for international expansion.
On track for £2m
Last year, we turned over £1.26m, and this year we are on track to approach £2m.
But hitting the first million wasn’t really about revenue. It was about proving the concept. It proved that people wanted something different from traditional hospitality.
They wanted privacy, memorable experiences and something that felt special rather than standard.
Along the way, there have been plenty of challenges. Scaling a hospitality business means managing staff, operations, planning, regulation and constant reinvestment into the guest experience.
Constantly evolving
What works with one unit doesn’t always work with 10. But one thing I’ve learned as a founder is that growth comes from constantly evolving.
We’ve introduced things like glamping room service, concierge-style guest services and themed experiences such as the Lost Lagoon tiki bar.
The aim is to blur the lines between boutique hotel service and outdoor accommodation. Because at the end of the day, luxury isn’t about a building. It’s about how people feel when they stay.
Looking ahead, the vision is simple: to build The Secret Garden into a global hospitality brand, while keeping the creativity and storytelling that made it special in the first place.
And it all started with one idea in the woods.