HOTEL OF THE MONTH

RAISING THE BAR

With the help of some of the industry’s biggest names, we explore how a quirky bar situated on-site at an overnight stay venue can be one of the simplest ways to add revenue to a business.

Each hotel has a significant feature which decides where they are positioned competitively in the industry. This particular feature contributes greatly to the success of the site and determines how great the footfall

is.

We now live in a time where convenience is key to guests when looking for their next overnight stay. Whether it be a pit stop during a long journey, a romantic getaway, or a solo self-care stay, a hotel bar is one way to enhance a customer’s experience as well as the atmosphere of a space.

It goes without saying that a bar is one of the key revenue-generating areas of the food and beverage service department in the hotel industry. It all comes down to ‘getting the guests in’ and we don’t just mean those who are visiting the hotel; your hotel is there to be used by the wider public and passers-by too.

Paul Rafferty, Deputy General Manager of The Mayfair Townhouse and The Dandy Bar, revealed that he sees it is important for guests staying at The Mayfair Townhouse to also enjoy a drink at their on-site bar. This demonstrates that the hotel is somewhere they want to spend time, as they feel welcomed and comfortable. It also allows for guests to enrich their overall stay experience and are then more likely to return, because not only did they purchase a comfortable room to spend the night in, but also time in a first-class bar with a delicious selection.

“The friendly and knowledgeable staff are largely responsible for ensuring guests feel welcomed and comfortable, and want to spend time in The Dandy Bar. We ensure all staff can efficiently handle queries and that they are trained to recognise and capture guest preferences. In doing so, guests can be surprised with small acts of kindness, delivering the hotel’s aim to ‘expect the unexpected’. As an example, during our check-in process, we offer to escort every guest to their room/suite and this is an opportunity for us to upsell our services and gather data – which is then relayed to the appropriate operational team.” Explained Paul.

We asked Paul for his tips on making a bar appealing, to which he answered: “Elegant but comfortable interior,

P18: Image courtesy of Mayfair Townhouse P19: Image courtesy of The Carlton Tower Jumeirah

an inviting ambience, an attractive menu and most importantly, a welcoming and knowledgeable team equipped with a can-do attitude that can deliver a unique experience for every guest are must-haves.”

Over the past few years, it has become increasingly popular to introduce bars as a completely separate entity within a larger venue - complete with its own name, lone social media and branding. When executed and marketed successfully, this is a great way of contributing to greater profits.

Paul has experienced first-hand with The Dandy Bar just how beneficial this can be to a business as a whole.

“By having a bar with its own brand identity, people will know the bar as a standalone venue which helps to drive non-residential business into the property. This allows the hotel to have one image/brand and the bar to have another, creating a more diverse overall product and therefore tapping into a wider market and greater profits. At The Mayfair Townhouse, The Dandy Bar is a separate entity and we have facilitated this by creating separate social channels and individual branding, messaging and ethos for the hotel and bar.” Added Paul.

London’s The Carlton Tower is home to two bars, The Chinoiserie and Al Mare Bar, so, their Head of Bars, Fabio Spinetti, has plenty of experience in ensuring guests who are staying at the venue are also drinking in one of their hotel bars.

Fabio notices that when you have a world-class offering, you’re keen for guests to be able to experience everything in the hotel. Whether you boast a fine dining restaurant or a more relaxed one, a beautiful spa or a cocktail bar, it is important that guests who stay at the hotel are also drinking on-site because this adds value to the guest’s experience.

Fabio told us: “It allows us to show what our brand is about and proudly display a menu, or a concept, or even just one drink, which took weeks, maybe months, to get to the point where we are confident that it is good enough for our guests. Also having new initiatives, never resting on laurels and bringing something new to each guest and to each guest’s visit is how we try to entice them to try something new and hopefully want to return again and again.”

As an overnight venue, incentives can be offered to guests in order to entice them into a visit to the bar and Fabio suggests providing an amazing cocktail program, a well-selected spirit list and great service constantly: “We make sure guests are aware at their check-in about the outlets in the hotel and invite them to try them all.”

The check-in is a great opportunity for the wider team

“Use a mixture of creative menus.”

to upsell at the venue. For example, a member of the concierge team could show guests the bar on arrival and recommend a best-selling cocktail in order to encourage greater footfall in a hotel bar.

Fabio agreed as he said: “I think staff are the best ambassadors of any venue; our Guest Relations team and Front of House will always show the guests around at check-in, and everyone is aware of at least a couple of signature drinks that we offer.

“At the end of the day, when a guest walks through our doors 50% of the job has been already done. The remaining 50% is about service, products, knowledge and professionalism.”

