Bottling success: Devonia water is now available at luxurious Bovey Castle Hotel 

Our sustainable Devon spring water is now available at Bovey Castle hotel and will be served in hotel bedrooms, the restaurants and bar, as well as in conference rooms for events.

Luxury five-star hotel Bovey Castle in Dartmoor National Park is now stocking sustainable Devonia water.

Set in 275 acres of countryside, Bovey Castle – which is the flagship of the Eden Hotel Collection – has 60 bedrooms, 22 lodges, an 18-hole championship golf course, tennis courts and an Elan Spa, complete with art deco swimming pool, jacuzzi, sauna, steam room, treatment rooms and a dedicated Gentlemen’s Quarter.

The hotel’s Great Western restaurant, which holds 3 AA Rosettes for its culinary excellence‎, is overseen by talented head chef Mark Budd, who also manages the hotel’s casual dining option, Smith’s Brasserie.‎ Devonia water is now available across the extensive site for guests to enjoy.

Lorenzo Fassio, Bovey Castle’s Deputy General Manager, said, “Bovey Castle, and the entire Eden Hotel Collection, are taking great strides forward in sustainability. We understand the importance for businesses to be more environmentally responsible. We already ensure we source local produce and recycle wherever possible. Stocking Devonia Water allows us to take our efforts another step further and introduce ‘reuse’, and we’re delighted to be able to work with Neil on this.”

Our very own Neil Graham, owner of Devonia Water said, “We are delighted to be working with the stunning Bovey Castle to fulfil all their bottled water needs. It’s great to see yet another Devon business working to improve its sustainability. There’s never been a more important time to be considerate and mindful of the environment and to reduce carbon emissions wherever possible. We hope the guests love our local spring water.

Sustainable Devonia water on the bar at Bovey Castle [Steven Haywood Photography]

Devonia is the only spring water company in the south of England with a business model centred around continuously reusing glass bottles. Over the 18 years the company has been up and running, it has saved a staggering 163 tonnes of glass from going to landfill, by collecting and reusing its water bottles from hotels, pubs, cafes, restaurants, special events and private customers across Devon.

Since the start of 2022, Devonia has sold 336,000 bottles of water and reused an impressive 285,000, which is a re-use rate of 90%. Washing and refilling the bottles uses just 6% of the energy required to recycle glass, reducing CO2 by 94%. And of course, it doesn’t generate any plastic pollution that would ultimately go into the world’s oceans.

Devonia’s water is bottled at source from a spring that bubbles up on the edge of a meadow near the villages of Beeson and Beesands, less than a mile from the sea. Available in both still and sparkling and in 330ml or 750ml bottles, the water has a natural soft taste that’s proven to be incredibly popular with customers.

As well as being a sustainable business, Devonia supports the Dartmoor Rescue Group’s Ashburton team, of which Neil Graham has been a full member for years. By purchasing and enjoying Devonia water, customers are also supporting the incredible work of the mountain rescue team.

This year, Devonia Water is also sponsoring the South West Coast Path Association Trailblazer Walk during its 50th anniversary year. Neil Graham has a deep-rooted passion and commitment to sustainability and the environment and a love for the coast path. Plus, Devonia’s bottling plant is in very close proximity to the Beesands stretch of the path. Neil said, “The coastal path has been impacted hugely over the years by climate change and it is one of the many reasons why I choose to run my business sustainably.

Devonia is proud to be supporting the South West Coast Path Association’s Trailblazer Walk during its 50th anniversary year

South Devon-based water company, Devonia Water has been supplying its bottled still and sparkling spring water to a wide array of establishments across Devon for over 18 years. Sourced from a spring that bubbles up on the edge of a meadow near the villages of Beeson and Beesands, Devonia Water is bottled less than a mile from the sea and approximately three miles from Start Point.

Leading the operation is Neil Graham, who has a passion for doing things differently and challenging the status quo. In this blog, Neil talks about Devonia and his love for the South West Coast Path.

