"Bringing in the small plates menu added a more accessible element to the business – it’s more affordable and a more sociable dining experience."
Jackie Hunt, Canalside Restaurant, Whilton Locks Garden Village
"If you’ve got a good relationship with your rep, then deliveries are the way forward because it frees up your time to do what you’re good at — and let Booker do what they’re good at."
Victoria Millross, Stroud Rugby Club
"We saved a lot of money switching to Booker. A crate of 24 soft drinks would be around £12.50 from the supermarket, but it’s £8.95 from Booker."
Tracey Okane, Parkway Avenue Café, Sheffield
"We love the Catering Trade Show. There are always so many fantastic products to sample and so many new ideas on offer – especially for Christmas."
With the festive period on the horizon, Booker has created a dedicated Christmas Preview platform that includes a dedicated brochure, a bespoke website and a special PreOrder solution.
The goal is to help you make planning your festive season as easy, hassle-free and special as possible.
From food and drinks to tableware, Booker has collected everything you need to build a profitable festive season into one place – saving you time and effort.
New Christmas one-stop-shop platform unveiled
Booker’s comprehensive festive planning platform makes planning a busy and profitable festive season as simple, stress-free and special as possible.
Booker has launched a dedicated Christmas Preview platform that features a dedicated brochure, a bespoke website and a special PreOrder solution to help catering customers plan ahead with minimum fuss and effort.
Visit the Christmas Preview website: booker.co.uk/ external/christmas/
From food and drinks to tableware, the platform brings together everything you need to build a profitable festive season – saving you time and effort and freeing you and your team up to focus on delivering fantastic customer service.
A huge selection of festive starters, sharing platters, mains, accompaniments, desserts, cheeses and bakery lines are included, as is an extensive range of beers, ciders, wines, spirits and Champagne – as well as a full range of low- and no-alcohol options.
Festive Dressing
In addition to meeting all of your festive food and drink requirements, the Booker Christmas platform also includes an extended range of festive tableware to help you add theatre and sparkle during the Christmas season.
The range includes crackers, napkins and runners, with an array of options available to help you find solutions that work with your plans and festive décor.
Visit booker.co.uk/external/ christmas for details of cracker contents and more information.
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Still time to cash in on locked down prices
With the festive period on the horizon, there’s still time to secure your profits by taking advantage of locked down pricing on over 600 products until 7 October.
The Christmas season is looming ever larger on the horizon for Booker catering customers, so it’s the perfect time to cash in on Booker’s rolling price guarantee programme.
Prices on over 600 popular products have been locked down until 7 October, so there’s still time to take advantage and start stocking up ahead of Christmas – particularly on long life products that will be popular over Christmas, including beers, wines and spirits.
This represents a great opportunity to boost footfall, sales and profits
in the weeks and months ahead –with profits locked in. The pricing guarantee covers all main product categories, from beers, wines and spirits to fresh, frozen and ambient lines. The guarantee even extends to non-food lines like essential cleaning equipment and disposables.
As always, the lockdown includes an extensive range of high quality, great value own-brand products as well as a wide selection of branded lines – helping you deliver the quality and value that your customers expect while also securing your own profits.
Across the board
The 600+ products included in the pricing lockdown cover all major product categories and many products that your business will use on a daily basis. Categories covered include:
Cleaning
Wine
Low and No Alcohol
30 Litre Kegs
Beers, Lagers and Ciders
Spirits
RTDs
Mixers
Soft Drinks
Biscuits
Chilled
Bakery
Frozen
Meat
Seafood
Ice Cream and Toppings
Hospitality and leisure spend ‘up 2.7%’
in July
Consumer spending in hospitality grew by 2.7% in July, far faster than the overall rate of consumer spend growth of 1.4%.
July was a stronger month for the hospitality trade, up a solid 2.7% year-on-year, according to the latest Barclays Consumer Spend report which analyses hundreds of millions of customer transactions. Restaurant spend also rose by 1.9%.
The growth far outstripped the 1.4% overall rate of growth for total consumer card spending.
Essential spending fell by 0.7% in July while non-essential spend, which includes visits to restaurants and pubs, grew by a significant 2.4%, potentially indicating a shift in consumers’ priorities back to leisure spending.
The study also found that 75% of consumers “remain confident in their ability to live within their means”, just one point below the 76% level in June.
Hospitality Apprenticeship launched
UKHospitality and HIT Training have announced the launch of a new Hospitality Graduate Apprenticeship Programme. Launching this month, the five-year, work-based programme is designed to create a pipeline of future hospitality leaders. The programme includes Level 3, Level 5 and Level 7 apprenticeships – tailored to different career entry points and fully fundable via the apprenticeship levy or 95% government coinvestment.
SMALL PLATES, BIG CHANGES
The Lowdown
Venue name: Six One Six
Location: Chester
Format: Restaurant and Bar
Caterer: Matthew Veryard
Opening hours: Mon-Tues 5pm up to 1am, Wed-Sun noon up to 1am
Staff: 33
Covers: 180 sit down, but 220 for a party
With its dazzling cacti exterior and modern Latin American cuisine, the newlook Six One Six restaurant is succulent both inside and out.
In February 2023, the opportunity arose for Matthew Veryard to take on a venue in Chester and – despite having zero restaurant experience – he decided to go for it. “I was at a crossroads in life,” he says. “I, very naively, thought ‘I can run a restaurant.’ It has been a huge learning curve.”
