SPOTLIGHT ON SOUTHERN AYR
Growing up in Coylton, Brian Daly has spent most of his career working in America where he set up a successful insurance brokerage. After selling his business, Brian reconnected with Ayrshire and through a new venture, Southern Ayr, has recently invested in several hospitality venues in the town.
Here Brian explains how a failed round the world trip led to him relocating to America, and why his sights are now firmly set on helping put Ayr back on the map.
I started my first job in insurance straight after leaving Ayr Academy. I worked for General Accident in Ayr’s Beresford Terrace. After five years, I took up a job in Portsmouth before moving to Glasgow. Aged 25, I set off on a year long, round the world trip, with an itinerary spanning 20 countries. My first stop was the USA. Little did I know that when I landed, I would never leave.
I immediately fell in love with the US and all the opportunities available there. So I abandoned my world travels, got a work visa, secured a job offer from the German company Allianz Insurance and happily settled in LA. A few years later, I met my wife ,Tina, who is from Alabama. We moved to Chicago and in 2007 I set up my own insurance brokerage business.
I was fortunate to have success, partly based on being able to take advantage of luck. I sold the business to a large insurance brokerage firm, but stayed on with them for four more years. Then after 38 years in insurance, I decided I’d had enough and wanted an exit.
I was aware I’d turned my back on Scotland. When I left, I wasn’t particularly gracious or grateful. For me, LA had so much more to offer. But when you leave and then come back to a place, you have an appreciation of what you left behind. I wanted to reconnect with what was once home.
Tina has developed a love of Scotland and together we wanted to give something back to my hometown. We set up Southern Ayr and purchased Wellingtons bar – an old haunt of mine in my younger days! – in Wellington Square and Billy Bridges on the Sandgate. This was followed by the Abbotsford Hotel opposite the Old Racecourse and The Brig Bar on Main Street. Although we’re based in Atlanta, developing Southern Ayr is now our full-time job and we’re putting all our efforts into it. Much of our focus has been on the Abbotsford. The other three venues will stay pretty much the same, but we’ve been remodelling the hotel. Tina’s vision was to transform the Abbotsford into a unique Scottish venue with fully modern facilities, while preserving its original charm, and she’s put her heart and soul into creating something really special.
We were determined to use local tradespeople and suppliers for all the renovations. Plumbers, electricians, tilers, painters, soft furnishings… every single pound has been spent locally in Ayr or Ayrshire, unless something has been unavailable. The irony is the one item we had to order from abroad was a Robert Burns door knocker! Each of the 14 bedrooms has been individually designed around a Scottish theme, ranging from The Thistle Room and The Scotty Dog Room to ones celebrating Ayrshire’s fabulous golfing heritage. With all bedrooms now available for reservations, we’re currently working on a new Bridal Suite and Grooms Suite, before moving onto downstairs. But locals can rest assured the sacred Copper Bar will remain pretty much unchanged, with just a small bit of updating to make it more practical and functional.
We want to play our part in helping to make Ayr a great place to live and visit once again. There seems to have been a lot of ‘Ayr bashing’ in recent years. The reality is, however, that Ayr is a fantastic town with so much potential to reclaim some of its former glory days. But that will require inward investment. I am passionate about Ayr becoming a destination again and Tina shares this with me.
Through our four venues, we want to help contribute to the local economy. Along with the likes of aerospace and engineering, hospitality and tourism is an important industry for Ayr and we want to add to that offering. We want to be part of a thriving hospitality sector, with plenty of choice for residents to go out locally and not travel to the likes of Glasgow. We also hope to bring more visitors to Ayr, some of whom might choose to stay for a few days, and help keep money in the local economy. It feels great to be part of those efforts, it’s nice to be on the team.