Why Devonia loves the South West Coast Path?

When the opportunity to support the South West Coast Path Association’s Trailblazer Walk (celebrating its 50th anniversary) came about, I jumped at the opportunity for a few reasons. The first being that our bottling plant is in very close proximity to the Beesands stretch of the path, the second is my personal love for the coast path – I walk it regularly with my partner, Catherine, and dog, Peppa. We’re very much looking forward to walking the Beesands leg of the Trailblazer Walk in further support of the celebrations. 

The third reason being my passion for sustainability and the environment. The coastal path has been impacted hugely over the years by climate change and it is one of the many reasons why I choose to run my business sustainably.

Why Devonia reuses bottles instead of recycling them?

Since the start of last year, we have sold 336,000 bottles of water and reused an impressive 285,000, leading to a re-use rate of 90%. Washing and refilling the bottles uses just 6% of the energy required to recycle glass, reducing CO2 by 94%. And of course, we do not generate any plastic pollution that would ultimately go into the world’s oceans.

During our 18 years in business, we have saved 163 tons of glass from going to landfill, by collecting and reusing over 2,500,000 of our bottles from our customers. 

Sustainability is at the centre of everything we do and, believe it or not, we are the only spring water company in the south of England with a business model focused on reusing glass bottles again and again.

Where can you enjoy Devonia? 

Devonia’s still and sparkling water can be enjoyed in many of Devon’s small and large hotels and bed and breakfasts. You can enjoy alongside your meals at various restaurants and cafés, as well as weddings and private event venues.

To stay up-to-date, follow DevoniaWaterCompany on Instagram, like and follow Devonia Water on Facebook and follow Devonia Water on LinkedIn.

Author – Neil Graham, Owner of Devonia Water

South Devon Southside Cocktail

Our delicious Southside Cocktail was featured in the February issue of Devon Life magazine. Have you tried it yet? It’s a little Devonshire twist on a Rum Southside cocktail crafted using Devon Rum Co’s Spiced Rum and our sparkling spring water.

Ingredients – serves 6

  • 12 large mint leaves, plus 4 large sprigs
  • 1 lime, cut into 8 wedges
  • 120ml freshly squeezed lime juice (approx. 4 limes)
  • 120ml simple syrup (1:1 water and sugar)
  • 240ml Devon Rum Co spiced rum
  • 330ml Devonia sparkling water
  • 1/8tsp salt
  • Large handful of ice, plus more for serving

Method

  1. Add the mint leaves and 2 lime wedges into a pitcher and muddle them (if you don’t have a muddler, a long-handled wooden spoon will do).
  2. Add the lime juice, simple syrup, rum and ice and stir 40 times (exactly, we’re counting!) with a long-handled cocktail spoon (or your trusty wooden spoon).
  3. Add the sparkling water and salt and stir well.
  4. For each drink, fill a tumbler half full with ice, add a mint sprig and a wedge of lime, and pour your cocktail.
  5. Stir gently and serve ice cold.

Photo credit: Steven Haywood / Location: Harbour Beach Club, South Sands

Becoming a Devonia Customer

Almost every day we meet with a potential new customer to discuss the possibility of their venue stocking Devonia Water. One of the first questions we are asked is – how does it work? 

Well, there’s not much to it…

  1. We set up your account
  2. You place your order via our online form or by email, phone or text
  3. We deliver our bottled water in stackable crates
  4. You serve Devonia to your customers and then place the empties back into the crates
  5. You put the crates of empties back in the drop-off point ready for collection
  6. We replace the empties with your next order. 

It really is that simple. 

Here are some of the other questions we are frequently asked by potential customers:

Why choose Devonia Water? 

We are the only spring water company in the south of England with a business model focused on reusing glass bottles again and again. Washing and refilling the bottles uses just 6% of the energy required to recycle glass, reducing CO2 by 94%. And of course, there’s no plastic pollution going into the world’s oceans. To find out more about why we reuse our bottles visit Recycling & Reusing page. 