His love of premium meals in big cities was the inspiration behind Six One Six, which opened in July 2023. “We went high-end service, fine dining, and then we had modern British cuisine – homemade shepherd’s pie, steak, battered hake and chips.”
Matthew knuckled down to make the business work. “Other than Christmas Day, I’d not had a holiday for two years. I’ve worked 18- or 19-hour days. I’ve managed to spin plates and keep this alive. There have been times when it feels like I’m pushing water uphill with a fork, but then something good happens. We might get a five-star review, or we make someone’s evening really special and get good feedback, or if we take on a new member of the team, that boosts morale and spurs me on.”
Despite his best efforts, after 18 months the numbers were still struggling. “Something had to change because we weren’t increasing our revenue and hitting targets,” he says.
He began to thoroughly analyse the venue to see where there might be room for improvement.
“The restaurant was dark and moody – we put in a marble backlit roof and the walls were black. It’s very much a city thing – but Chester is different in what people want. People wouldn’t want to go in for lunch.”
He was also competing with another restaurant on the street offering similar fare.
So he decided to take a huge risk and switch cuisine. “I think a lot of the trend was going towards smaller plates, tapas style, so we decided to go with a Latin American-inspired menu,” he says. “Bringing in the small plates menu added a more accessible element to the business – it’s more affordable and a more sociable dining experience.”
He introduced the new menu at the beginning of the year. “We’re bringing nachos, tacos and small plates all together with a beach club vibe.”
New dishes include Blackened Hake with a Homemade Salsa from the à la carte menu and large open tacos to eat with a knife and fork. Favourites on the Small Plates menu are Birria Beef Croquetas with Lime Crème Fraîche, Mini Tacos, Triple Cheese Croqueta and Nachos. There is also tableside theatre with the Hot Rocks Sizzlers offering options of steak, chicken or vegetables. “They really have that wow factor,” Matthew beams.
A significant amount of the restaurant’s stock comes from Booker. “We are using Booker Blackgate rib eye and fillets,” says Matthew. “For quality and the consistent high level of stock we need weekly, Booker is hard to beat.
“When we first started, I didn’t get any meat from Booker – we just sourced locally – but it became inconsistent. I was shocked at how good the quality of the meat was from Booker.
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Born survivor
Much of Matthew’s drive to succeed comes after a gruelling battle with meningitis during his mid-20s.
“January 2011 was the first time I contracted meningitis,” he says. “I was in St James’ Hospital for two months, then I was an outpatient for six months.”
He faced many setbacks on the road to recovery: “I had to move back in with my parents, I was on steroids, I had seizures and couldn’t drive,” he says.
Further relapses in 2012 and 2013 left Matthew more determined than ever to make a success of himself.
Having come through the other side, Matthew is now keen to help other meningitis survivors. He has been in talks with the charity Meningitis Now and is planning to set up an initiative whereby two survivors and one charity volunteer are invited to dine at Six One Six each month.
“We’ve just committed with Booker for our new oil supply and waste oil collections. We also use them for a lot of dry goods, like Cajun seasoning, as well as cleaning products.”
He has developed a strong partnership with the group. “Booker has always been good. Adam, the site manager, is always responsive within good timeframes if I need something and I never have any issues with the butcher,” he says. “The delivery drivers are good, and the service has been great overall.”
It was Booker’s personal service that really won Matthew over. “I used to walk round [the] Booker [depot] and collect everything, and a lady called Nicola gave the Waitrose service where they walk you to the product you're trying to find. That made me feel good. That service locked me into using them – that built my trust and loyalty.”
He later signed up for deliveries three times a week, which have now grown to daily. “Now I’m spending a few thousand a week with Booker. They deliver and they’re consistent. They’ve come out twice in the same day for us once when something was missing from a delivery. Although you're dealing with a national business, you feel valued.”
With the food side of the business in a much better place, Matthew decided to embark on a major fit-out. “I personally designed and project-
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managed the new fit-out, whilst balancing keeping the venue open. “We’ve had a big stone wall put in – it’s cream with a terracotta accent – and we’ve put big cactuses outside.”
He has seen an instant uplift in footfall. “We’ve seen such a difference in people walking in now that we’ve taken a new direction,” he says. “Before, we were getting tourists through the door, but now we’re getting more locals.”
His next move is to change how the business operates. “Although we’re getting more walk-ins, financially we haven’t grown enough. I think to push the business to where it needs to be, there need to be systems in place.”
He is eager to impress upon each team member just how much he needs them. “Everybody’s role is so important – from the head chef to a barback or a kitchen porter – without that cog turning, the rest won't move. Every single element from the moment the customer books in needs to be well managed.”
Matthew has a keen interest in technology and believes that smart kit can help to bring in more efficiency. “I love technology,” he beams. “I’m in the middle of implementing Nory AI, which will predict our future revenue. It tells the chef what he needs to order and manage waste. Knowing digitally what is on site is key.”
He is also working on ways to get customers to stay longer to make use of the restaurant’s bar. “We’re actually building a loyalty app scheme and when we launch in October we’ll give away some free margaritas, potentially for the first 616 signups.” The app will unlock access to special cocktails, menus, additional offers and rewards.
There’s also plenty of entertainment to keep guests enthralled. A DJ plays most Saturdays and the venue hosts acoustic live artists on a Sunday. Matthew runs themed events too, such as a Masquerade Halloween party and tequila tasting nights – with lots more to come this festive period.
He hosts private hires and business events as well. “We’ve got a new private dining area for 22, spread across four tables and standing room for mingling. There’s also an outside terrace for up to 50.”
