Hotel and Restaurant Times June/July 2017 by Hotel & Restaurant Times

JUNE/JULY ‘17

€3.65

T H E B U S I N E S S P U B L I C AT I O N F O R T H E H OT E L A N D R E S TAU R A N T I N D U S T R Y

The Address

Dublin’s latest chic destination

Markree Castle

Sensitive restoration of our heritage

New York

A different perspective

RAI Awards The best of the best

www.hotelandrestauranttimes.ie

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COVER: The Address

Contents

Editorial 4 News

Appointments 10 Made-up 11 Bookassist 12 Fitzpatrick, New York

Fáilte General

McGettigan / The Address

RAI Awards

Tallaght IT

RAI Food 4 Thought

IHI Conference

Great National Hotels : Off the Bone

Tourism Ireland

Markree Castle

Audrey Gaffney Design

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ITIC 41 Fáilte Food Plan

IFSA 44 VDA 46 Food & Beverage Live

Bord Bia

Davy Stockbrokers

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AVEA 54

Hotel & Restaurant Times is circulated on subscription to Chief Executives, Directors and Proprietors of Hotels and Restaurants in Ireland along with Architects, Interior Designers and Suppliers to the Hotel and Restaurant Industry. Managing Editor: Cyril McAree (01-6285447, cyril@hotelandrestauranttimes.ie) Contributors: Pavel Barter, Dr Des O’Mahony, Susan Clarke, Conor Power, Fáilte Ireland, IFSA, Tourism Ireland, Tallaght IT, Graham Cawley-Davy, Colm Ryan, IHI, Restaurants Association of Ireland. Graphic Design: Tara Mccormack Printing: Turners of Longford

ALL CONTENTS OF THE MAGAZINE ARE COPYRIGHT OF HOTEL & RESTAURANT TIMES. H&R HOUSE, CARTON COURT, MAYNOOTH, CO.KILDARE TEL/FAX: 01 6285447 EMAIL: editorial@hotelandrestauranttimes.ie WEB: www.hotelandrestauranttimes.ie

All paper used in the production of this magazine comes from certifiably sustainable forestry.

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editorial

Weighing up the odds for Irish tourism With each passing day tourism as we know it is changing. Old markets are beginning to fray at the edges, and none are as evident as that of our nearest neighbour: the UK. Reflecting on CSO figures for February to April 2017, Niall Gibbons, Tourism Ireland CE, noted the decline “in the value of sterling has made holidays and short breaks here more expensive for British visitors, and economic uncertainty is making British travellers more cautious about their discretionary spending. This is impacting travel to Ireland. Therefore, competitiveness and the value for money message are more important than ever in Britain right now.

editorial

“Tourism Ireland is placing a greater focus on our ‘culturally curious’ audience, who are less impacted by currency fluctuations. We are also undertaking an expanded partnership programme with airlines, ferry operators and tour operators, communicating a strong price-led message to drive home value for money. We will continue to monitor developments around Brexit closely, to better understand and plan for its implications.” But it was interesting to see the North America market continuing its upward growth: an increase of 26% in numbers from there visiting the island between February and April. New markets have increased by 17%, with key growth coming from Australia. Mainland Europe, meanwhile, grew by over 2%. Markets such as France (+8.6%), Germany (+3.8%) and Spain (+10.4%) continued to show growth. The confidence in the increase tourism figures is reflected in the investment by hoteliers and restaurants across the country. Take, for example, the Corscadden family’s investment in the Markree Castle, or Brian McGettigan’s new Address boutique hotel. These are only two examples of the sector’s current confidence. Other countries, in comparison, are not faring as well. I spoke with Shane Cookman, Area General Manager at Fitzpatrick Hotel Group in New York, and he had a different story to share. “Dublin is probably getting better room rates than New York at the moment,” Shane told us. “In 2010 there were 70,000 rooms in New York. As of end of 2017 there will be 116,000 - that’s a 60% increase. Airbnb is also a huge factor for us at the moment. There can be up to 20,000 rooms a night occupied through Airbnb. Airbnb is taking guests out of the market and yet it doesn’t have to pay the same wages or real estate taxes as hotels. It doesn’t have to comply with the same health, safety or fire regulations as hotels, so it’s unfair competition”. A fly in the ointment is the continued lack of confidence in Minister Ross. Not a day or event goes by that his absence or lack of engagement is mentioned. A number of key decisions have yet to be made, regarding appointments to boards within the sector, but the Minister doesn’t seem overly concerned. Perhaps when the new Taoiseach is appointed, Leo or Simon’s first job might be a reshuffle of the cabinet table.

Cyril McAree editor

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news

NEWS Students serve up culinary delights

A selection of unique food products created by GMIT Culinary Arts students were showcased in the College of Tourism and Arts, tasted and judged by representatives from leading organisations in the food industry. Products ranged from a chic pea waffle to forest-berry cured salmon, smoky aubergine ketchup, cashew butter and chia crisp and more. Ballyvaughan student David Hurley won Best of Show for his product called Chic Pea Waffle. GMIT Students pictured at The New Food Products Showcase after displaying their creations to the panel of judges. Standing (l-r): Andrew Picher, Kieran Cooney, Louise Enright, Karuna Sundramuoidi and David Hurley. Seated (l-r): Carol Dollery, Nikitas Peristeropoulos and Sarah Croffey. Missing from the photograph is Ashleen Ní Chéide.

A new name for fresh produce Pallas Foods has unveiled Pallas Green as the new name for its fresh produce brand. Pictured at the Pallas Green launch, which took place in the Pallas Foods, Foodservice Centre in Dublin, is Dan Geary, President of Pallas Foods, and Leo Jones, Head of Produce Sales. For more information on Pallas Green and its range of fresh and home grown fruit and vegetables, visit www.pallas-green.ie

Aramark Ambassador, Natalya Coyle, wins gold for Ireland at the Pentathlon World Cup event in Poland! Aramark’s Health and Wellness Ambassador, Natalya Coyle, has won gold for Ireland with her team partner Arthur Lanigan O’Keeffe, at the Modern Pentathlon World Cup yesterday. The pair beat Germany and Kazakhstan to claim first place. “Aramark is so proud of Natalya and her wonderful achievement!” Frank Gleeson, MD of Aramark Food Services, said. “We are proud to back brilliance, determination and raw talent – which Natalya has an abundance of. Being a refined athlete to such a high standard at multiple sports takes long-term dedication and commitment – we are supporting Natalya all the way to the next Olympics and we are certain that she will keep doing Ireland proud. On behalf of everyone at Aramark Northern Europe, I’d like to congratulate Natalya and Arthur on winning gold at the modern pentathlon World Cup.” Coyle tweeted her excitement after the event – “We did it!! GOLD!! Can’t believe it! Dream team with Arthur Lanigan O’Keeffe.” Natalya was re-signed as Health & Wellness Ambassador last April with Aramark, the global provider of awardwinning services in food, facilities management and property, working with the company to promote healthy lifestyle choices in workplaces across Ireland. Coyle said each week she trains for 20-25 hours with around 4 swims, 4 runs, 3 fences, 4 shoots, 2 gyms and a horse-riding session. She also has regular physio and rehab work, and does on average 3-4 training sessions in any given day. “Health and wellness is a top priority for our business and we are committed to building on our promise to get our workforce healthy.” Gleeson said. “Natalya’s lifestyle and ultra-competitive nature makes her the perfect role model and ambassador for Aramark. Pentathletes are some of the hardest working and dedicated athletes you’ll ever come across.” Aramark Northern Europe will be supporting Natalya Coyle at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

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news

Freshii to energise Northern Just Ask for Bay Ireland Freshii, the global healthy eating fast food restaurant chain, which has just opened its first Northern Ireland store in Donegall Square West, has announced plans for nine more stores in shopping centres and major towns in Northern Ireland, creating over 100 full and part-time jobs. The next Freshii will open in Callender Street, Belfast, and a third store will open in The Quays Shopping Centre, Newry, during the summer.