What size bottles do you offer? 

We offer both still and sparkling water in 330ml or 750ml bottles. The 330ml bottles come in crates of 20 bottles and the 750ml bottles in crates of 12. To find out more about our water visit Our Water page. 

Who can you cater for? 

We cater for hospitality businesses of all sizes including hotels, pubs, cafés, restaurants, weddings and events, and private houses across Devon. We can also provide our water to local distilleries. 

How and when do I place my order? 

Every Monday, you will receive a reminder email with a link to our online order form. You can either use the online order form or text, call or email us to place your order. 

Is there a minimum order requirement? 

Yes, 2 crates. 

Which day do you deliver to our area? 

On Wednesdays, we deliver to Dartmouth, Totnes, Torquay and Shaldon (order must be placed by 12.00 on Tuesday).  On Thursdays, we deliver to Exeter, Exmouth, Sidmouth, Tiverton, Teignmouth and South Dartmoor (order must be placed by 12.00 on Wednesday).  And, on Fridays, we deliver to Salcombe, Modbury, Plymouth, Tavistock, Okehampton and Chagford (order must be placed by 12.00 on Thursday).

How is the water delivered and how do I stop the bottles from going into recycling? 

The bottles will be placed at your allocated delivery drop-off point. They will be delivered in sturdy crates which can stack vertically in your store cupboard.  Once the bottles have been used, place them back in the crates. 

How do I make a payment? 

Payment comes after delivery, by BACS and before the 15th of the following month. Monthly accounts are available. We can accept cash, if necessary.

Interested in stocking Devonia Water in your venue or at your event? 

Please contact Neil Graham via his mobile (07970 414875) or email (devoniawater@gmail.com) to arrange an in-person meeting. 

In the meantime, please see below our breakdown of the onboarding process and delivery/returns information. 


Here are the benefits of buying from Devonia:

  • The bottles come in sturdy crates which can stack vertically so they only take up a small amount of space.
  • When the bottles have been used just put them back in the crate.
  • Devonia will collect all your empty bottles and crates when we next deliver.
  • Payment after delivery by BACS. Monthly accounts are available.
  • Deliveries Tuesday through to Friday depending on where you are and your requirements.
  • Large hotels and private houses catered for.
  • Low co2 production compared to usual bottles.
  • Low co2 mileage as all local.
  • Ad-Hoc deliveries if required or an order is missed.
  • Weekly contact to ensure no orders are missed, especially for customers who order every week.
  • If an order appears unusual Devonia will check with the customer directly.
  • Weddings – Sale and return. 

Setting up your account

In order to set up your account, we will require the following:

  • Contact name
  • Business name
  • Address
  • Email address for accounts
  • Email address for weekly email

Placing an order

OptionDetail
Order from the website 
(you will receive a link every Monday)
https://devoniawater.co.uk/order-form-2022/
Text07970414875
Phone07970414875
Emaildevoniawater@gmail.com
Any issues, please contactNeil Graham

Payment – by the 15th of the following month

Sort Code40 26 10
Account71492268
BACS, details on every invoice and statementCash accepted if necessary

Deliveries & Returns

Delivery dayAreas
Wednesday
(order by 12:00 on Tuesday)
Dartmouth
Totnes
Torquay
Shaldon
Thursday
(order by 12:00 on Wednesday)
Exeter
Exmouth
Sidmouth
Tiverton
Teignmouth
South Dartmoor
Friday
(order by 12.00 on Thursday)
Salcombe
Modbury
Plymouth
Tavistock
Okehampton
Chagford
How to store bottles– Our bottled water must be stored OUT of SUNLIGHT and in a cool place
– Please leave bottles vertical and upwards in the crate
Other points to remember– Minimum order of 2 crates
– Empties are collected at the time of delivery of the following order
– No deposit is charged on bottles, however, if we don’t get any bottles back for a few months we will be in touch to -discuss ways to improve your return rates.