Matthew is the first to concede that his restaurant vision is a work in progress. But with ideas flowing faster than the tequilas and ladles of enthusiasm, he remains hungry to develop. “I’ve had to learn how to do the building work, learn to manage people – it’s been challenge after challenge after challenge. I’ve not got everything right, but I’m learning and growing.”
Having taken the bull by the horns and rebranded the restaurant, this Mex is set to take it to the max.
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BLOOMING MARVELLOUS
At garden centre-based
Canalside
Restaurant, the staff are nurtured every bit as much as the plants to ensure strong business growth.
The Lowdown
Venue name: Canalside Restaurant
Location: Whilton Locks Garden Village, Daventry, Northamptonshire
Format: Restaurant
Caterer: Jackie Hunt
Opening hours: 9-5 Mon-Sat and 10-4:30 on Sunday
Staff: 36
Jackie and Jeremy Hunt opened their garden centre, Whilton Locks Garden Village, in March 2004. Canalside Restaurant within the centre was initially rented out, before Jackie took matters into her own hands: “The people we rented it to didn’t give the garden centre the restaurant it needed,” she says.
Her father ran 20-odd Kentucky Fried Chicken shops, so she knew what was required. “When I was a child I used to work there and the processes and practices are transferable.
“Although the customer is very different, it gave me an idea of what was involved.”
With Jackie at the helm, the restaurant soon outgrew its 55-seat capacity. “As
soon as I can’t find someone a table, I want an extension,” she says. “I can’t have people without a table.”
The restaurant has had two extensions so far, giving it three different identities. The first extension added 80 covers and has become The Main Canalside Restaurant.
Accessibility and inclusivity are high on her list of priorities. “We encourage people with additional needs – we can have eight people in wheelchairs around a table and their carers. We’ve got the space and it doesn’t hurt us to be inclusive,” Jackie says.
The second extension took the form of a glass conservatory, known as The Greenhouse, bringing indoor seating up to 225.
The original part of the restaurant is known as The Potting Shed. Its dark wood walls are warm and cosy, with tools hanging on the wall. It’s also a dog-friendly zone, offering Dog Afternoon Teas, featuring rabbit ears and chicken feet, a Puppuccino and liver or carrot cupcakes.
For non-canines, the most popular dishes by volume sales are the All Day Breakfasts, of which there are 12 different varieties. Other top meals are Ham, Egg & Chips and Homemade Quiche with new potatoes and vegetables.
Paninis are another strong seller and come served with chips and a salad garnish. “The biggest seller is ham and cheese,” says Jackie. “I’d love
Winter wonderland
As the restaurant heads towards Christmas, Canalside switches to a winter menu and the garden centre adds on an additional catering element.
“We have an ice rink here at Christmas, so I move catering to there too,” says Jackie. “We have a bolt-on ‘Cake Away’ with hot chocolate, cookies, chips and loaded fries. Food and drink is served in takeaway cups and trays.”
They also run a special Breakfast with Santa event. “I don’t mean breakfast and a random man puts on a suit,” says Jackie. “We do it properly – the room is full of elves, it’s magical.
“When you’ve done 250 breakfasts on a Santa morning and you poke your head out and everyone’s having a great time –that’s an amazing feeling.”
our most popular dish to be more exciting, but it is what it is. You mustn't be drawn into too much fancy stuff and move away from what people want.”
Booker has become a vital partner. “We have a van full of bacon, eggs, baguettes, paninis, hash browns and cheese,” she says. “We ought to have our own cow with the amount of cheese we use!”
She has switched from depot visits to twice-weekly deliveries. “Now that we have deliveries it’s brilliant. It’s much more convenient, because you can just click away. If you’ve got a good relationship with your rep, then deliveries are the way forward because it frees up your time to do
what you’re good at – and let Booker do what they’re good at.”
Baked goods are another speciality at Canalside. “All our cakes are homemade, apart from carrot cake and apple pie,” she says. “It allows our staff (age 16–70+) to flex their creative muscles.
“All the eggs and flour are from Booker and we go through tons of Summer County margarine because it’s great for baking. It makes lovely buttercream icing, which we decorate our large cakes and cupcakes with.”
Listening to staff and giving them the freedom to express their ideas is crucial to keeping them happy and loyal, explains Jackie. “KFC was
about getting the same product dayin day-out, but it did lead to people not feeling valued quite so much,” she says.
“It’s not enough to just pay wages, it needs to be a good, kind, compassionate place to work. Getting and retaining staff is one of the challenges to the catering trade.”
Treating her staff well keeps turnover low. “We’re lucky that they stay with us a long time, which means customers see a friendly face when they come in,” she says.
“Friendliness is what I look for instore. Other stuff can be trained.”
And training is something Jackie invests heavily in. “We put the
youngsters on front-of-house duty through their level one NVQs and then as they get older, they do level 2 and level 3 for the people who work in the kitchen. If people show an interest, I’m happy to pay for their training because it makes them feel valued. We also offer first aid and allergy training. I want this to be a good place to work.”
Apart from afternoon teas (which can be booked in advance), the restaurant never knows how many people will walk in. But, as Jackie claims, that’s all part of the fun (and the fear!). “The part of the job that brings me the most enjoyment –and the scariest thing about the job – are the same,” she says. “It’s
when you have got a queue out of the door. The tickets are coming out of the machine faster than you can produce the stuff and everyone on the team looks at each other in fear and gets their heads down. Two hours later when tickets are gone and the queues are down and we all say, ‘Well done everybody – have a coffee and a packet of biscuits’ – that's a real sense of achievement.”