Skid row

Members of the MG Owners’ Club and their vintage cars, parked at Westport House, taking part in the club’s 20th annual MG Ireland tour.

The Bay Tree Bistro in Waterford City was awarded Just Ask Restaurant of the Month for May. Keith and Carmel Boyle’s two-storey restaurant on Merchants Quay has earned a reputation for great service and good value.

Kinetic teams up with IT Tallaght Kinetic has teamed up with IT Tallaght for the fourth year running to oversee third year Marketing and Advertising students in creating an Out of Home (OOH) advertising campaign. Caption: Pictured are the winning team- Left to right – Barry Finan (Blessington), Roisin Ryan (Blessington), Patricia Medcalf, IT Tallaght, Phoebe Rawson, Kinetic Emma O’Dowd (Lucan), Tadhg Redmond (Cabra), Aoife Flynn (Lucan).

Canadian journo hits new heights on Wild Atlantic Way Canadian journalist Bruce Kirkby joined forces with mountaineer Iain Miller on a recent trip to Donegal with Iain capturing some breath-taking photos of Sturrall Headland. A writer for The Globe and Mail in Toronto, which has a circulation of 375,000, and also a contributor to the National Geographic, Mr Kirkby was in Ireland participating in a number of activities along the Wild Atlantic Way on an itinerary designed, hosted and managed by Fáilte Ireland, in conjunction with Tourism Ireland.

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news

Fitzers renews contract at CCD

The healthy option

The Convention Centre Dublin (CCD) has agreed another five years with its catering partner, Fitzers Catering Ltd. Fitzers Catering has managed hospitality at The CCD since the venue opened in 2010. This news comes just days after The CCD was awarded silver status by the World Obesity Federation’s Healthy Venues Award programme.

Pictured is Gillian McConnell, Consultant Dietitian for Musgrave MarketPlace. Musgrave MarketPlace has partnered with Gillian as part of its ongoing commitment to innovation and inspiring healthier choices. Gillian will be working with Musgrave MarketPlace throughout 2017 to help identify current and future trends, provide education on healthier choices and eating as well as bring specific experience to the team.

B&B of the Year goes to Kilkenny

Read ‘em and weep

Kilkenny recently hosted the Travel Classics International Writers Conference. Based in the Lyrath Hotel, Co Kilkenny, it was an opportunity to showcase Kilkenny’s tourism offering, with conference guests including some of America’s leading travel writers. Fáilte Ireland, in conjunction with Tourism Ireland and Kilkenny County Council, bid and beat out other international competitors to host the Travel Classics International in Ireland for 2017.

Tourism Ireland welcomes +1% growth

Pictured is winner of the B&B of the Year Award, Eileen Joyce, Springview Farmhouse, Co Kilkenny, receiving her award from Maurice Pratt, Chairman of B&B Ireland (left) and Tom Walsh, House of Waterford Crystal (right).

The Italian job

Team Endeavoar, a crew of 15 colleagues from Dublin Airport’s Police and Fire Service have set themselves a challenge to become the first team ever to row, run, cycle and swim a total of 800km down the west coast of Italy. The rowers are taking on this challenge in aid of Dublin Airport’s three charity partners MS Ireland, My Canine Companion and Merchants Quay Ireland.

Commenting on figures published by the CSO for overseas visitors to Ireland between January-March 2017, Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland, said: “I am pleased to see growth of +1% for the three-month period January-March 2017, coming on the back of six years of solid growth in overseas tourism. Particularly welcome is the continued strong performance from North America with over +23.2% in the first three months. Tourism Ireland has prioritised North America for 2017. A number of factors are working in our favour, including more airline seats than ever, from gateways across the US and Canada.” H&RT JUNE/JULY 2017

news

Ireland takes to the piazzas of Italy Tourism Ireland has teamed up with Francorosso, one of Italy’s leading tour operators, in a new campaign to grow tourism from Italy this summer. As part of the moving TV campaign, Ireland videos are playing on more than 3,453 screens in 72 metro stations and onboard 69 metro trains, in Milan, Rome and Brescia. The video will also be played on 500 buses in Milan and on about 280 screens in 13 different airports around Italy. The campaign, which also includes email marketing and social media, will reach an estimated 29.1 million Italians.

Bedtime stories for Ancient East

Fáilte Ireland’s creative advertising campaign for Ireland’s Ancient East picked up five awards at the Institute of Creative Advertising and Design (ICAD) Awards in Dublin. Two silver awards were presented to In the Company at Huskies for The Dunbrody Famine Timeline in the Advertising Craft – Art Direction and Digital – User Experience categories. This winning piece of content tells the story of the Dunbrody Famine Ship and was developed for the national tourism development authorities’ Ireland’s Ancient East website. The Dunbrody Famine Ship video was also commended in the Film: TV, Cinema, Web – Web Film (over 60 seconds) category.

€200m of growing global Kilkenny serves up a treat solar PV sector up for grabs Pictured are Majella Kelleher, Head of Energy Demand, SEAI, and Anthony Mulligan, General Manager, Clearpower, winner of the Product of Show at the SEAI Energy Show Product of the Year Awards at The Energy Show 2017 in the RDS. Solar PV (photovoltaics) is set to become one of the fastest growing global energy technologies to help meet climate change goals. The cost of solar panels has dropped by 80% since 2009. In the same period, solar PV has become the fastest growing power generation technology worldwide. By 2030, the European solar PV market could be worth up to €10bn annually. According to SEAI, Irish organisations could capture an annual €200m of that market.

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#tastekilkenny, a collective of Kilkenny based food producers and outlets, has launched the next phase of its national and international marketing campaign. Helen Carroll of RTE’s Ear to the Ground officially launched the new #tastekilkenny website, www.tastekilkenny.ie, alongside five showcase videos featuring local chefs, a suite of images, bags and a set of producer postcards, all showcasing Kilkenny’s food offerings. Here, Helen is pictured with Julie Calder-Potts of Highbank Orchards.

news

Over €8,500 Raised for Charity at the Irish Restaurant Awards The Restaurants Association of Ireland is delighted to announce that €8,561.60 was raised at the ninth annual Irish Restaurant Awards held on Monday 8th May in the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road, Dublin. The money, which was raised through guest donations, was divided between the Irish Restaurant Awards 2017 official charity partner Depaul and The Restaurants Association of Ireland Benevolent Fund. CEO of Depaul, Kerry Anthony had this to say: “I’d like to thank the Irish Restaurants Association for choosing Depaul as their charity partner this year. All funds raised are much needed and will help support some of the most vulnerable people in our Society.” Each year, the Irish Restaurant Awards endeavour to raise funds for a charitable cause by holding a fundraiser on the night of the Awards final. Over 40 prizes for this year’s raffle fundraiser were donated by Restaurants, Hotels and Cafes who offered anything from chocolates and wine to luxurious hotel breaks. The awards’ media partner The Irish Times also generously donated spot prizes including tickets to U2 and Guns ‘n’ Roses. Depaul is a leading cross-border charity supporting people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. They manage over 20 specialised accommodation and community outreach services across four main service areas: Homelessness and vulnerable families’ services, Homelessness prevention services, Homeless addiction services and Homelessness and criminal justice services. They offer support and guidance to break the cycle of homelessness, and assist their service users in making positive choices for their future. In 2016, Depaul provided 497 bed spaces each night and helped over 3,500 people. The RAI Benevolent Fund was founded in March 1996 for the purpose of supporting people from the hospitality & catering industry who, through no fault of their own, have fallen on hard times. The Benevolent Fund is made available to those currently or previously involved in the hospitality industry in Ireland. Chief Executive of the Restaurants Association, Adrian Cummins commented, “We are delighted to that announce that over €8,500 was raised for Depaul and The RAI Benevolent fund. It is fantastic that we can bring more good news from the Awards and a night of industry celebration. I would like to thank our guests for their kindness and I have no doubt that their donations will make a difference.”