In order to continue with great marketing techniques past a guest’s stay, newsletters with updates and upcoming initiatives are imperative.

Fabio advises a hefty social media presence, making the information accessible to everyone, building a following through regular posts of new menus or new drinks, creativities such as live music or a tasting dinner, and consistency in the delivery. These are all ways of contributing to a greater marketing strategy in order to heighten client retention rates.

To keep enticing new guests as well as ensuring existing customers are returning to your venue, it’s important that a hotel bar is made appealing to a broad audience. Paul Bayliss of Hotel Brooklyn believes that the design and strategy are vital: “If you are positioned in the city centre, you must encourage people to use your bar like they would any other nearby bar, both residents and non-residents. Social media is a vital tool in doing so. Post photographs of your bar, the offers and most importantly the factors that make you different from other places where people can drink.

“We find guests who post their experience on Facebook and Instagram provide the strongest marketing element as they are telling their friends how much they are enjoying themselves. Pictures paint a thousand words, as they say.”

Once guests are at your bar, the bespoke service will speak for itself, but creating a unique ambience will not only keep guests drinking at your bar, it will also send them away with a memorable experience. This will leave them more inclined to tell others and therefore making it a key way to succeed.

On top of capitalising on guest’s social media presence at your venue, Carly Roberts, Head of Marketing at Hawkstone Hall & Gardens, explained that offering marketing collateral which guests can take away with them will hugely contribute to client retention rates as it gives them every opportunity to opt in to marketing: “For example, our guest Wi-Fi software also captures data – this allows us to remarket to these guests in our email campaigns and ensure they’re kept up to date at all times.”

As an overnight venue, there are obviously incentives which can be offered to guests in order to get them to visit the bar. Carly advises introducing a unique cocktail list: “Having something out of the ordinary will help to capture the attention of your guests and in turn inspire them to visit the bar.

“Use a mixture of creative menus. For example, our cocktail list is based on writers and poets from times gone by in the hall’s history.”

Presenting a distinctive cocktail menu is bound to attract consumers, but it is vitally important that the staff know the details of the products on offer. Carly explained: “We can never just assume that guests know exactly what is on offer. Staff are the most important selling tool; after all, people remember people so it’s important they know the product inside and out, along with what they are paired well with.

“When your staff know the product and are enthusiastic about it, it makes it easier to create engaging content www.thehotelmagazine.co.uk 21

P21: Image courtesy of Rosewood London Scarfes Bar P22 top left: Images courtesy of The Carlton Tower Jumeirah; bottom left: Image courtesy of The Carlton Tower Jumeirah; right: Images courtesy of Rosewood London Scarfes Bar

for social media, marketing collateral, web and email marketing. It’s about creating a holistic experience.”

Martin Siska, Director of Bars at Rosewood London, sees the significance in offering a complete experience to guests by having strong outlets attached to an overnight venue.

“We developed a strong and unique identity for each outlet that are now known as their own venues outside of the Rosewood London brand. Scarfes Bar has such a strong identity that we now have people staying at Rosewood London in order to experience the bar.

“Sense of place is very important for us; each outlet represents a pillar of British culture which is very interesting for our traveller guests to discover. Ultimately, ensuring people come to our bar encourages incremental revenue spend within the hotel as well.”

London is a bustling city with a lot to offer when it comes to food and drink. The most important thing for Martin Siska and his team is to be unique by thinking outside the box. Guests visit Scarfes Bar for an immersive experience, from the decoration to the live music, the distinct cocktail menu concepts and of course, the friendly team who add a huge value: “Our guests love to engage with the team. To be recommended a cocktail based on their own taste is an important part of their experience. Being an awardwinning cocktail bar attracts connoisseurs from around the world and gives us the opportunity to be profiled in the 22 www.thehotelmagazine.co.uk media, creating awareness.”

Scarfes Bar is a detached outlet from Rosewood London so we asked Martin, from his experience, how having a hotel bar as a separate entity can contribute to greater profits. He commented: “Scarfes Bar having a separate identity to Rosewood London is important for those not staying at our hotel, as it is not a place exclusively for hotel guests. The bar is also conveniently located at the entrance of the hotel which makes it easier for outside guests to feel comfortable entering the bar.

“Having our own identity, branding, website and social media channels for Scarfes Bar allows us to speak to a wider audience outside of our hotel guests. This then attracts a variety of guests which is what creates the unique atmosphere which our overseas hotel guests love as the bar is always busy with a local London crowd.”

We have distinguished that a hotel bar is an important added asset for guests choosing to book a hotel, offering great added value to their stay. Having a strong concept and a unique atmosphere is essential for keeping a specific bar at the top of people’s minds, making them curious and eager to visit.