The new owners' managing director is 34-year old Will Devlin, who recently reached the final 30 contestants in the hit series The Apprentice. And if you think that's young, fellow-director Geoff Baird is 26!

Geoff has been pretty much living at the Church Road hotel since the April 21 take-over and working long hours in a bid to make the changes the ambitious young entrepreneurs reckon are needed if they are to achieve the lofty standards they have set themselves.

It's a big venture for Finellgroupltd which came into being less than two years ago. The other holdings are the Harbour Point and Smugglers' Cove - both in Carrick - The Point in Lisburn and Gowdy's at the Racecourse at The Maze.

Previous ventures included Tatu Bar and Grill on Belfast's Lisburn Road, which was sold to help finance the purchase of the Seagoe, the first hotel in the new owners' portfolio. One feels it will not be the last, however. They are ambitious, they are motivated and they are very focused young men.

Will has made his name in the bar, restaurant and entertainment trade, a fact reflected in the standing and popularity of the other projects in which he has been involved.

Geoff's reputation has been carved out in the world of catering. Himself a qualified chef, he is particularly keen to enhance the Seagoe Hotel's culinary status. A new head chef has been appointed. He is Ken Morrison, a man with 30 years of award-winning experience on which to call.

The new owners cite the attainment of a fourth star for the currently three-star Seagoe as a primary objective. And no sooner had they arrived than they began making some of the changes they believe will be necessary if that is to be achieved.

Another goal is an Investors In People Award, something they say is very much in tandem with how they do things. They pride themselves on providing opportunities for those who work for them. Employees are encouraged to avail of training opportunities and self-advancement, with support on hand to enable them to do so.

The owners say they have great faith in the Young Managers' Training Programme and the evidence suggests this is no hollow claim. The Finellgroupltd's 400 workers include 35 departmental heads, each of whom has worked his or her way up from groundfloor level.

The woman responsible for company's senior accounts is a 40-year old who, having raised her child as a single mother, returned to work as a restaurant waitress. Having shown potential, she was encouraged to study and train. She did so and today she plays what Will and Geoff describe as being "a vital role in the company".

"We want people to be happy working for us and there's a greater likelihood of that happening if they know we value them," Will said. "While we employ 400, we know the name of each one of them, whether or not their married, the name of their partner and the names of their children.