Tourism Ireland announces new Head of Great Britain 2 June 2017 – Tourism Ireland has announced the appointment of Julie Wakley as Head of Great Britain, one of our most important tourism markets. Julie joined Tourism Ireland in January 2016, as Deputy Head of Great Britain – Consumer Marketing and, since then, she has been instrumental in developing and delivering innovative marketing campaigns and establishing strong relationships with key stakeholders, in Britain and around the island of Ireland. Prior to joining Tourism Ireland, Julie was the Marketing Manager for BBC Politics & Current Affairs, from 2013 to 2016, where she led the marketing activity for BBC’s politics output on TV, radio and online during the Scottish Referendum in 2014 and the General Election 2015. Before that, she was part of the team responsible for the UK Government’s ‘GREAT Britain’ campaign, promoting trade and tourism in international markets to maximise economic benefits during 2012, the year of the Diamond Jubilee and the Olympic and Paralympic Games. It was this experience of working with key tourism bodies, including VisitBritain, VisitScotland and English Heritage, that sparked Julie’s interest in the tourism sector. She also worked as Account Director at the Central Office of Information (COI), the UK Government’s marketing and communication agency, for five years, developing and delivering campaigns to change consumer behavior for the Department of Health and the Department for Education, among others. Commenting on the appointment, Tourism Ireland CEO Niall Gibbons said: “I am delighted to welcome Julie Wakley to this key strategic role in our organisation, following an extensive external competition. She joins Tourism Ireland at a time when we are facing a number of challenges in Great Britain, not least Brexit and its impact on travel. Julie brings with her a wealth of knowledge and experience in international marketing and a very strong track record of achievement. She will play a pivotal

role in implementing our strategy in the important British market.” Julie said: “This is a fantastic role and an exciting opportunity. I take up this post at a time of great challenge in the British market and we have some exciting plans under way for 2017, working with our partners in Britain and on the island of Ireland, to inspire British holidaymakers to choose the island of Ireland.” Latest CSO figures confirm a drop in British visitors (-6.5%) for the first quarter of 2017, reflecting the economic situation and the effect of Brexit. The drop in the value of sterling has made holidays and short breaks here more expensive for British visitors; and economic uncertainty is making British travellers more cautious about their discretionary spending. This is impacting on travel to Ireland. Tourism Ireland will continue to monitor developments around Brexit closely, to better understand and plan for its implications. Competitiveness and value for money remain a more important message than ever throughout 2017.

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appointments

Bowe for Bakehouse Walsh’s Bakehouse Waterford has announced the appointment of Avril Bowe as Sales and Marketing Manager. This is a new role for the company, and is part of a larger expansion plan, currently being rolled out at the longestablished Waterford bakery. Avril brings over 20 years of experience in hospitality sales and marketing to the Waterford brand. Joint MD at Walsh’s Bakehouse, Dermot Walsh said: “We are delighted to welcome Avril to the team at such an exciting time for the business. Her experience in hospitality is invaluable and we are in no doubt that she will elevate the Walsh’s Bakehouse brand to a new level, not just locally, but nationally and internationally.” Walsh’s Bakehouse now exports to the UK, Europe, and Dubai. Products, distributed nationwide through a range of food services companies, can now be sampled in Lough Erne Resort, Hatch & Co in Dublin and Bodega Waterford.

All business at Tifco hotels

Tifco Hotel Group has welcomed Aoife Kinnarney to their sales team as Conference Business Development Manager. Aoife will be responsible for the growth and development of conference and event sales within the domestic market. Aoife joins Tifco from Conference Partners. Prior to that, Aoife worked for nearly 10 years in the Irish Management Institute and held positions with O2. Aoife holds a Bachelors of Business Studies from Dublin City University and a Post Graduate Certificate in Marketing Strategy & Digital Marketing from University College Cork.

Patricia Callan appointed ABFI chief Patricia Callan has been appointed to the role of Director of Alcohol Beverage Federation of Ireland, the trade association that represents brewers, distillers, brand owners and distributors in Ireland. Patricia joins ABFI from the Small Firms Association (SFA) where she has been Director since 2006.

The hills are alive

Cork’s 4 star boutique hotel, The Montenotte, has announced the appointment of Adrian Hillgrove to the role of Executive Head Chef at the city centre property. An experienced head chef and graduate of the CIT Culinary Studies, Adrian’s career highlights include cooking for boy-band Westlife, golfers Arnold Palmer and Fred Couples, among other celebrities, as well as working at Rick Stein’s flagship eatery, The Seafood Restaurant in Cornwall, UK. In Ireland, Adrian was a chef at Man Friday’s Restaurant in Kinsale for 5 years, as well as The Bosun, Monkstown and Clifford’s Restaurant in Cork city. A keen fisherman, Adrian’s love of seafood and shellfish cuisine has won him several awards.

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Made Up

industry

Michelle Fox is an Irish make-up artist who has worked for some of the best known make-up brands in the world. Now working for herself and specialising in Bridal, Michelle travels the country helping to make every Bride’s day a truly flawless experience. Michelle’s background in make-up began in the L.A Creative Academy in Dublin. After two years there she moved to Inglot and after two years in that position she moved to Jane Iredale. Michelle explains, “ Jane Iredale is one of the most popular mineral make-up brands globally and it’s particularly popular for Brides for weddings but also in spa’s and hotel spas. Working there was a great experience for me as I travelled all over the country doing corporate shows, master classes and training”. Following her time with Jane Iredale, Michelle worked for Fuschia, an Irish mineral make-up brand. Michelle continues, “I loved working for an Irish company. I got great experience in doing master classes, particularly in hotels, spas and salons”. However, it was in her role in her next position that Michelle really saw her expertise get the recognition it deserved. She explains, “I was working for Lancôme on their All Star Make-Up team and I was made head make-up artist for the VIP style awards for three years. I got to work with a lot of celebrities like Rosanna Davidson, Celia Holman-Lee etc. I also worked on Xpose, the TV3 show doing a lot of their shoots and also on Ireland A.M. It was during this time that I really got my face known as I was on TV and in VIP magazine. It was great experience”. Michelle’s work has also been showcased in RSVP, Women’s Way, Irish Tatler and many other magazines. Michelle left Lancôme to take up her dream job in MAC in Brown Thomas on Grafton St. “I worked with MAC for over a year, learning from the best make-up artists in the world and training with one of the worlds biggest make-up brands. I was then offered a management position in Inglot Ireland. The position was based in Limerick so I moved to Tipperary to take it up. It was during this time that my social media following really blew up. I was doing really large master classes and my following on Instagram and Snapchat just took off”. When Michelle realised that all her experience had brought her to this point of her career and having over 17,000 followers she started thinking about going out on her own as a make-up artist. “I was terrified!”, says Michelle. “But my family and my boyfriend really gave me the confidence as well as the push I needed. It’s been the best thing I ever did”. Working for herself for the last six months, Michelle’s business has been going from strength to strength. “I specialise in Bridal. It was always my favourite aspect of the business anyway so I travel all over the country and I do weddings from Donegal to Cork. I also go into hotel spas and salons and I do upskilling master classes”. Cliff at Lyons Estate in Co Kildare now use Michelle exclusively as part of their Bridal package. “It is great to have the backing of Lyons Estate. I have also just signed a contract to be brand ambassador for a new Irish makeup brush company called Powder n’ Pout, which I’m delighted about”. Michelle’s business brings her to trade shows, as well as continuing her masterclasses around the country. “I am in the process of getting my website up and running but people can contact me through my facebook page and they can see my work on Instagram and Snapchat.”

