Opinion We ask leading industry peers their thoughts on the hospitality sector – from its perceived buoyancy through to whether we should be capitalising on retail more…
The BIG questions
Josh Rammell, marketing manager, Utopia Tableware Is the global hospitality sector as buoyant as we are being led to believe?
What are the key differences between selling into retail and selling to the professional sector?
Hospitality tableware needs to It’s certainly showing signs be durable, practical and cost of robust growth after all the effective, whereas retail suppliers challenges of recent years. can focus more on design and However, the extent and pace of overall price. A popular tableware this buoyancy varies significantly, design for hospitality will need not only by region but also consistency of supply for a long by market segment. It’s vital period, as broken pieces will need tableware suppliers support the to be replaced over growth, by focusing on “Hospitality a number of years. the fundamentals of developing innovative tableware In retail, a collection might only last a products and providing needs to single season. Lastly, a service that customers be durable, hospitality tableware and business partners practical and needs a wider SKU can rely on. cost effective, base, operators need Is the tabletop wide range of whereas retail apieces industry in danger of for different becoming too reliant suppliers can plating styles or on hospitality? focus more different drink serves. For the tabletop on design and A comprehensive industry, hospitality HoReCa tableware overall price” collection might offers a constant, reliable demand for products. consist of tens of different pieces Paradoxically, it also offers a – for example, our Murra Ash continuing need for innovation collection has over 40, including and new product development, plates, bowls, jugs, platters, pots as consumer tastes change and and so on. Domestic users will as HoReCa operators modify need far fewer different pieces. their business. So, hospitality is an attractive market, which means lots of manufacturers and suppliers, who previously focused on retail, gravitate towards it. Having said that, there is still a strong split between the two segments and for most companies involved in both, hospitality remains a smaller part of their business. 36 TABLEWARE INTERNATIONAL: HoReCa
Timo Ooms, senior product & purchase manager, Fine Dining & Living Is the global hospitality sector as buoyant as we are being led to believe? We see different trends. Companies who are doing very well, growing and opening new restaurants – a lot of them focus on quality and dinner experience. We also see clients who are struggling to get the staff members to deliver the service they want to give to the clients, a lot of those have more closing days and are fully booked when they are open. On the other side, the companies who don’t deliver something extra are struggling due to the higher costs in wages, rental, electricity… and they struggle to survive. Is the tabletop industry in danger of becoming too reliant on hospitality? The hospitality sector has been seen as the ‘golden egg’ for many companies and factories that were facing problems in the retail segment, as it was stable and growing. Many of those adapted their strategy based on that. As a result, today the sector is experiencing more competition and you see also a lot of new entrants with products which are actually not fit for the hospitality industry. Should we be looking at more way of capitalising on retail? It is healthy to have a good balance between the two segments because the overall market will always fluctuate and bend over to one side depending on global events and economic trends. What are the key differences between selling into retail and selling to the professional sector? In retail, affordable price points and attractive promotions are important to persuade the end user, at least in the medium segment. Also, the overall brand experience and the omni channel is important (shop presentation, online presence, social media). For hospitality, it is important to have good quality product and continuous availability. Of course, new food trends and innovative products need to be visible throughout your assortment to be relevant for the professional user.