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Restaurants: Not just an industry in waiting
The UK restaurant industry has come into the spotlight in the past few years, with publicity from TV shows and extensive use of money-off deals to bolster profits through hard times. But what do the coming months hold? We take a look at the state of the industry from those in the know.
Harden's is one of the most respected restaurant guides in both London and the UK. Co-publisher Richard Harden gave The Appointment a snapshot of the branded restaurant sector.
"With the 20-year perspective we now bring to looking at the restaurant business, it's difficult not to be broadly optimistic, given the long-term trend." He commented: "Young adults today can simply have no idea how totally different - both in size and, generally, quality - the dining-out scene they take for granted today is, compared to a couple of decades ago."
On future initiatives in the industry, he added: "The basics of catering don't change, so the 'initiatives' tend to be largely about getting people to do better things which we all know they should really be doing anyway.
"With that in mind, I do hope that the current efforts to raise the profile of service, the hospitality's very own 'Cinderella', continue to succeed. However much we may congratulate ourselves on how much we've achieved in this country in recent years, there's no doubt we still have an awfully long way to go if we are to ensure that 'service' is never regarded as a dirty word."
The British Hospitality Association
The British Hospitality Association is the representative organisation for the UK hospitality industry, promoting the interests of hotels, restaurants and foodservice providers by championing the industry's priorities and partnering with government to drive hospitality growth in the UK.
Speaking to The Appointment, spokesman Miles Quest commented:
"The restaurant industry is facing challenges - but particularly of higher costs and lower consumer spend." He said. "This has driven many branded restaurant chains towards offering special deals and other 'come-ons' in order to boost footfall. Unfortunately, all these deals erode margins which are being hit, anyway, by higher food prices and other costs."
He added: "Most restaurant chains have already achieved all the efficiency savings that they can make, so margins are under real pressure. The alternatives? Menu engineering (to make use of cheaper food items), smaller portions (but this can be dangerous) or higher prices (not popular with customers). But the restaurant industry will continue to grow through its dynamism, sheer inventiveness and perseverance."
Q: How would you assess the prospects for business for the next 6-12 months?
The burgeoning brasserie: Côte Restaurants
Scott Williamson, Recruitment Manager
It is a very exciting year for Côte with at least 10 openings this year in locations throughout the UK.
The old hand: Tragus Group
Nick Hoad, HR Director
I believe the high street and out-of-town retail centres will continue to face the challenge to persuade customers to spend money. This will remain the reason why discounts/vouchers will continue to dominate. If restaurants strive to offer good value and excellent customer experience then it will be those companies which will continue to thrive.
The one to watch: Jamie's Italian
Louise Ludlam, Talent Manager
Very exciting! 2011 will see Jamie's Italian grow from 15 to 25 restaurants - only three years after first launching in Oxford. We're hugely excited about cities such as Portsmouth, Manchester and Milton Keynes, all of which deserve their very own Jamie's Italian. And we'll continue into 2012, as the dream to have a restaurant in every major city in the UK is very much alive.
Q: To what degree do you feel the recent public sector budget cuts might impact upon the trading of your business?
Côte Restaurants
Scott Williamson, Recruitment Manager
Côte is extremely well priced and excellent value for money. People still dine out but are more budget-conscious and still want value for money, which is what we cater for.
Tragus Group
Nick Hoad, HR Director
These much talked about cuts have yet to fully kick in, but the job losses and uncertainty will contribute to more cautious spending. Many of the suppliers and service providers whom have benefited from the expenditure by the public sector will also have to shed employees. So the knock on effects will continue.
Jamie's Italian
Louise Ludlam, Talent Manager
Jamie's Italian opened its first three restaurants in the second half of 2008. This coincided with the start of the recession and although we couldn't have predicted it, everyone thought we were mad to continue expanding. By holding fast to the simple things we do well, we've managed to grow the business and are able to look to the future with optimism. On a really positive note, we employ between 80 and 100 local staff every time we open a Jamie's Italian so our expansion is creating jobs all over the UK.
Q: What’s the most exciting initiative currently taking place within your business?
Côte Restaurants
Scott Williamson, Recruitment Manager
We have lots of exciting things happening at the moment and one of our strong focuses is on people development. We have initiated a new management development programme for managers to assist with their growth and development within the business.
Tragus Group
Nick Hoad, HR Director
Our menus are constantly being refreshed and altered to meet the ever-changing needs of the customer. We will continue to open more restaurants in areas where there is untapped demand; this will include airports and stations. Our first station site has just opened in Euston, which we all have high hopes for. Our latest customer services initiatives are also key to our future success.
