To open a new hotel with an a la carte restaurant during a time of crisis and survive? Should you even get involved in hospitality industry, at what level, with what offer, for whom? Of course, with a passionate, committed, professional, well trained team, with a clear, socially responsible visions and goals, and with the guest as the centre of attention, with an understanding owner and with like-minded partners throughout the destination. The opinion of numerous hotelier is that hospitality industry does not pay off, it’s only a huge expense, there is no trained and devoted personnel, hotel restaurants are a necessary evil, eating away at the income the rooms generate… In general, fear and horror, stay away from hospitality industry, maybe get a cute Bed & Breakfast, and all will be well.
Could hospitality industry be a business? To become recognizable, famous, rich from hospitality industry? To present Slovenia and yourself through food? Enjoy, be fulfilled? Of course, with hard work and very long term, since culture in gastronomy is central. In the (Slovenian) market there are a number of hospitality enterprises (taverns, restaurants, fast food places, hotel restaurants…), which like to prepare the most popular foods, the standard of their offer is different, mostly quite low. At most they offer food, which enables them survival, despite its influences on health, environment, well being…
What we eat, how we eat, when we eat, why we eat, what we know about food, about the culture of nutrition… During mandatory education the school system does not prepare us for life or the way we eat in a way to encourage further reflection. Food is the basis of everything: health, state of mind, identity, culture, ethnology, history, relations, what we eat defines us from different aforementioned points of view.
So how to succeed in this area? Hospitality industry deserves careful planning, a high level of quality, respect, careful approach to its development just as we develop other “more important” areas. Maybe we should start by creating a vision? When creating a vision we put into words what we wish to create in the future. At the same time we put it in line with the tourist development goals of Slovenia, stating: “Slovenia becomes a globally recognizable tourist destination know for its distinctively local character of the offer different from others due to a beneficial geo-strategic placement and natural climate, cultural, culinary and historical heritage between the Alps, Mediterranean and Pannonian plain (RNUST 2007–2011)”.
In line with these points we should shape the vision for development of a hotel or restaurant.
“Hotels and a la carte restaurants will become sample cases of the “right” development in tourism at the destination with the best personal and flexible approach to the guest with most satisfied, professional and motivated employees. Here the guest will feel wanted and will return to us gladly. They will be prepared to pay more for our services than at other hotels of the same category because our offer will be upgraded by the offer of our partners at the destination and wider, with which we will constantly develop new individual programmes for the added value for the guest. Led by highly qualified management, with a top notch a la carte restaurant and connected training programmes tailor made to different target groups and raising the culinary culture in Slovenia”.
Let’s define the mission and answer: “Who are we and what do we want to do?” and to answer the question of our company’s existence. Our mission could be this:
“We have linked the traditional with contemporary. We create unique experiences with service and offer (mostly culinary) which hides a rich cultural and natural heritage and a genuine, caring, individual, professional approach of a dedicated staff, which keeps surprising the guest. We have forged ties with suppliers of different services at the destination and we offer our guests the genuine feeling of that very destination.”
Let’s set concrete goals:
- raising the culinary culture;
- raising recognisability of Slovenian culinary tradition, its riches and environment;
- informing our guests on the possibilities of linking Slovenian culinary tradition with other traditions, kitchens and preparation processes;
- informing our guests on the quality and diversity of Slovenian wines;
- educating our guests on the importance of choosing the right wines with the right dishes;
- educating our guests on the importance of social contacts, socializing by food and drink
- imparting love, curiosity to preparing dishes, setting the table;
- educating the people responsible on the importance and riches of hospitality professions and raising their reputation;
- raising the awareness on the importance of culinary habits and culture, tradition, history we can find in food;
- increasing recognisability;
- increasing income, number of guests in a la carte restaurants, rooms.
Let’s realize our set goals! Let’s develop sets of programmes all striving towards one goal – raising the culture of eating and drinking. Let’s enrich our guests with new knowledge and educate them for a better life. The guests will return since we will offer them different content (business dinners, business meetings with a culinary teambuilding, romantic weekends, birthdays in the kitchen, cooking workshops with friends, culinary evenings with food and wine producers, lectures on hospitality vocations, house fairs…).
We should educate and enrich our guests let them understand our business, let them differentiate between good and bad ingredients, let them get to know local ingredients, let them value the gifts of nature of every season, let them know which wine goes with which food, let them marvel… that the hospitality industry is so rich and lovely, a true show! Let them get to know different techniques of preparing food, global gastronomy trends and numerous rules of preparing food. When they will know all this they will understand us, appreciate us and come back to us.
Let’s educate all from young to old, from singles to families, in a fun and educational way, something for everyone with adaptations, of course! Let’s raise the reputation of hospitality vocations! Excite young people for these professions of the future! Give them a chance to get to know modern hospitality vocations!
Motivate co-workers, send them around the world, give them the right conditions and demand the best! Let’s organize events, be daring, combine the seemingly impossible (maybe top-notch culinary art and beer, maybe more than one wine with a single plate…). Don’t stop, because the riches of the hospitality industry are immense!
Let’s imitate the best so we can all pull our carriage forward!
And what can we harvest?
- a high percentage of income from educational programmes;
- the competition imitates (in competitive companies, schools, similar programmes are developed), this is the only way we can reach our goals;
- satisfaction, compliments and returning of the guests and their interest in our programmes;
- the guests learn new ways to set the table and make different meals and start using this knowledge at home;
- increased interest of young people for hospitality vocations – despite the lack of qualified personnel there is a high demand;
- high recognisability, income, number of guests;
- higher recognisability of local goods;
- number of local providers increases, and so does the quality and diversity of their offer;
- good news travels fast;
- the guests become even more aware of the importance of good food and drinks;
- the guests are more and more aware of Slovenian culinary tradition;
- more and more cooking enthusiasts;
- understanding hospitality vocations and a bigger interest;
- rise of recognisability;
- free media coverage due to interesting and socially responsible programmes and with that lower costs of promotion;
- numerous acknowledgments;
- European means to maintain or encourage local good production.
Moving forward by being socially responsible, passionate, educating and cooperating. There is a future in the hospitality industry!
Marecela Klofutar