Jackie and her team’s dedication is being rewarded with growing sales. “Business is banging, we’re flying,” she says. “We’re up around 18% year-on-year. That’s why I need to keep my staff, so that we are nimble enough – if I need more chairs, I get
more chairs. I’m proactive, rather than reactive.”
She is turning to technology to encourage further growth and has invested in a new Epos system. She has also invested a hefty £25,000 in a double automated dishwasher.
“The bill for that was interesting, but if it speeds up the turnover of the tables, it’s like you’ve had another table put in.”
And, speaking of tables, Jackie has set her sights on another potential expansion in the garden centre.
“You’ve got to keep pushing forward, or you’re standing still or going backwards,” she concludes.
TRULY SCRUMPTIOUS
Since joining Stroud Rugby Club, Bar Manager Victoria Millross has taken the ball and run with it, creating restaurant-inspired dishes and implementing a host of new ideas.
Stroud Rugby Club has been a fixture in the Gloucestershire market town since way back in 1873. Fast-forward almost 150 years to 2022 and, with minis and junior teams ranging from under6s to the Colts under-18s, plus the Nomads adult second team and the main Stroud Rugby team, the club has flourished into a thriving community sports hub.
What was less of a priority was the catering aspect of the business. So when Victoria Millross joined the club as a bar worker, she was keen to kick the food and drink side of the operation into shape.
The Lowdown
Venue name: Stroud RFC
Location: Stroud, Gloucestershire
Format: Bars and function halls
Caterer name: Victoria Millross
Opening hours: Bar open 7pm9.30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays; on Saturday (sometimes Friday) open for a home matches or for the first team drinks after an away game
Staff: Eight bar staff, eight kitchen staff, plus eight volunteers
Capacity: 100 sit-down, 150 standing
Victoria has a raft of qualifications in service, mixology, winery and food health & safety. She had previously left catering and applied for the bar role simply to make some extra money, but it quickly became a labour of love.
With the nearest branch 45 minutes away, Victoria contacted Booker to ask about deliveries, and her wish was granted. This not only saves time, but money too as the club used to top-up at supermarkets between Booker visits.
“We saved a lot of money switching to Booker. A crate of 24 soft drinks would be £12.50 from the supermarket, but it’s £8.95 from Booker.” Victoria then took charge of ordering and stock taking, allowing club Chairman Iain Bushell, Vice Chair Tim Marshfield and Finance Director Nicky Gamble to concentrate on the rugby side of things. “I was able to take that stress off of them," she says.
Victoria was promoted to Bar Manager earlier this year and introduced new processes such as regular line cleaning and enhanced hygiene checks. “There’s a bar cleaning sheet for everyone to tick,
a new starter form, and a training form,” she says. She also created time sheets to help manage staffing and payroll.
The club serves a mixed demographic: “Predominantly it's a male customer base on Tuesday and Thursday evenings for training, then on match days which usually fall on Saturday there is a range of ages as people come to support the teams. All the kids’ rugby teams have full access to the club too, and their parents and coaches oversee catering for them. We also get a lot of the older generation.”
Match days are full-on for the catering staff. “We offer a range of fast food during the game: burgers, hot dogs, and chips with curry sauce or gravy.” Sponsors can watch the match in a dedicated lounge, which also offers catering. After the match, players are served a meal with Kitchen Manager Emma managing the meal rota, helped by assistant Ginny.
“You're cooking for 40 to 50 rugby lads so it has to be things that can be batch cooked and kept warm and that are easy to portion up,” says Victoria.
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Keeping it simple with Booker
Achieving Booker’s minimum order requirement for deliveries is no challenge for the club. “It’s easy for us to reach, even when we're quite quiet so I don't have to be looking a month ahead,” says Victoria.
“I do almost all of the orders through the Booker app. It's just so easy to use and it's really handy to just be able to add to the order, so say on Friday I think ‘oh I need two of these’ then I'll just add it to the [virtual] trolley and then come Sunday I can then process it.”
She adds: “The communication from the delivery drivers is great. They always call our caretaker 30 minutes before arriving so he can open up for them.”
“They might have bacon, leek and cheese pasta bake, or shepherd's pie. It’s just things where we can buy the ingredients from Booker, bulk freeze, and then bring out and use for match days.
All food, spirits and soft drinks come from Booker, plus plastic glasses for match days, plastic cutlery, serving trays and cleaning products.
The venue’s floodlights enable ‘Friday Night Lights’ games during the winter season which are “big money makers”, says Victoria. Another important evening is the club’s monthly ‘meal and a pint’ night when the players can get fed and watered for £7.50 after training.
“I cook the boys fakeaway dishes or I'll do them a nice chicken donburi, which is shredded chicken, rice, sugar snap peas and green beans.”
Victoria has also redecorated the bar and sponsors’ lounge. Next up is a revamp of the changing rooms and possibly adding a pitch-side serving hatch to the downstairs bar. The club has also invested in CCTV, pitch drainage and re-seeding.
Victoria also encourages the community to use the building. The events hall and members' bar are available, and another bar is popular. "We have a breastfeeding group there once a week. People also use it for first aid courses or training courses at work." The venue also hosts children’s parties, weddings and funerals.
Victoria believes promoting further use of the club will help to futureproof it. “It’s critical to mitigate weather dependency in winter,” she says.