Instagram - ShellFoxMUA

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online

Learning from the Giants:

how Booking and Expedia build their traffic online By Jacopo Rita

It’s always good practice to look at how the big online travel agents (OTAs) behave operationally in order to identify what best practices can be taken away for your own everyday hotel business operations. From how they build their visibility online through to their

34.85% 34.93%

cutting-edge conversion tactics, OTAs are highly

34.38% 34.00% 22.72% 18.29%

optimised and very good at what they do, so there’s

2.12% 1.34%

always something to learn.

8.33% 5.17%

2.02% 1.84%

Visibility at the core of OTA strategy In recent months there’s been considerable noise in the industry after Priceline Group Inc released its Form 10-K 2016 Annual Report detailing the unimaginable sums of money they spent in online advertising in 2016. It wasn’t only the $3.5B that impressed, but also the fact that it represented an increase of nearly 30% year on year. How could it happen that such a big group that already owns the largest market shares in most of the markets it operates in saw fit to increase its own online advertising spend by such a margin? What changed market dynamics so dramatically? The reason why Priceline has kept putting - and indeed increasing - spend in online advertising is actually clearly stated in its Annual Report and is no secret. It is the exact same goal that every hotelier in the industry also faces:

Figure 1: Booking.com in March 2017: Looking at search, 34.38% of all traffic is search, and 54.82% of search is paid. Therefore 34.38% x 54.82%, or about 18% of traffic is paid search. Top referral sites are TripAdvisor, Kayak and Trivago in that order, accounting for 18.29% of traffic. It appears that metasearch is therefore accounting for a similar traffic share percentage as pay-per-click in Booking.com online visibility (SimilarWeb).

“Performances advertising expenses increased [...] primarily to generate increased gross bookings and gross profit” Generating bookings is the ultimate and definitive goal as this is the only road to profitability: and how the goal can be pursued in first instance looks very clear to Priceline: make a massive investment in online advertising.

34.93%

34.00% 22.72%

Where is the spend?

1.34%

5.17%

1.84%

However it’s not really about the quantity of the spend but the quality. How is this huge amount of money actually spent by Priceline? On what campaigns? Which platforms are they capitalizing on in terms of generating visibility? This information is also conveniently stated in the report, namely: “…advertising expenses consist primarily of the cost of a) search engine keywords purchases; b) referrals from meta-search” Now this sounds interesting. We know OTAs have been spending a fortune on Google AdWords for years (with Priceline Group Inc. and Expedia Inc. actually accounting alone for about 5% of Google overall revenue, some estimate). But seeing referrals from meta-search specifically listed here is actually a big change in Priceline’s visibility

1 2

Figure 2: Expedia in March 2017: Looking at search, 34% of all traffic is search, and 27.49% of search is paid. Therefore 34% x 27.49%, or about 10% of traffic is paid search. Top referral sites are TripAdvisor, Trivago and Kayak in that order, accounting for 22.72% of traffic. It appears that metasearch is accounting for a much larger traffic share percentage than search pay-per-click in Expedia online visibility (SimilarWeb) compared to Booking.com.

http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/PCLN/4368340101x0xS1075531-17-9/1075531/filing.pdf https://skift.com/2017/03/29/expedia-is-once-again-spending-big-to-advertise-on-trivago/

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online

strategy. In other sources, Priceline is said to have spent about $350M on Trivago cost-per-click based advertising in 2016, representing about 10% of overall Priceline online advertising spend. Metasearch-wise, we actually see Priceline brands (Booking.com primarily, then Agoda, Priceline.com, etc.) regularly advertised through cost-per-click based advertising across other metasearch websites too, primarily on Tripadvisor. We expect this visibility to grow now that Tripadvisor is said to be reducing emphasis on their directto-hotel instant booking effort. It’s reasonable to assume then that another 10% of overall online advertising budget is allocated to Tripadvisor cost per click (CPC) campaigns (or potentially more, as costs of traffic acquisition in Tripadvisor are far away higher than Trivago average CPCs). In addition, perhaps another 10% is split across other metasearch websites that Priceline still regularly dominates in terms of CPC visibility, for example Google Hotel Ads, Kayak, etc. This analysis leads to our first conclusion: that OTAs have been allocating from 20% to 30% of their online advertising budget to metasearch advertising. This is also confirmed by looking at the OTAs’ online traffic. We can use SimilarWeb functionalities to benchmark metasearch traffic vs other traffic sources, as shown in figures 1 and 2 for Booking.com and Expedia respectively. Metasearch appears to deliver at least the equivalent to paid search for the OTAs, and it’s growing.

The growing maturity of Metasearch

Contrary to some uninformed discussions in the industry, Metasearch has continued to grow over the last few years and has clearly moved from an early innovation to a majority-adopted platform (See Figure 3). When Metasearch first disrupted the industry many years ago, OTAs were first to tap in and engage with the Metasearch movement not only by participating from a marketing perspective, but even from a mergers & acquisitions perspective with solid acquisitions. Priceline was first to innovate with their Kayak acquisition and then closed the loop few weeks ago with the Momondo purchase. Other OTAs have also been playing a role in the meantime with Expedia taking major stakes in Trivago and Chinese giant Ctrip acquiring Skyscanner. Today Metasearch is an area that OTAs cannot afford to ignore, but the question for us is how are independent hotels positioned for benefit from Metasearch?

Metasearch for Independent Hotels

At Bookassist we’re proud to work with some very smart and excellent hoteliers that immediately understood the potential of Metasearch and worked with us as early adopters to tap into it immediately. These hotels today generate significant amounts of direct bookings through referral links from Metasearch with a Cost per Acquisition consistently below 10% and a contribution to their overall direct business of between 20% and 30% generally or even up to 40% in some excellent cases (see Figure 4). These excellent hotels have been participating in Metasearch for well over a year now and their “early adoption” allowed them to totally understand the challenges of Metasearch as it continues to evolve, with both its opportunity and threats.

Figure 3: Innovation adoption curve for Metasearch, and Bookassist’s view on where hotels are positioned.

Q1 2017 Metasearch Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) % For Bookassist Partner Hotels in Ireland Jan 2017

Feb 2017

Mar 2017

Cost Per Acquisition

Figure 4: The results of Metasearch usage by early adopters, the excellent independent hotels who embraced Metasearch and have been able to leverage it in partnership with Bookassist.

But we still see a majority of hotels that remain sceptical of Metasearch, hotels that don’t get it and are reluctant to embrace the change it represents. Hotels really need to change their mindset here and embrace the opportunity that Metasearch can present. Otherwise, the big risk for the slow-adopting hotels is in their attitude, which will bring them to Metasearch only in its Late Majority phase or even later when most of the opportunity has been taken already by earlier adopters.