Plans to expand after our successful summer

Steven Haywood Photography

We are thrilled to share that after a successful summer we are planning an exciting expansion in 2023.

Sustainability is at the centre of everything we do and believe it or not, we are the only spring water company in the south of England with a business model focused on reusing glass bottles again and again.

So far this year, we have sold 250,000 bottles of water and reused an impressive 201,000. Washing and refilling the bottles uses just 6% of the energy required to recycle glass, reducing CO2 by 94%. And of course, we do not generate any plastic pollution that would ultimately go into the world’s oceans.

Over our 18 years in business, Devonia has saved 144,995kg of glass from going to landfill, by collecting and reusing our bottles from hotels, pubs, cafes, restaurants, special events and private customers across Devon.

More and more hospitality businesses are keen to have green credentials and they can tick a lot of boxes by purchasing still and sparkling spring water in our branded glass bottles, which are then collected by us to be washed and reused. Our highly sustainable business model is simple and more and more customers are buying into it.

Infographic designed by Upshot Design

After adding 35 new customers to our books this summer – including 15 wedding and events venues – we are on track to double our area of operations in 2023. To allow for this, we would like to move to a larger facility for more organic growth and are looking to hire new staff and purchase new vans and machinery.

Our water is bottled at source from a spring that bubbles up on the edge of a meadow near the villages of Beeson and Beesands. With a natural soft taste, both still and sparkling products are available in 330ml or 750ml bottles.

To stay up-to-date, follow DevoniaWaterCompany on Instagram, like and follow Devonia Water on Facebook and follow Devonia Water on LinkedIn.

To find out more or to enquire about stocking Devonia Water please contact devoniawater@gmail.com.

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A Day in the life of Neil

Amid a heatwave, Neil invited journalist, Martin Hesp, to join him for a day and so they spent one of the hottest days of the year delivering Devonia Spring Water around South Devon.

In case you missed it, here’s Martin’s article from the Western Morning News:

What is one of the most useful jobs you could do in a heatwave? There’s quite a list, including lifeguards, ice-cream sellers and air-conditioning engineers — but my vote would go to the person delivering lovely, fresh, cooling, spring water.

Maybe I am biased, because that is exactly what I was doing recently in the company of Neil Graham, who owns the South Hams based company, Devonia Water. And phew, wasn’t it hot as we travelled around the busy coastal area and up onto Dartmoor! 

At one point between a couple of delivery stops, a newsreader on the radio was reporting on the latest research which was linking the actions of humankind with this summer’s heatwaves and rising temperatures – and in many ways the news resonated with the man who was actually delivering the Devon spring-water… Because Neil believes his company has developed one of the many kinds of eco-friendly business models which could help ameliorate global warming. 

“You must remember, even if you buy drinks or liquids in glass bottles so that they can be recycled, it is a process which requires a huge amount of energy,” Neil told me as he loaded yet another sack truck with crates of his company’s return-able bottles. “An American study showed that you use 94 percent less energy washing a bottle compared to recycling glass.

“Everyone thinks putting something in a recycling bin is really good, but that recycled bottle has to travel an awful long way to reach the industrial centres where it can be recycled – and then there’s a hell of a lot of energy required to melt it down and reform it back into something useful. It equates to using something like 16 times more energy than simply washing and reusing a bottle. 

“The simple re-use of a bottle is a win-win-situation. There is very little point in sending a useful readymade object like a glass bottle back for recycling when it can simply be used again. And, by the way, very little of the recycled material actually goes back into making bottles – it goes into things like glass-fibre or even road surfaces.”

