The Estrella Damm Old Brewery hosts the conference "The management of the future. The new paths of the hotel and catering industry"
More than 15 hospitality professionals shared their knowledge and views on the future of the sector
On 12 April, Estrella Damm, in collaboration with grup gsr, organised the conference "The management of the future. The new paths of the hotel and catering industry", where more than fifteen professionals and experts from the sector discussed the future of the catering industry in a day broadcast via streaming,
Among the many ideas and experiences that were shared, the messages of hope in the recovery of the sector in 2022 served as the common thread of a day that dealt with the current situation of the catering industry as a whole, and which began with the messages of union from Carles Sitjar, gastronomy manager of Estrella Damm, and the director of the Gremi de Restauració de Barcelona, Roger Pallarols. "This day should serve as a turning point because the hotel and catering industry is important not only as a sector but also as a way of understanding life," said Pallarols. A way that Estrella Damm already showed with the "Chefs" campaign, and which Sitjar emphasised: "This crisis we are going through has accelerated the transformation of the sector, a transformation that we will face together".
The booming introduction of private equity funds as financial partners in restaurant companies was discussed by David Romero, CEO of Grupo Andilana, and Raúl Rodríguez, managing director of Aurica Capital (Banco Sabadell's private equity manager), a company that has taken a stake in Grupo Larrumba. "Our entry gives financial power to the restaurants, a stability that helps to improve service and improve quality, but without each restaurant losing its essence," the banker explained. "The entry of investment funds should not be seen as a bad thing, as long as they do not harm the business idea," Romero said. "It is simply a matter of professionalising the sector without the client noticing", "of adapting to the new possibilities for growth that these companies bring", Rodríguez concluded.
Business as usual
The entrepreneurial vision of the sector was followed by the vision of three restaurateurs who have ventured into uncertain times. José Manuel Varela, general manager of Grupo Varela; Iñaki López de Viñaspre, chef and founder of Grupo Sagardi, and Javier Hoyos, executive director of Grupo Flash Flash, have inaugurated premises in 2019 and 2020 and were optimistic: "With the warmth of our customers and by remaining loyal to them we will get ahead", explained Hoyos, "although it is clear that, despite gaining solidity, we have lost money", pointed out De Viñaspre.
Paco Pérez, chef Miramar **, Enoteca ** and Cinco * lamented that "the uncertainty of the closure has been very damaging for the sector, although I hope that this is the end". And the chef admitted that not all businesses will succeed: "companies that were already well managed before, with sufficient capital, will be saved, especially in Spain with less aid than in other parts of Europe". An annotated note and a cry of solidarity: "By being closed, we have taken the opportunity to rethink our ways and grow in empathy, with society, suppliers and customers".
Empathy has also been raised by Fernanda Fuentes, chef NUB* (Costa Adeje, Tenerife), who moved her restaurant in the middle of the pandemic (January). "We have taken advantage of the closure to rethink NUB. It will now be more empathetic, with a vegetarian menu based on local 100% products, with whom we have strengthened relationships. Also with the artists from Tenerife, with whom we have completely redesigned the restaurant".
New paths
The rise of delivery was addressed by three referenced voices: Mani Alam (Fish & Chips), Raúl Tort (Stuart) and Isaac Aliaga (Can Pizza), who made it clear: "Before, delivery accounted for 30% of sales; now it's the other way round, it's 70%". It proved to work, but not for all proposals: "Ours are easier offers to take home (pizza or Japanese cuisine), but not all of them work", they explained. On the other hand, those of his colleagues "are experiences to be lived, where the continent counts a lot," Arriaga commented. The new generation of entrepreneurs countered: "Young people have taken up delivery with enthusiasm and that is what their day-to-day life will be like. Going to the restaurant is going to be the occasional thing".
Teresa Carles, chef at Teresa Carles, and Abel Sierra, founder of Granja Elena, provided a point of calm with gastronomically sustainable messages. Two examples of pioneers in trends (healthy and bistronomy, respectively) who did not hide "the hours they put in and the desire to update ourselves every day", Sierra commented. Thus, with this recipe, they have become temples of reference in Barcelona, places that "return to simplicity, but with perfection in the elaborations", the Zona Franca businessman pointed out.
The essence was key, as was the will to grow. This is what Bruno González (Grosso Napoletano) and Borja Molina (Grupo Nomo), two entrepreneurs from Madrid and Barcelona who have opened or are going to open premises in the other city, talked about. "It's about being very clear about what you are and what you are not and trusting in the human capital of your company," explained González, who will open a Grosso Napoletano in the Catalan capital in June. Nomo already opened this year in Madrid, "and we will continue to grow but little by little, to avoid false steps", they pointed out.
The gastro-business day ended with two songs of hope from two tourism entrepreneurs: Eduard Ávila, director of operations at GastroFira, and Ángel Díaz, president of Advanced Leisure Services and manager of the Colònia Güell - Montjuïc Castle - Wax Museum. The latter defended the promising future of the city of Barcelona in particular: "People will continue to come, but in a sustainable way, and that, with less volume, must be good". Ávila ended on a more optimistic note: "Catering will be the last but we can already see the light at the end of the tunnel. It will be a more versatile, different future, ideal for the new generations". Good words that ended with a forecast: "In autumn the recovery will be seen, and 2022 will already be comparable to 2019". For catering as well.
You can watch the conference "The management of the future. The new ways of hospitality" on Bar Manager's YouTube channel.