The number of rugby teams at the club also continues to grow, with the launch of its first women's team and a walking rugby initiative.
“I want to be the best we can be and be part of the community,” says Victoria. “We're not just a club, we are a community club, and we are a family.”
Sounds pitch perfect to us.
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NEW VENUE!
THE BIRMINGHAM NEC
Booker Catering Trade Show
Wednesday 24 September 2025 Register Now!
[REGISTRATION LINK TO GO HERE]
Get set to be dazzled by Booker’s Catering Show 2025 – set to take place from its new home at the Birmingham NEC.
Grab your shades people because the highlight of the catering calendar is almost upon us and promising to dazzle like never before.
That’s right, Booker’s Catering Show is back for 2025 – brighter, bigger and better than ever, thanks to its brand-new home at the Birmingham NEC – the UK’s largest event space.
Taking place on Wednesday 24 September in the NEC’s vast Hall 2 – the Catering Show will feature more than 120 exhibitors from across the catering gamut, from leading food and drink suppliers to trusted equipment and service providers.
And, as always, the Catering Show will also provide that generous serving of Exclusive Offers and Trade Show Only prices that caterers so highly prize.
Caterers like Arvinder Kaur, Owner of the Best Plaice fish and chip shop in Northampton.
THE CATERING TRADE SHOW HAS BEEN A FANTASTIC EXPERIENCE, WE’VE COME AWAY WITH SOME GREAT IDEAS THANKS TO ALL THE SAMPLING STATIONS AND COOKERY DEMONSTRATIONS. WE’VE DISCOVERED AN EXCITING RANGE OF NEW PRODUCTS THAT WILL HELP US ADD A NEW DIMENSION TO OUR OFFER.
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“We come to the Catering Show every year. It’s such a fantastic opportunity to explore the range of new products available to us. Another bonus is being able to get up close and personal with key suppliers and of course, take advantage of the many great Trade Show Deals,” he says.
“The Catering Show is also a great source of inspiration; there are so many sampling stations here and it’s been wonderful to try new products and ingredients,” Arvinder adds.
With live cookery and butchery demonstrations galore, visitors will be treated to a veritable banquet of inspiration.
Fresh will play a starring role – with visitors treated to a feast of fresh from the moment the get-go – thanks to Booker’s bountiful Farm Fresh stand located right at the entrance.
From sprouts to spuds and onions to oranges, the Farm Fresh stand will be positively bursting with fresh produce and fresh ideas from key Booker suppliers, including Stourgarden, TH Clements and Sons, Branston and more.
Further fresh finery will be found just a few steps beyond - at the inspirational Booker Butchery & Blackgate stand – a firm favourite with Catering Show visitors year after year.
Visitors to this awe-inspiring stand will be able to see and sample Booker’s exemplary butchery offer, including best-selling and new products from the award-winning Blackgate brand.
They will also get the chance to meet members of the Booker Butchery team including its expert Master Butchers, who will be on hand to offer practical advice and top tips to help them elevate their plates.
This stand is sure to leave them hungry for more and fortunately, there will be an equally sweet serving of inspiration and advice to be had at the ‘Booker Desserts’ stand – just across the aisle.
At ‘Booker Desserts’ show visitors will have the chance to sample the best of Booker’s dessert offer - along with recipe ideas and advice to help them whip up desserts that spoon in tasty profits too.
Live action!
Then it’s on to the Booker Chef’s Stage where customers can enjoy live cookery demonstrations from renowned and celebrity chefs.
And, with the build up to the allimportant Christmas season well and truly on, caterers can also experience the gift that is Booker’s dedicated Christmas zone.
Packed with new products and festive favourites, along with tableware, decorations, seasonal beverages and more, the Booker Christmas zone will have everything you need to plan ahead - and get Christmas 2025 all wrapped up.
Booker’s World Of Wine stand meanwhile, will see caterers embark on a grape adventure – as they discover Booker’s global wine range from key suppliers including Australian Vintage, Boland Cellar, Bolgrad Winery, Italian Wine Brands, LGCF, Origin Wines and more.
Savings to shout about
And with the need to save money and protect profits set to remain a theme for caterers in 2025 and
beyond, visitors to the show will also be able to discover new ways in which they can ‘Save More With Booker’ by learning about the many solutions available to them from key Booker partners including Collect My Waste, Hawley Energy and Saffron Business Solutions.
And as ever, caterers visiting the show will also be able to enjoy an array of product giveaways, games and competitions – as well as all the fabulous food available.
Getting here
Another advantage of the Catering Show’s new home at the Birmingham NEC – aside from its size – is just how accessible it is.
Located in the centre of the UK’s motorway network, including the M42, M40 and M6, the Birmingham NEC is easily accessible by car and by train thanks to its close proximity to Birmingham International Railway Station – which is just a five-minute walk away via a covered ‘Bridgelink’.
For caterers planning to visit the show from further afield, Birmingham International Airport is also just a short train ride away –meaning it’s never been so easy to visit.
So what are you waiting for? Register today and prepare to bask in the glow of Booker’s 2025 Catering Show.
FESTIVE PLANS: SORTED
Booker is here to make planning a busy and profitable festive season as simple, stress-free and special as possible with a fantastic range of food, drinks and tableware.
Visit the Christmas Preview website: booker.co.uk/ external/christmas/
Pre-orders available until 30 September
While consumers’ minds are still on the tail end of summer and the possibility of another warm weekend or two, most Booker catering customers will already be well into their planning for what everyone hopes will be a busy, freespending festive period.