Neil says Devonia Water has reused around 2.5 million bottles in the 18 years he’s been running the business – a statistic which means it must have saved one hell of a lot of fossil fuels from adding to the world’s carbon problem. It means some 300,000 kilograms of glass has been saved from either being expensively recycled or, worse, bunged in a landfill. Which makes it all the more extraordinary that Devonia Water is the only company of its kind in Britain with a business model based on the concept of reusing bottles time and again. There is one other business working along the same lines, but on a much smaller basis.

“There are two basic elements involved with the trend which is seeing an increasing demand for spring-water – what’s inside the bottle, and the bottle itself,” Neil went on, mopping sweat from his brow as we began unloading crates for the first customer of the day in temperatures climbing towards 30 degrees. 

He passed me a bottle of Devonia’s popular sparkling water and added: “Every drop of the pure h20 we take from our ancient spring located near the South Hams coast is delivered to the consumer in a glass bottle like this – which will be collected from this customer to be used again. And again and again.” 

Last year alone, by supplying hotels, pubs, cafes, restaurants, special events and private customers across the South Hams and Dartmoor areas, Devonia Water reused no fewer than 211,644 bottles, saving the energy required to recycle nearly 11,560 kilos of glass.

“We’ve got a large number of customers all over South Devon who love the fact that we operate a delivery system with multi-use bottles. It’s like an infinity-circle – these bottles go round and round and round. About 87 per cent of our bottles will be recycled and go round again – and that number has risen from about 79 percent over the past couple of years. People are becoming more and more aware of the damage they can do to the environment by just throwing packaging away.”

At this point we stopped at our second port of call, the Circa restaurant at the new Sandridge Barton Winery in the hills above the River Dart, where I happened to bump into CEO and head wine-maker Duncan Schwab… “We can make wonderful wine here – but it is fantastic for us to have a good supply of local bottled water because it is exactly the sort of thing guests at our new restaurant would expect to see,” commented Duncan.

Neil Graham with Duncan Schwab, CEO and Head Winemaker of Sandridge Barton

Later, Rob Weeks, head chef at Circa which runs the exciting new restaurant area, was also telling me about how his businesses places huge importance on sustainability and ultra-local sourcing… “We are being very ambitious at Sandridge Barton in that we are aiming to be hyper local in everything we do – within a year or so we should be entirely reliant on suppliers operating just a few miles from the restaurant.” 

As the crow flies the Devonia Water spring – located in the coastal hills near Beeson – is just a dozen miles south of the grapevines. The water source and bottling plant are situated just a mile from Beesands and The Cricket Inn – an award-winning establishment which, of course, is yet another customer. Indeed, I was to notice that a great many well known watering-holes are enthusiastic supporters of Devonia Water.

It was just under 20 years ago that Neil bought what was a much smaller spring-water business from a local father-and-son team. The ex-Royal Marine immediately began investing in the operation, improving the bottle-washing facilities and so on…

“Records show that the spring has been in use for more than 400 years,” said Neil as we continued on the delivery-round. “I understand Captain Cook was friendly with the local landlord – and possibly his ship The Bounty moored off the coast and even filled up with our water before they went off to discover Australia!

“The spring was capped and secured by the people who owned the land about 50 years ago which is when they started a small water-bottling business. I have been told the water has a very soft taste,” he added. “All waters have different mineral contents – they pass through different rocks and pick up different minerals. 

“Which brings me to another point… If you’ve come down to beautiful Devon on holiday, why would you want to have your bottled water coming from Italy, Scotland or France? It’s local and people want to see local stuff. There’s no mileage or Co2 being wasted dragging stuff from other places. 

“Yes, some people are a bit lazy when it comes to putting a bottle back in a crate to be taken away,” he added. “But I find the younger generation is really behind all this. It’s their world and they don’t want to see it being messed up by people throwing really good containers away.”

Neil talked about the old Corona bottle system, which readers of a certain age will remember. Indeed, as kids many of us relied on taking empty bottles of pop back to the shop so we could earn a few pence pocket money. Everyone seemed to accept the return-able bottle as a fact of life back then, so why – asks Neil – can’t we have more of it today?