Bottom Line

Metasearch is no longer the wave of the future, but of the present. It is now a strong reality that can be no longer ignored by independent hotels in the quest for direct booking business. A change of mindset is needed by hoteliers who need to move now to assign budgets and adopt Metasearch as a key customer capture opportunity.

Jacopo Rita is Metasearch Manager at Bookassist (www.bookassist.com), the multi-award-winning technology and digital strategy partner for hotels. Bookassist is The Direct Booking Expert™ and a Google Premier Partner.

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BOWES RYAN CAFE

“Home from home, offering food and drinks all day”. CDS were brought on board for this project as a company that could offer a full turnkey solution and develop a functional stream-lined design coupled with quality, innovation and high standards. The remit from the start was to work on a proposal that would meet our client’s (Jacqueline Mahon’s) budget and finish requirements. This in turn also had to receive the approval of the Arthurs Quay Shopping Centre, in Limerick where the unit is located. We developed the project to approval and brought together the full turnkey option which was approved. Being part of a global organisation brought great confidence and reassurance to the Shopping Centre and the “Bowes Ryan” team. Utilising Bunzl’s global presence, Catering Design Solutions worked with a number of trusted Irish, UK and European suppliers; this ensured that once a projects design and functional layout is agreed, we were confident in completing the work to the standard required as quickly as possible. Bunzl CDS are well known for their ability to bring innovation, market leading solutions and to push the edges of design and finish. The team managed by Billy and Noel produced a program of works across 6 weeks to take this unit back to a shell and build it back up to the modern, market leading, unique food service facility that

it is now, with appealing finishes and design. We are very aware that in today’s market, efficiency in all areas, including appliances is critical to maximising profits for our client’s. Bunzl CDS are at the cutting edge for this. The hand-over was as scheduled and the “Bowes Ryan Café” opened to great fanfare and has been so well received by the public, to quote Jacqueline :

“We get complimented on the Design and Fitout every day, it has been so well received all round and is a credit to Catering Design Solutions”

During

After

Call for a FREE Consultation: Before

Tel: 048 3751 1999

www.cateringdesignsolutions.net

Fitzpatrick

Christopher O’Sullivan, Hotel Manager of Fitzpatrick’s hotels in New York

Christopher O’Sullivan is the Hotel Manager of Fitzpatrick’s hotels in New York. Originally from Kanturk, Co Cork, Chris studied in CIT and then with Fáilte Ireland for two years and graduated top of his class two years running. From there he went on to do a business degree in Hotel management. Chris explains, “I did that for another two years. My mum didn’t want me to go into Hotel Management. She’s a chef and I said to her ‘it’s this or a jockey’ so she said ‘ok, hotels it is!’ I represented Ireland in cooking and serving at the Wine and Dine Awards, and skills at the World Culinary Competition, and then did the Master’s Apprentice for RTE. So, my discipline was food and beverage. In my first year of university I entered another competition and I won so I went to Italy and represented Ireland in flambeing at the AHT conference”. Despite his success, Chris left the food side of the business and moved into sales. “I moved into sales when I was in Hayfield Manor. I was asked to take the job as Duty Manager with the Scally’s and then they were short a sales person and they asked me if I’d help out for a year so I said ok why not. Then they asked me to become Assistant General Manager and I thought no, I don’t want that I I’m still learning sales so I moved to work in sales in the Dunboyne Castle Hotel. I left when the recession hit and I moved into receiverships working with KBC National and KPMG. We ran The Racket Hall and The Dolmen and we consulted on a few properties, I did that for nearly four years”. According to Chris this experience was to benefit him in later years. He explains, “It was a very good grounding because I think when you work in five star hotels you can forget what the value of money is. I was 24 when I became a GM and I thought “how am I going to be able to afford all this?” when I wanted to do a refurbishment. So, instead of jumping to spend, I was creative. I hired a seamstress to be a house keeper and I asked her to make bed-runners out of my old bedspreads and pillow cases and I painted bedrooms myself and it really taught me the value money.” Following some consultancy work for the Travel Lodge Hotel Group in Ireland, Chris got an offer to go to New York. “Shane Cookman rang me and said he was

looking for an assistant GM and asked me was I interested in moving and I said why not. I went to meet with John Fitzpatrick and that was it, I was in New York a month later”. Chris continues, “I did see the opportunities here in America and always wanted to work in the American market. In 2008/2009, I worked as a business development manager for hotels in Ireland it was very hard during those years. There was no business, everybody was undercutting each, other but it taught me how to be a good sales person and that it’s all about client relationships. I always had that ethos of client relationship, and I brought a base of clients when I moved”. Chris started in Fitzpatrick’s as the Assistant General Manager, however after a few years he was promoted to the position of Hotel Manager and for the purposes of his visa he also occupies the role of Director in the Art of Hospitality. He explains, “my role here is to create an experience that is uniquely Irish. We are an Irish owned, Irish branded property. Our menu is designed around an American – Irish guest. I choose the menus with the chefs, I follow the trends in food and beverage in Ireland, and right now comfort food of good quality is what our customers want. Asian fusion is also still very popular. We have a strong selection of Irish produce; sausages, rashers, eggs (we have brown eggs), Odlums oatmeal or Flahavans, Cadburys chocolate, Club orange and Taytos!” And of course, it’s the hospitality that the Irish are known for that sets Fitzpatrick’s apart in New York. So how does Chris ensure this Irish hospitality is present among his staff? “I never look for experience when I’m hiring staff for this hotel, I look for personality. I can teach the tasks, I can’t teach personality. I will wait until I find the right person for our team and our brand. We hire a whole range of nationalities, not just Irish but they have to be the right personality and fit for the team”. Chris continues,” we work with TV shows here, “right now we are working with Shades of Blue, Blue Bloods, Suits. The entertainment segment is where my sales experience came in. In terms of our service, we have to be proactive, we should know what our guests want and we should have it done. We take note of what guests like and when they return it’s done for them without them having to request it. It is what sets us apart, the unique sense of Irish hospitality Always maintaining the Irish connection, Fitzpatrick’s brings hospitality students from Irish colleges to New York on internships. “We take interns from DIT, Shannon College, GMIT and they come here for a year”, says Chris. “Shane goes to Ireland every year, he comes back with possible students and I go through the resumes, and we make a decision. I always

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Fitzpatrick

say don’t bring me a chain- hotel person. It’s very hard to break that training. We don’t have that approach here”. Chris continues, “for us it’s the customer first. Our most recent TripAdvisor review said “The team obviously enjoys working there”. I believe you have to enjoy this work. There is a genuine sense of family here. We work twelve hour shifts together. We are from different cultures we leave our homes and families to come and work here, we do create that bond with each other. We attend all the Irish events and we get it from John, it comes down from him”. “A lot of actors stay here. I was just in talks today with NBC and the guy said to me ‘look Chris we know you take care of actors, such a person passed your details on, can we arrange a meeting’ and that’s how it works. It’s about me building those customer relationships but it’s also about the team picking up on it and doing it themselves. We google every single customer and make sure we know who they are. Every guest, not just the well- known people. We see your email address we know if it’s your first time here, then all the team are involved. Our Bell person, for example is an avid reader of history and politics, he saw a guest on the list, knew he was a Nobel Prize winner because he had read his book. He went and googled a picture of him and put it on the notice board so we were all aware. I would never have known who this guest was. That’s our Bell person, he didn’t have to do that but that’s the initiative he took and what our team give to us”. So, does Chris see himself staying here?” I don’t think I’ve any intention of going back. I like the American way of life, I only wish I came here earlier.” Let’s hope he’s told his mum!