Jamie's Italian
Louise Ludlam, Talent Manager
Internal progression is a huge part of what we believe in at Jamie's Italian and a key factor in our continued success. Over half our general managers have been developed and promoted internally; we have 22 assistant managers who started as team members and seven head chefs who've risen from sous chef. These are high-volume, challenging businesses so we ask a lot but in return, we reward their effort with plenty of support, encouragement and fun. We also run trips pretty well every month for staff who've been great team players. So there'll be a couple of days in Tuscany; a trip with our fishermen on a day boat in Brixham; a butchery masterclass; mushroom picking with Gennaro; a day in Paris looking around their fresh produce markets....all part of our culture which rewards great attitude and commitment.
Q: What are your recruitment plans for the next 6-12 months?
Côte Restaurants
Scott Williamson, Recruitment Manager
A big recruitment drive this year with 10 openings, recruiting for all levels including general managers, assistant managers, head chefs, sous chefs and front-and-back of house staff.
Tragus Group
Nick Hoad, HR Director
Continued focus on using the web as the main source of candidates, also to fully explore the social media network as a revolutionary recruitment opportunity.
Jamie's Italian
Louise Ludlam, Talent Manager
We're always on the lookout for talented managers - general managers, deputies and assistants - and head and sous chefs. So if we meet someone outstanding, we'll find a place for them. In terms of recruitment this year, we have opportunities at all levels for our new openings in Milton Keynes, Cheltenham, Manchester, Bluewater, Threadneedle St (London, City), Westfield (London, Stratford) and St Albans.
Q: What qualities to you look for in potential managers? Describe your ideal candidate.
Côte Restaurants
Scott Williamson, Recruitment Manager
We look for people who want catering to be their career; real foodies with a passion for food, wine and good service. A real people person who thinks out of the box and wants to deliver that real guest experience.
Tragus Group
Nick Hoad, HR Director
The experience and passion for hospitality is very important coupled with excellent people and managerial and commercial skills.
Jamie's Italian
Louise Ludlam, Talent Manager
Finding a manager or senior chef who fits our culture is as important as the skillset they possess. Although experience in a high-volume restaurant environment is key, we also need passion for food, the ability to lead and inspire a large team every day and a genuine desire to add value in an environment where teamwork is crucial and having fun is always part of the day. High standards, a no-compromise approach and the desire to develop those around you are also qualities we look for. It's difficult to put it all into words but we know when we meet someone with that spark - and we can develop the rest.
Q: What career progression opportunities are available to managers within your business?
Côte Restaurants
Scott Williamson, Recruitment Manager
A lot of opportunities are available to grow within Côte; we believe strongly in internal promotion and giving people the opportunity to make careers. In 2010 we promoted five assistant managers to general managers, four sous chefs to head chef and created new roles including area managers, area chefs and training managers that all went to existing managers within the business.
Tragus Group
Nick Hoad, HR Director
Managers can progress into a variety of roles, such as training, new opening, audit, senior restaurant management, or other support office roles. Many can develop further into area managers and beyond. Our senior operations teams all began their careers in restaurant management.
Jamie's Italian
Louise Ludlam, Talent Manager
More and more frequently now, our assistant managers (we call them departmental managers as they manage a team of either waiters, bartenders or hosts and seaters) have been promoted internally from the team. As a departmental manager, you'd be aspiring to the deputy general manager's role. This means you're the right hand to the general manager and importantly, you've been earmarked to be a general manager yourself one day. There's no set timescale for promotion to any role within Jamie's Italian; you'll get the job when you're ready and as we're expanding, the sooner the better! In addition to the success we've had in promoting managers and chefs, all of our operations managers are ex-general managers. We give them a small area so they can do a fantastic job so again, as we expand, there'll be opportunities in ops for our top general managers.
Q: What sets your business apart as an employer of choice?
Côte Restaurants
Scott Williamson, Recruitment Manager
We have a fantastic product and offering which people are proud of. We believe in our people. We invest in our teams and have a very open door policy. We deliver on internal promotion and growth. We are expanding at a phenomenal rate and have won many awards relating to our value and our service.
Tragus Group
Nick Hoad, HR Director
We are very results-orientated, as shown in our potentially lucrative bonus schemes. We have a fantastic dedicated training team which offer a range of on-the-job and online training and development which is second to none in our sector. Our annual conferences and awards trips are renowned. Our online rewards programme allows all our employees to win prizes and awards.
Jamie's Italian
Louise Ludlam, Talent Manager
Our culture - which reflects Jamie Oliver's belief in working hard as a team and doing your very best every day - is a huge strength. We believe that waiters having five table sections is as important to our success as Ops managers looking after five restaurants. Our waiters learn a huge amount about every dish and the stories behind them so they can make service a pleasure rather than a formality. We care about people and we want everyone to thrive, in whichever way they choose, at Jamie's Italian.