By now our journey had taken us to the slopes of Dartmoor on our way to a number of leading hostelries across the moors – which gave Neil a chance to talk about one of his favourite subjects… Namely, the Ashburton team of Dartmoor Search and Rescue, where Neil has been a keen and active member for many years. It is a charitable organisation, funded totally by donations, and Devonia Water does all it can to raise money in sponsorship.

“I absolutely love coming up here, but the moors can be a treacherous place,” he said as we headed for the Two Bridges Hotel. 

As the midday temperature was reaching 30 degrees, I agreed – muttering something about the importance of taking water with you when you’re hiking on the moors. Not surprisingly, it was an observation which won the resounding approval of a man who has not only been delivering Devon’s sweetest water for the past 20 years, but returning week after week to collect the empties.  

The Big Reveal of Our New Infographic!

We’re absolutely delighted to unveil our exciting new infographic, a fun, simple and clear way to showcase our original business model based on the concept of reusing bottles time and again.  Designed by fellow Food Drink Devon member, Plymouth-based creative agency, Upshot, we think it looks amazing and hope you do too! 

We’ve felt for some time that a creative infographic would really help explain, in a visual format, our unique process of delivering, consuming, returning, washing and refilling our bottles.  We’d always been keen on a circular design to illustrate our delivery and collection process, quickly with the help of Owen and the Upshot team we came up with the infinity loop, with the delivery and collection processes both taking place at the same time and place in the centre.Our new infographic depicts three key parts of our delivery process, as well as integrating some of our amazing environmental statistics which we’re really keen to shout about.  Owen and his team have also created a simplified version for us to use when space is more limited.  

 

 

As a family run business it was important to us that we used a local Devon design agency, hence, we reached out to Owen and Upshot.  We’re thrilled with the design, which we feel clearly and simply tells Devonia’s story of our individual packaging and distribution process.

Keep an eye out for the new infographic which will be appearing at the forefront of all our future communications and branding.

Devonia Sales Role

Are you passionate about sustainability and have some business to business sales experience?  Devonia, a spring water company which puts sustainability at the heart of everything they do, is looking for someone to join their team.  With a completely unique distribution method that their existing customers love, Devonia is currently experiencing great levels of growth. They are looking for someone who is as passionate as they are about selling a process that is done a little differently as well as providing first class support for potential and new customers. Join this industry leading business at this very exciting time.

The role will include:

  • Generation of new leads and creation of sales pipeline
  • Contacting and meeting with potential new customers to drive product sales and knowledge
  • Making sales appointments with clients, moving leads to materialisation
  • Following up with new clients to ensure they are satisfied with the product
  • Supporting growth in a sustainable way
  • Working with the managing director to create a sales strategy, support the PR and Marketing team and ensure the sales strategy aligns with current message to market
  • Demonstrating sales knowledge and interest in developing new and innovative sales techniques as the business grows

You will need to be:

A team player, self starter, friendly, people person, have sales experience, excellent written and verbal communication skills, driven to succeed and become a part of Devonia’s future success.


How to apply:

Please call 07970 414875 or email info@devoniawater.co.uk to find out more or to apply. 

devoniawater.co.uk

Out on Dartmoor


With the recent relaxing of restrictions I managed to get out on Dartmoor for the first time in ages. One of the most spectacular displays of bluebells anywhere in the UK must be at Emsworthy farm near Haytor. Peppa was taking a rest! The Becka Brook valley is stunning and we went down to the clapper bridge and had a paddle. Obviously Peppa drank stream water but I had a bottle of Devonia to refresh me. Take care when you’re out on Dartmoor.

DSRT Ashburton team members

At a recent callout near Torquay, Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team, Ashburton, team members were being refreshed with some Devonia Water. It was a hot day! The team members are volunteers who give up their time to help people who are injured, lost or vulnerable all over Devon and sometimes nationally. Devonia is proud to help by giving these fine people some water.