To help you plan ahead, Booker has created a dedicated Christmas Preview platform that includes a dedicated brochure, a bespoke website and a special Pre-Order solution. The goal is to help you make planning your festive season as easy, hassle-free and special as possible.
From food and drinks to tableware, Booker has collected everything
you need to build a profitable festive season into one place –saving you time and effort and freeing you and your team up to focus on delivering fantastic customer service.
Pre-order
There’s no better way to plan ahead with confidence than by using Booker’s Pre-Order service. It gives you access to exclusive products available only through Pre-Order and lets you secure key stock ahead of the season. That means you can get ahead of the game, avoid last-minute stress, and buy yourself some much-needed precious time as the busy festive period approaches.
The Pre-Order window closes on 30 September, so now is the time to visit the Christmas Preview website, download the brochure and organise your order before submitting it on the main Booker website in good time.
Then you can relax, safe in the knowledge that you will have exactly what you need when you need it as Christmas draws closer.
Standout starters
Whether you’re looking to impress your customers with something luxurious and indulgent or keep it classic with traditional crowdpleasers, Booker has you covered for festive starters.
Time is money – particularly during the hectic Christmas period – so Booker’s range of pre-portioned and fully prepared options let you save time without compromising on quality. Many options are ready to serve, delivering the ultimate in convenience and minimising kitchen and serving time.
From fish, seafood and paté to cheese and charcuterie, there’s something for every taste and every budget.
With sharing dishes so popular these days, why not consider offering some showpiece deli boards and sharers as starters? Booker has a fine selection of bite-size options that can be combined to create showpiece starters.
The main event
There’s nothing quite like Christmas dinner – and for many consumers it’s the culinary highlight of the year. Booker offers one of the widest selections of festive mains, all available prepared and ready to go, or tailored by our expert butchery team to meet your precise needs.
Classic poultry mains will be popular again this year, whether that’s traditional turkey or succulent chicken, as will British beef favourites like roast beef and 5 Bone Ribs. For the more adventurous, why not consider modern takes like Beef Short Rib with Maple & Bourbon Glaze or Beef Shin Bourguignon Pie?
Pork and gammon are also likely to feature heavily over the festive period, as ever, while lamb never goes out of fashion. Whatever your needs, Booker has everything you need – including fish mains and vegetarian and vegan options. And what would Christmas dinner be without all the trimmings? Pigs in blankets, Yorkshire puddings, stuffing, gravy, veg and more.
Decadent desserts
There’s no better way to round off a festive lunch or dinner than with a decadent dessert – and Booker has more than 40 options available, all
with minimal fuss and effort. There are classics like Tartelette au Citron and Raspberry Trifle Gateau, and modern twists like Salted Pistachio Semifreddo and Vanilla & Lotus Biscoff Cheesecake. In fact, there’s everything your customers could possibly want and more. And while you’re at it, don’t forget to take a look at the indulgent line-up of ice creams and sorbets.
Say cheese
Finally, it’s time for the cheese board – and Booker has a huge selection covering every flavour profile and type of cheese you can imagine, from
flavoured cheeses, Brie and goat’s cheeses to glorious hard cheese and powerful blues.
Drink it in
To help wash all of that delicious festive fare down, Booker can offer you a comprehensive range of beers, ciders, wines, spirits and Champagne – as well as a full range of low- and no-alcohol options. For the final touch, there’s also a great range of festive crackers and tableware to choose from.
The stage is set. It’s time to plan for a cracker of a Christmas.
CHIPS, GLORIOUS CHIPS
The humble chip is among the most versatile and profitable products in any kitchen and Booker’s new and extended range of own brand chips and fries opens up even more opportunities to grow sales and margins.
It’s easy to overlook the role of the humble chip in the professional kitchen. Whether served as a simple traditional accompaniment to everything from fish and burgers to steaks or offered loaded with an endless variety of sauces and toppings, chips make their way onto the vast majority of menus and are routinely devoured and loved by your customers. Best of all, chips are quick to prepare and serve, they’re inexpensive to buy and they deliver fantastic profits.
Extended range
To help its catering customers cash in on this perennial crowd-pleasing favourite, Booker has recently updated its range of frozen chips with
the addition of four new lines. First there’s the new Chef’s Essentials Chunky Chips which are available in cases of 4x2.5kg that cost just £13.19. That’s only £1.32 per kilo. Perfect as an accompaniment for a huge range of dishes, these chunky chips deliver exceptional quality and value, as well as big profits.
Also new are three high-end products under the Chef’s Premium brand. The Super Crispy French Fries, Super Crispy Skin-On French Fries and Triple Cooked Chunky Chips offer fresh opportunities to elevate traditional dishes and take advantage of the loaded fries trend. All three lines come in cases of 4x2.5kg at £16.99 each, or £1.70 per kilo, leaving you with plenty of scope to grow your margins on every dish served.
Grow margins
One clear opportunity that requires very little in terms of preparation time in the kitchen is using the new premium chips and fries to revitalise the loaded fries options on your menu. The opportunities here are limited only by the imagination of your kitchen team but taking loaded fries to an entirely new level is quick and easy using only a few ingredients that you can easily get from Booker. How about Dirty Fries with Pulled Pork or Chilli Beef Nacho Fries?
Simple to prepare that extra time, effort and planning can help you command a much higher sell price.