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Shane Cookman, Area General Manager of Fitzpatrick’s hotels in New York

Shane Cookman is the Area General Manager of Fitzpatrick’s hotels in New York since 2010. Now seven years into his role, he reflects on his time in hospitality in New York. “It was a tough time in Ireland in 2009 / 2010. I was working for Seamus Ross in Dunboyne Castle Hotel and I didn’t want to move to a competitor. I had a look at an opportunity in Dubai but it wasn’t for me. Then I heard John Fitzpatrick was looking for someone and I met with him and that was it, six weeks later I was in New York. I thought I’d try it for a year and see what it was like, that’s seven years ago now!” Initially Shane’s role was solely managing only the Fitzpatrick Manhattan Hotel, however by November 2010 he was managing both Fitzpatrick’s hotels in New York. So how different did he find the hospitality industry in New York compared to Ireland? “At the end of the day it’s the same concept - you want to look after the guests. The big difference is the regulations. For example the bars in New York stay open until 4am so you have to know about the liquor licensing laws. You also have to be familiar with union contracts, health and safety and the fire regulations which are extensive here”. Shane explains about the unions in New York, “in the hospitality industry here we have a union contract for the employees which set in place the terms and conditions and this contract will expire in 2026. The no strike clause gives us a lot of security, however, it comes at a price. The cost of living in New York is high, therefore wages are high. For example, a room attendant (housekeeper) here can earn $34 per hour and a working day is seven hours, so anything over that is over time. Also real estate tax, the equivalent of rates in Ireland, is a huge cost here. So, before you even open your doors in a week you have to pay out $20,000 in real estate taxes”. Shane continues, “ Dublin is probably getting better room rates than New York at the moment. In 2010 there were 70,000 rooms in New York. As of end of 2017 there will be 116,000 - that’s a 60% increase. Airbnb is also a huge factor for us at the moment. There can be up to 20,000 rooms a night occupied through Airbnb. The issues for us concerning Airbnb are that it’s taking guests out of the market and yet it doesn’t have to pay the same wages or real estate taxes that hotels do, and it doesn’t have to

Fitzpatrick

comply with the same health, safety or fire regulations as hotels do, so it’s completely unfair competition”. This has become such an issue in New York that a campaign called the “Share Better Campaign” has begun in New York. Shane explains, “we have no issue with individuals renting out a room in their home through Airbnb. That’s not what needs addressing. We are talking about commercial enterprises that are renting out 20, 30 or 40 properties. It is unfair competition and it’s not on a level playing field. I think the Irish government should really be looking at this issue now to protect the Irish hospitality marketplace”. This issue has become so prominent in New York that Mayor De Blasio has put a $1.6million budget in place to allow the city’s Office of Special Enforcement to employ more staff members to inspect landlords and leaseholders who are renting rooms as hotel rooms. An Airbnb law went into effect on the 31st of January this year which bans listings for illegal short-term rentals. Since its enactment 15 entities have received 128 violations netting $232,000 in fines. The Fire Safety regulations in America are very different to Ireland and Shane explains the impact they have on the hospitality industry there. “We have to have a ‘Fire Life Safety Director’ on the premises 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This officer has to have at least three years hotel experience and has to complete a number of courses and an exam through the Fire Department in order to qualify for the position. Fire regulations here are not simply a tick- the- box exercise. An Inspector from the Fire Department is sent to the premises and the exam is carried out on the property and the failure rate is 50%. The Fire Life Safety Director also has to complete an ‘Active Shooter’ course also which means that they are the person who directs our procedures if we have an active shooter on the premises”. Shane says it can cost the hotel approximately $21,000 complying with the fire regulations alone in New York. If the hotel undergoes an unannounced inspection by the Fire Department, which is common, they can incur a hefty fine if all regulations are not met. But what about the wider political issues happening in the USA right now? Does Shane feel they are impacting business? “The estimate is that we will see a decline of tourist numbers visiting of between 300,000 – 400,000 in New York City. We are told that the travel ban on certain countries will affect about 25,000 but the rest of the numbers come from the message that has been sent out that tourists aren’t welcome here. We are also seeing global brands leaving for example Ralf Lauren have left 5th Avenue. The Chinese market is the only area of growth is the USA at the moment. It’s said that this is because they don’t see Trump as any different to their own leader and they are still travelling. Brexit has also affected us because people from the UK are cautious at the moment and they’re not travelling”. So does Shane think the Irish market needs to be cognisant of

what’s happening in the US at the moment? “Well, because the dollar is so strong at the moment, US tourists are going to Ireland. Europe has never been more attractive to them than it is now. My concern is that the prices will continue to increase in Ireland and we could find ourselves in the boom bust again. The Americans love Ireland and I think it was crucial that Enda Kenny came to visit the White House on St Patrick’s Day. We are the only country that can shut down 5th Avenue for our parade here!”. So with the Irish brand being so strong in Fitzpatrick’s does Shane feel like he’s found a second home here? “The US market is 50% of our business and most of those guests have Irish connections, Ireland is part of our brand here. Where possible we ensure quality Irish products are available through our menu offering, from breakfast, lunch and evening meals. John Fitzpatrick has put his name over the door and we want our guests to feel like they’re coming home. For me , I get home a few times a year but when I’m sitting here having my tea (Barry’s of course) in the morning I feel like I could be at home. It’s the best of both worlds”. H&RT JUNE/JULY 2017

fáilte general

€11.5m Capital Funding for OPW Visitor Sites Fáilte Ireland has announced €11.5m in funding from its Capital Grants budget for ten key OPW projects in Dublin and within the Ireland’s Ancient East region. The funding is in the context of Fáilte Ireland’s strategic partnership with the OPW to assist in the refurbishment and enhancement of key visitor attractions. The funding includes investment in a new museum and viewing platform in The Record Tower at Dublin Castle, which will make one of the city’s most impressive medieval buildings more compelling for visitors. Significant investment for the Rock of Cashel as well as Newgrange, Knowth and the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre is also included.

Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Patrick O’ Donovan and Minister of State for the Office of Public Works officially announce the new Fáilte Ireland and OPW Strategic Partnership that will see Fáilte Ireland invest 11.5 million in developing visitor experiences in OPW sites.

Latest Estimates Show Impressive Growth in Business Tourism Sector

The latest Fáilte Ireland estimates, based on CSO figures, indicate that Business Travel from overseas markets is worth in excess of €700m to the Irish economy after growing 7% during the period 2015-2016. The sector is estimated to support approximately 21,000 jobs. Reflecting this growth, Fáilte Ireland’s Business Tourism & Events team have directly influenced €198m of promotable business (i.e. group business that can be activity bid on) won for Ireland in 2016 – an increase of 10% on business won for Ireland in 2015. Over the past few weeks Fáilte Ireland, through its Meet in Ireland team, have also been targeting UK buyers at the annual ‘Meet Dublin in London’ event, and have provided a strong Irish presence at IMEX, Franfurt, one of the largest worldwide exhibitions for incentive travel meetings and events. Meeting Dublin in London Sam Johnston, Failte Ireland; Jacqueline Kilmurry, Powerscourt Estate; Karina Dunne, Druids Glen; Ciara Gallagher, Failte Ireland

Get to Know Your Visitors with Our New Market Books Fáilte Ireland’s Business Intelligence team have published a series of short market guides to provide Irish tourism businesses with greater insight into what our key overseas markets, Germany, France, Great Britain (GB) and the USA, are looking for from a holiday in Ireland. These new concise guides focus on how likely they are to choose Ireland for a holiday, when they decide and book their holidays, as well as when they are most likely to come to Ireland and how long they tend to stay. For example, Germany holds great potential for growth with 95% of tourists stating they would visit Ireland. 91% of potential visitors from GB state they would visit Ireland, and they are most likely to visit in the early part of the year as opposed to other markets.

