With a stellar line-up including Kate Nicholls OBE, CEO, UK Hospitality, James Brown, CEO, BrewDog Bars, Pano Christou, CEO, Pret A Manger, Dame Karen Jones DBE, and Simon Stenning, Founder, Future Foodservice, this year’s Savoy Lecture was a must-attend date in the foodservice calendar. Of course, as the leading foodservice agency we were there to hear what these leading lights of the industry had to say and enjoy the wonderful hospitality of The Savoy, whilst also getting to catch-up with contacts new and old.

Footfall is pre-Covid – it’s the margins that are being squeezed

The evening kicked off with Kate’s keynote speech, which she delivered to her credit with two broken toes! The overall tone was positive, with the hope that we may be moving into a period of more predictability for the industry. Turning trade into profit is still a real challenge with the cost of doing business high and trading data flat, but there are glimmers of hope, as global travel and leisure bounces back driven by meetings, events, music and entertainment. In addition, we are seeing consumer confidence move in the right direction, 92% of people now eat out monthly and those who do are higher spenders. 69% of people say that eating out is the treat they look forward to most and encouragingly 42% prioritise eating out over any other activity, with Kate predicting pent-up demand heading our way. The hope is that we are over the worst of things with inflation down, National Living Wage up (a mixed blessing for operators) and therefore consumers should start to feel in a better place soon.

Looking to the future Kate and her team at UK Hospitality have been busy lobbying Labour to ensure hospitality gets the support it needs should they come into power later this year. UK Hospitality is keen to secure support on business rates post 2025, labour supply-side reform to get more people into hospitality and of course tax support including reduced VAT for hospitality businesses. The good news is that she has got two out of three onto their current manifesto and aims to push for action in the new government’s first 100 days. So, with the Year of The Dragon upon us we hope to have a bit of strength, luck and good fortune on the side of hospitality.

Following the keynote Kate was joined by Pano Christou, CEO, Pret A Manger, Dame Karen Jones DBE, James Brown, CEO, BrewDog Bars and Simon Stenning, Founder, Future Foodservice who facilitated the panel discussion. The passion for the industry across these hospitality heavyweights was obvious and Simon touched on how each had started out in hospitality (from McDonald’s – Pano, to Betty’s Tea Rooms – Dame Karen and even potato peeling – James). With her vast experience and non-exec roles across a wide range of hospitality businesses including Hawksmoor and Whitbread, Dame Karen stressed the importance of the one-sentence test when it comes to describing a concept (something we wholeheartedly agree with). All were optimistic about the industry which has shown unparalleled resilience over the past four years and the unmatched opportunity hospitality offers for fast progression from entry-level, which no other industry can offer.

They also touched on the challenges posed by post Covid changes to working habits, which have impacted city centre sites with a drop in footfall and focused mid-week business (Thursday is not the new Friday), whilst conversely offering more opportunities outside of city centres to service remote workers, as well as catering for the growing trend of early evening diners.

The panel touched upon the importance of brand storytelling for businesses to earn the interest of consumers, as well as attract young people to hospitality. Along with the ongoing challenge of staffing with an 8% vacancy rate, which could be improved if companies signed up to the UK Hospitality Charter on practices such as rotas, tipping and pensions making hospitality businesses more attractive employers. Crucial to future success will be the Government’s willingness to provide a much-needed injection to help hospitality businesses which are the linchpin of society, ‘bringing light and life to the heart of our economy and community’. Something that Kate is hopeful for, as currently she has 300 cross-party supporters of hospitality in parliament who she will be working hard to lobby for the good of the industry.

Supplier Support

Given all this Simon posed the question – what can suppliers do to help? The panel agreed that a need to build true partnerships was vital with the focus on long term strategic growth and goals. Doing good by the planet and more sustainable offerings are also important but suppliers need to work hard to make it as cost effective as possible given the challenges faced.

There was also a call for more support to the 66% of SME suppliers that make up the industry, and for those large restaurant operators using them to be mindful of their challenges too, including cash flow when it comes to long payment terms and the sharing of insight to help them grow. A recommendation that large suppliers could also do in turn with small operators.

The panel discussion was followed by a delicious dinner from the team at The Savoy which gave everyone the chance to network and discuss the key take outs from the session, as collections were made for the prize raffle in aid of industry charities Springboard and Hospitality Action. Then before we knew it, it was time to head out into the night after another great event from Arena. To attend future events, visit https://arena.org.uk/