Quality and value
Booker’s extensive range of own brand chips delivers the quality and value you have come to expect, with something for every taste and every budget.
Chef’s Essentials
Chef’s Essentials Chunky Chips
4x2.5kg
£13.19
£1.32 per kilo M303938
Chef’s Menu
Chef’s Menu Crispy Steak Cut Chips
4x2.5kg
£14.99
£1.50 per kilo M303954
Chef’s Premium
Chef’s Premium Super Crispy French Fries
4x2.5kg
£16.99
£1.70 per kilo M303928
Chef’s Menu
Chef’s Menu Crispy Skin On Straight Cut Chips 10mm 4x2.5kg
£14.99
£1.50 per kilo M303963
Chef’s Menu
Chef’s Menu Crispy Julienne Fries 4x2.5kg
£14.99
£1.50 per kilo M303952
Chef’s Premium
Chef’s Premium Super Crispy Skin-On Fries 4x2.5kg
£16.99
£1.70 per kilo M303923
Chef’s Essentials
Chef’s Essentials Straight Cut Chips 4x2.5kg
£13.19
£1.32 per kilo M303934
Chef’s Menu
Chef’s Menu Crispy Straight Cut Chips 12mm 4x2.5kg
£14.99
£1.50 per kilo M303959
Chef’s Menu
Chef’s Menu Crispy Straight Cut Chips 10mm 4x2.5kg
£14.99
£1.50 per kilo M303956
Chef’s Premium
Chef’s Premium Triple Cooked Chunky Chips 4x2.5kg
£16.99
£1.70 per kilo M303918
CHICKEN
M296074
M296078
M264624
M264626
Still time to grab locked down prices
You can still lock in your profits on over 600 products with the latest pricing guarantee from Booker.
Casa Solis Reserva Chardonnay/ Merlot/ Sauvignon Blanc
6x75cl
£36.99
M301709/ M301806/ M301787
Peroni Nastro Azzurro Gluten Free 12x330ml
£14.99
San Miguel Especial Premium Lager 12x330ml
£10.49
88p/bottle M301376
Amstel Bier Premium Pilsener 12x300ml £6.49
£1.25/bottle M279523 Sol 12x330ml
54p/bottle M301527
71p/bottle M292725
Cruzcampo Sevilla 12x330ml
£9.49
79p/bottle M289379
Becks NRB 24x275ml
£16.99
71p/bottle M258676
BrewDog Wingman Session IPA 6x4x330ml
£23.99
£1/can M250042
£1.13/bottle M070991
Birra Moretti NRB UK 24x330ml £23.49
98p/bottle M232387 Mahou 12x330ml £8.49
Asahi Super Dry 12x330ml £11.99
99p/bottle M285089
Budweiser 24x330ml
£20.99
88p/bottle M234022
Heineken 12x330ml
£10.99
92p/bottle M249725
Adding value to your business
Make more and save more by taking advantage of exclusive deals and discounts through Booker’s Added Value Services programme.
Join the Club
If you like the sound of exclusive prices on key products plus additional member benefits and services, why not join the Booker On Trade Club and the Booker Fast Food Club? Sign up and start saving!
Speak to your Catering Development Manager today.
In today’s competitive marketplace, it’s never been more important to maximise profits.
That's why Booker has continued to grow, expand and improve its Added Value Services platform, giving customers more and more opportunities to reduce the cost of doing business.
To do this, Booker has brought together a range of recommended suppliers that are able to help you cut costs all year round. Using its extensive buying power, Booker has negotiated exclusive deals and discounts with these suppliers –and continues to add new services all the time.
Labl.it
With the innovative labelling technology from Labl. it, kitchens can cut admin time by 75% – as well as driving safer, faster and more compliant businesses.
Booker Catering customers receive 10,000 free labels and a 10% exclusive discount. A 14-day trial is included.
info@labl.it
www.labl.it
0800 047 2320
Cut energy costs
Saffron Business Solutions has been in partnership with Booker for over 15 years and has saved Booker catering customers over £350k on their energy bills in the last six months alone! So get in touch and you could save thousands on your energy supply.
03448 222 802 / 07375 062 549
www.sb-solutions.co.uk
info@sb-solutions.co.uk
Top tips
Is your business in line with the Fair Tips Act? Records of all tips must be kept for three years, 100% of tips must go to staff,
New income
Hawley Energy offers Booker catering customers exciting new ways to cut energy costs and generate new income through one-stop-shop solutions like fitting EV chargers or solar installations on your premises. Start saving from day one with no upfront payment!
To access your exclusive savings, get in touch quoting ‘CAT 24’.
hello@hawleyenergy.co.uk 01484 819 317
hawleyenergy. co.uk
Unleash your payments potential
Switch your payments to Worldpay and you can start benefitting today from exclusively negotiated rates:
Debit card 0.279% per transaction
Credit card 0.650% per transaction
Commercial card 1.990% per transaction
Terminal rental £15.00 per month
Scan the QR code to find out more.
a written tipping policy must be displayed, and all tips must be paid by the end of the next calendar month. JustTip allows caterers to separate tips from business revenues to save you 15% NIC on all gratuities. Booker
catering customers also benefit from an exclusive 25% discount.
Collect My Waste offers Booker catering customers trade waste management at exclusive trade prices, giving you an easy and hassle-free way to order and manage your waste collections. Services include general waste, mixed recycling, glass recycling, food waste and one-off clearances. You’ll get an instant quote with competitive pricing, an easy-touse app that holds all your data and invoices in one place, and connected, real-time updates about your collections.