Download the new market books at www.failteireland.ie

Ireland to Host Laser Masters World Championships in 2018

The Laser Masters Worlds (2018 World Championships) was launched at a special event in Dún Laoghaire Harbour Company’s historic Harbour Lodge recently by Shane Ross, T.D., Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport and Olympic Medal Winner Annalise Murphy. This is the second time in three years that Ireland has been chosen to host a Laser Worlds event. The Laser Radial Worlds were held in Dun Laoghaire last summer.

Pictured with Annelise Murphy, 2017 Olympic Silver Medalist in the Laser class at the Rio Game, will act as event ambassador, Shane Ross T.D. Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport and Paul Keeley, Director of Business Development with Failte Ireland.

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fáilte general

New Story-telling toolkit for operators in Ireland’s Ancient East Fáilte Ireland has published a toolkit for tourism stakeholders and operators within the Ireland’s Ancient East region to provide guidance on what works best when attracting visitors. ‘Ireland’s Ancient East – A Toolkit for Storytelling Interpretation’ seeks to assist attraction managers, tourism businesses, accommodation providers, local authorities, planners and designers to find their best stories and tell them in an engaging way for visitors.

You can download your copy of this handy new guide at www.failteireland.ie

New Champions for Ireland’s Ancient East, Wild Atlantic Way and Dublin

Tourism representatives from across the country have been completing our bespoke Champions Programme which supports front line staff to enhance their knowledge Ireland’s tourism offering in order to help tourists experience the very best of what we have to offer. Most recently our Champions workshops have taken place in Dublin, Cork , Kerry, and Sligo, with more scheduled before the end of the summer. More than 40 new Dublin Champions celebrate completing Fáilte Ireland’s Champion Programme bringing the total number of Champions in the county to 450.

Travel Classics

Ireland enjoyed a fantastic opportunity to showcase its great tourism product to some of Americas top travel writers as they arrived in Ireland to attend the Travel Classics International Writers’ Conference. Fáilte Ireland, in conjunction with Tourism Ireland, bid and beat out other international competitors to host the conference in Ireland this year. Ahead of the conference, writers with a combined circulation of 87 million from such prestigious titles as Condé Nast Traveller, National Geographic Traveller and Harper’s Bazaar to enjoy tours of Ireland’s best tourism assets took time out to experience Ireland first hand as they enjoyed tailored trips sampling the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland’s Ancient East and Dublin.

Pictured at Fanad Lighthouse are: Patrick O’Donovan, Minister of State for Tourism, Joan Crawford, Fáilte Ireland, Barry Phelan, Irish Lights and Joe McHugh TD is the Minister of State for the Diaspora and International Development.

US writers Karen Loftus, The New York Daily News; Margo Bigg, freelance including National Geographic and Larry Bleiberg, USA Today at Newgrange

Shining a Light on Donegal Patrick O’Donovan, Minister of State for Tourism visited Donegal and Fanad Lighthouse recently to witness the progress on the extensive work ongoing to develop a visitor reception facility and car park at the site. The development work is being funded through Fáilte Ireland’s Tourism Development and Innovation Fund with the overall project facilitated by Irish Lights, and operated by Forbairt Fhánada Teoranta.

Tourism Boost for Louth as Fáilte Ireland Announce €400k for Carlingford Castle Development The Minister of State for Tourism and Sport Patrick O’Donovan today announced €400k in funding from Fáilte Ireland’s Capital Grants Allocation for 2017 to the Office of Public Works (OPW) for the development of King John’s Castle in Carlingford, a key project within Ireland’s Ancient East. Today’s investment seeks to boost the castle’s visitor experience and appeal to tourists. Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Patrick O Donovan, announced significant investment into Ireland’s Ancient East with Fáilte Ireland’s Jenny De Saulles.

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McGettigan/The Address

The Address at Dublin 1, launched by Brian & Ciara McGettigan is set to offer the Dublin market a state of the art, high end boutique hotel option from its central location on Amiens Street, Dublin. Brian and Ciara McGettigan discuss the project so far. The development, which cost €15 million to build has been brought to the market with the goal of competing with other deluxe properties in the city, and includes high standards of luxury and technology utilised throughout all the guest bedrooms and suites. The building itself, which boasts over 80 rooms, has in fact been constructed on the site of the former car park at the North Star Hotel. The new build has now created something unique, a ‘hotel within a hotel’. The Address at Dublin 1 will operate as a separate brand, with its own dedicated personnel and hospitality services. “We wanted to offer our guests a unique and exclusive high end luxury experience in the heart of Dublin” said Ciara, “The Address at Dublin 1 is a new brand for us, it’s a destination – it’s not just a hotel to stay at, it’s a brand new hotel experience. The new bespoke development is a stand alone building with its own brand and amenities. which the group have intensely worked on before market launch. “We did a lot of research into what services the top hotels around the world are offering and have aimed to combine the best in to our guest rooms and suites in a way that is unique to us with our individual stamp” added Ciara. The in room technology is of a standard not seen elsewhere in Dublin and this is also reflected in the quality of finish found throughout with marble bathrooms, extendable working desks and bespoke leather executive chairs on hand for guests. Technological advances include floor sensor lighting that provides lowered levels of brightness to guide guests around their rooms during night hours and automated curtains and lighting.

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McGettigan/The Address “The vision was to deliver the very best hotel possible, and given its excellent location we want to maximise its potential,” said Brian. This process began with the outdoor design, with the illumination of the exterior via steel panels of LED lights creating a stand out night time feature. “There is a huge captive market for this. There was a gap in the market and it’s so well located city centre wise”, said Brian going on to note the accessibility of the hotel to all major modes of transport serving Dublin along with one of their key target markets in the form of the IFSC. “The formula for The Address is the luxury and privacy it offers with its own 7th floor Club lounge offering amazing views of the city – it’s a top end product that is exclusive and self contained” as Brian discussed the atmosphere and level of service he wishes to cultivate in the new property that will include a dedicated check in area along with concierge assistance to each room to familiarise the guests with all the in room technology features available for our guests to experience and enjoy. Technology will provide automated curtains; air conditioning and mood light settings that can be operated from touch screen panels or the television remote controls. The technology also allows guests to order hotel services through the rooms television.

