Parade House owners win award after transforming building

Parade House, a Grade I Georgian property, was rescued from dereliction and has now been turned by its owners Simon and Carey Tesler into a thriving business.

The couple have fully restored the property in Fore Street to transform it into an upmarket venue for weddings, corporate meetings and receptions in the  heart of Wiltshire's county town.

They have now scooped the Federation of Small Businesses Start-up Business Award for the South West.

The historic Parade House in Fore Street, Trowbridge, is now fully restored into an upmarket venue for weddings, receptions and corporate events. (Image: Trevor Porter)

The couple said:  "We are honoured to have been chosen as the regional winner of the FSB Start-up Business Award for the South West.

"We bought, saved and restored the beautiful but derelict Parade House 18 months ago, and we are immensely proud to have been able to turn this Grade I listed Georgian townhouse into a thriving events venue and local treasure into in such a short period of time, attracting both local and international visitors.

"This prestigious award is not only a win for Parade House but also for the regeneration of Trowbridge and for Wiltshire.”  

Built in around 1720 for the wealthy cloth merchant Robert Houlton, Parade House is one of the town's finest and most elegant buildings, the centrepiece of what Pevsner's Guide to Wiltshire described as a "stretch of palaces" along Fore Street.

The meeting rooms, an original sweeping staircase, a grand ballroom have all been redecorated and enhanced and a luxury 24-seat cinema in the basement shows the best of classic and independent films each week. 

Carey and Simon Tesler have converted the basement at Parade House into a 24-seat cinema showing classic and independent films. Photo: Trevor Porter 69627-1 (Image: Trevor Porter)

One of the first-floor rooms has been converted into a fully-equipped kitchen to cater for special events where food is required.

Parade House is now available to hire for public and private events, including business meetings, corporate events, exhibitions, gallery shows, photographic and location shoots. 

Mr and Mrs Tesler were presented with Trowbridge Town Council's Town Enhancement Award from Mayor Graham Hill in 2023.

Parade House is among a host of winners from across the region who have been declared ‘the best in the West’ by winning regional titles in the FSB Celebrating Small Business Awards.  

Twelve companies and individuals from the region – who have been invited to receive their awards at the FSB South West Bootcamp in Exeter on March 13 - will now go forward to represent the South West at a glittering national final in Blackpool in May. 

Ruth Lambert, the FSB development manager for Wiltshire and Somerset ,said she was thrilled to see so many local successes.

“I was fortunate enough to see a lot of the entries as they came in and I was genuinely staggered at the variety and quality across every sector I looked at.

“It was clear that any business that emerged with a title from such an incredibly strong field of candidates must have something really special about them and I am so pleased to see a Wiltshire winner. Fingers crossed they also add a national title to their regional one as well.”

The full list of winners of FSB South West award winners are:

• Innovation Award: BioStart, Gloucester
• Expansion and Growth Award: Firestarter Business Solutions Ltd., Cheltenham
• Sustainability Award: Cofton Country Holidays Ltd, Exeter
• Family Business of the Year: Authentic Bread Company, Longhope
• Microbusiness of the Year: Essential 6 Ltd, Torquay
• Self-employed / Freelancer Award: HR Vitals, St Austell
• Start-up Business of the Year: Parade House, Trowbridge
• Young Entrepreneur of the Year: Natasha Mortimer, Imagineerium, Bristol
• Franchise Business Award: Your Man With A Van, Poole
• Community Business Award: Bath Philharmonia
• Diversity and Inclusion Award: Craddys, Poole,
• Service Excellence Award: Next Steps Education, Bideford