Visit collectmywaste.com and quote ‘BOOKERWASTE’ along with your Booker number to claim a discount of up to 11%.
Oil collection
Booker Catering customers can earn £6 from every 20 litres of cooking oil they recycle, with free collections on minimum quantities of 60 litres.
Simply call 0345 120 4545 and quote your customer number or scan the QR code to start saving.
Allergen support
Do you know which allergens are in your food? Caterers using Erudus do. Its Allergen & Nutritional Data Search allows caterers to quickly and easily identify the 14 major food allergens in the products you’re using.
Visit signup.erudus.com and sign up for your free account.
Mobile phones
Did you know that you can save up to 40% on business phones, plus get a welcome bonus of up to £60 – exclusively for Booker customers – when you switch to Tesco Mobile? Tesco Mobile has 99% 4G population coverage, no mid-contract price rises, big data allowances and the flexibility to change your tariff up and down monthly and cap your bill.
Visit the Tesco Mobile Shop, visit tescomobile.com/ business or call its dedicated business team on 0800 032 1160.
Bridging the gap
In our latest feature on Booker’s Colleague Networks, we explore the valuable work and meaningful impact of Women@Booker.
Whether we’re talking tunnels, computers or communities –networks are all about connection: linking people and things together to facilitate collaboration, communication and understanding.
They can also offer a place of safety and support – and that’s exactly what Booker is offering via its four thriving Colleague Networks, which seek to advocate, support and celebrate colleagues from all backgrounds and walks of life.
Including Women@Booker, Race & Ethnicity at Booker, LGBTQ+ at Booker and Disability at Booker –the four networks are open to all colleagues and share three key objectives: Amplify, Celebrate and Consult. Each strives to spark important conversations and foster a deeper sense of connection and understanding across the business.
Over the coming months, we’re taking a closer look at each of the four networks to find out more about how they work, what they offer and the positive impacts they have on colleagues’ health, happiness and wellbeing.
This issue, it’s the turn of Women@ Booker – the first of the four networks to launch back in 2023.
Since its establishment on International Women’s Day 2023, Women@Booker has touched the lives of thousands of colleagues – providing a safe space for
A SPECTACLE FOR THE SENSES
them to come together, share experiences and learn.
The Women@Booker network also strives to amplify the voices of those who identify as female, championing gender equality, raising awareness of gender imbalance and supporting, educating and motivating female careers in a bid to drive positive change. It does this via impactful communication campaigns, learning and development sessions, and numerous in-person and online events.
Recognising the importance of engaging with and supporting Booker’s male colleagues too – all events, initiatives and
WE’VE SEEN REAL PROGRESS IN MALE ALLYSHIP ACROSS THE GROUP THIS YEAR – FROM AMPLIFYING VOICES NOT IN THE ROOM TO DEEPER SUPPORT AND EVERYDAY ACTION.
learning sessions are open to all colleagues, including men.
Incorporating International Women’s Day in March and International Men’s Day in November, Women@Booker supports numerous national events that champion diversity, equity and inclusion throughout the year. Women@Booker also organises a number of its own meaningful events and awareness days.
In the last year alone, the network has hosted a Wellbeing Festival and a raft of activity in support of Women’s Health Week. Women@ Booker has also partnered with male suicide prevention charity Andy’s Man Club and organised
a recent Allyship event to outline the importance of allyship to underrepresented groups and what allyship for women looks like.
Colleagues have also been given the opportunity to boost their skillsets with Bite Size Learning sessions and take part in a Speed Mentoring event – among many other things.
With women’s sport having taken centre stage over the summer of 2025 thanks to the Women’s Euros and other major tournaments in rugby union and cricket, Booker colleagues were also invited to participate in a host of engaging events to celebrate female role models at the top of their game.
stuart hyslop, executive sponsor
& GROW
And there will certainly be no let-up in the months ahead, with a raft of activity designed to help support career progression set for the autumn – including a further Speed Mentoring event in October and a Career Upskilling Conference in November.
Featuring inspirational external speakers, engaging interactive learning and excellent networking opportunities, the conference is expected to attract more than 200 colleagues.
Women@Booker is also currently working on a plan for International Men’s Day 2025 that will focus on promoting positive conversations about men and masculinity.
Further communication campaigns will continue raising awareness of key women’s health topics, including baby loss, ovarian cancer and menopause.
OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, WE’VE SEEN A STRONG INCREASE IN WOMEN IN OUR MOST SENIOR ROLES INCLUDING ACROSS OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM, WHERE THE PROPORTION OF WOMEN HAS NEARLY DOUBLED.
sheila gallagher, executive sponsor
The network’s aims are delivered with the help and support of a dedicated team, which includes two Executive Sponsors, a Chair and Vice Chair, a Steerco Committee with two joint leads, and six colleagues who all work to shape the network’s future.
It includes a number of inspirational Network Champions, who strive to advocate for the network and drive positive change – because Women@Booker understands that empowering women empowers everyone.
THE WELLBEING EVENT WAS PUT TOGETHER REALLY WELL, GREAT ORGANISATION AND A FUN AND INTERACTIVE DAY.
WE’VE HAD AN ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT DAY AT THE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY EVENT. IT’S BEEN INSPIRING TO HEAR THE FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCES FROM OUR COLLEAGUES, AND TO HAVE THE CHANCE TO NETWORK AND BUILD STRONG ALLIES TO HELP PROGRESS MY CAREER.