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McGettigan/The Address

The food offering at The Address will offer an extensive choice through four distinct dining options. This will now include the rooftop Club Lounge and Terrace, McGettigans Cookhouse and Bar, the new Parlour cafe as well as a redesigned themed restaurant. A key target of this project is to retain the guests the by offering high end quality food and choice in all four dining options. The pricing structure throughout the hotel for all services is described as competitive with a good value for all our guests, with Brian summarising the pricing as “competing with a five star offering, but with a four star price”. The investment at this stage has also seen a newly reconfigured ground floor area of over 10,000 sq feet that has been added to cater for the needs of both the Address and the North Star Hotel now boasting 240 bedrooms . The Address forms the latest part of a sustained expansion by McGettigan, whose other recent acquisitions include the KingsWood Hotel Citywest, The Ambassador Hotel, Cork and the introduction of the highly successful McGettigans Cookhouse and Bars which are located in each hotel with their own off street access. Aside from a strong business model and prudent investments, Brian believes that much of the group’s success has come about due to their overall philosophy of continually improving standards of quality and service, with the bar set to be raised once again with The Address. In preparation of the launch of The Address at Dublin 1 , staff have received additional specific training to order to offer guests a more personalised service. “We are very fortunate, we have a highly skilled, motivated workforce in both our strong management team and our team on the ground. Everyone has fully bought in to what we are doing in the Address , they are proud to be part of it. If you put in place high standards and deliver a high end product, where staff are also supported, it instills a positive workplace culture where staff can be proud to work and are motivated to deliver an excellent customer experience,” said Brian when speaking on the internal atmosphere that he and the management team wish to foster in not only this property but throughout the rest of the group also. When looking at the future, Brian is keen to point to the current strength of the hospitality industry in Dublin, with the Cork and Limerick markets also showing promising signs. “Nobody can really answer the Brexit question,” he noted of the current negotiation process and its potential effect on Ireland, however he believes other European markets along with North America and Asia will continue to provide significant gains for Irish hospitality. Furthermore he believes the addition of direct flights between here and China can in itself provide substantial new growth. The current work on site will be completed by mid-August at the latest and with the hotel already off to a successful start, the group will look to build on this going forward. “Customers are going to get a really top class room and hopefully be very satisfied with that,” as Brian noted the location, technological innovations and value being key selling points going forward. With The Address presenting a unique offering to the Dublin market, the group will look towards other opportunities, but only if they compliment existing strategy. The Address at Dublin 1 will establish a new and bold hotel experience not seen before in the Dublin hotel market .

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RAI Awards

The Irish Restaurant Awards The ninth Annual Irish Restaurant Awards took place on Monday 8th May 2017 at The Clayton Burlington Road in Dublin. Over 900 restaurant owners, chefs and industry professionals attended the sold-out black tie event which named the top establishments and restaurants for 2017. The Awards this year were made up of 20 different categories and included the new “Pub of The Year” category. The other categories of the awards celebrated all aspects of the Industry from Chefs, Restaurants, Restaurant Managers, Cafés and Gastro pubs to Food producers, Private Dining and Clubs and Cookery Schools. Chapter One restaurant in Dublin was named as the 2017 All-Ireland Best Restaurant while Danni Barry of Deanes EIPIC, Antrim took home the 2017 All-Ireland Best Chef Title. Alain Kerloc’h of Ox, Antrim won the accolade of All-Ireland Best Restaurant Manager. Chief Executive of the Restaurants Association Adrian Cummins commented on the night, “This is the ninth and most successful year of the Irish Restaurant Awards to date. These Awards are the accolades of the Irish restaurant industry – everybody wants to win one. From over 70,000 online nominations cast earlier this year to 2,500 guests attending our regional events, it is clear that the stature, calibre and reputation of the awards is expanding at a considerable rate and it is all in aid of recognising the talent within our sector. All winners and finalists here tonight are very deserving of their awards.” Guests were treated to a lavish six course gala dinner prepared by a team of five chefs with a fantastic array of canapes provided prior and a selection of cocktails to sample from some of our sponsors. This year’s chef team was guided by The Clayton Burlington’s own Executive Chef Finbarr Higgins, and comprising of Regional and National winners of the previous year. The team included Jonathan Keane of The Lodge at Ashford Castle, Gareth Mullins of The Marker Hotel, Gary O’Hanlon of Viewmount House, David Gilmore of James Street South and Kevin Aherne of Sage Restaurant. Each year, the Irish Restaurant Awards endeavour to raise funds for a charitable cause by holding a fundraiser on the night of the Awards final. This year, over €8500 was raised through guest donations for the awards official Charity partner Depaul and the Restaurants Association of Ireland Benevolent Fund.

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RAI Awards

The Irish Restaurant Awards nomination process will open again in January 2018. A full list of 2017 All-Ireland winners is as follows; • Best Restaurant (Sponsored by Dalcassian Wines & Spirits and Cielo Wines) Chapter One, Dublin • Best Chef (Sponsored by Pallas Foods) Danni Barry of Deanes EIPIC, Antrim • Best Restaurant Manager (Sponsored by Tinal Wine Merchants) Alain Kerloc’h of Ox, Antrim • Pub of The Year (Sponsored by Bushmills) Morrissey’s, Laois • Best Hotel Restaurant (Sponsored by Elavon) The Dining Room at Gregans Castle Hotel, Clare • Best Newcomer (Sponsored by BWG Food Service) Forest & Marcy, Dublin • Best Gastro Pub (Sponsored by Coco-Cola HBC) Walled City Brewery, Derry • Best Customer Service (Sponsored by Peroni Nastro Azzuro) The Maigue Restaurant at Dunraven Arms Hotel, Limerick • Best Casual Dining (Sponsored by S. Pellegrino) The Muddlers Club, Antrim • Best Wine Experience (Sponsored by CLASSICdrinks) OX Cave, Antrim • Best Kids Size Me (Sponsored by Heinz Ireland) Café Rue, Mayo • Best World Cuisine (Sponsored by Dubliner Cheese) Wa Café, Galway • Best Café (Sponsored by Illy Caffe) Lost & Found, Derry • Local Food Hero (Sponsored by Rewarding Times) Michael Kelly of Grow HQ, Waterford • Best Emerging Irish Cuisine (Sponsored by Odaois) Forest & Marcy, Dublin • Best Digital Marketing (Sponsored by Open Table) Two Boys Brew, Dublin • Best Cookery School (Sponsored by Avonmore) Riot Rye Bakehouse & Bread School, Tipperary • Best Private Dining & Club Restaurant (Sponsored by Laurent Perrier) Pullman Restaurant at Glenlo Abbey Hotel, Galway • Best Seafood Experience (Sponsored by Restaurant Association of Ireland) Fish Shop Queen St, Dublin • Best Cocktail Experience (Sponsored by Ketel One Vodka) Candlelight Bar at Siam Thai Dundrum, Dublin

For more information on the Irish Restaurant Awards and to see a full list of county and regional winners please visit www.irishrestaurantawards.com. Keep up to date by following us on Twitter @restawards or see all event images on Instagram @irishrestawards.

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Tallaght IT

Exploring how Health and Wellness can be incorporated into Menu Design Each December, the National Restaurant Association in the USA publishes the results of a survey of 1300 chef members of America’s Culinary Federation, on what they envisage the food trends for the following year to be. The What’s Hot 2017 Culinary Forecast identifies food trends and concept trends, many of which are linked to health and wellness. According to Hudson Riehle, Senior Vice President of Research for the National Restaurant Association “Menu trends today are beginning to shift from ingredientbased items to concept-based ideas, mirroring how consumers tend to adapt their activities to their overall lifestyle philosophies, such as environmental sustainability and nutrition.” The challenge therefore for chefs is in meeting this need.

Bruno Loubet and his team at the Grainstore London with MSc Chefs from IT Tallaght

Culinary nutrition is a key part of a final year chef’s studies in IT Tallaght. This capstone module enables students to showcase all competencies gained throughout the programme in all their modules through the design and production and public showcase of a health and wellness menu. As there is a key focus on children’s food in the Top 20 Food Trends, there is a particular focus in their final project on designing menus for children that are creative, nutritious and use alternatives to wheat, sugar and salt.

The chefs studying the Masters in Applied Culinary Nutrition are particularly focused in their practice module on the Top 10 Concept Trends. Recently they took part in an exploratory visit to London to have a look at food outlets and restaurants that are successful in using health and wellness as the primary concept for their business. During this trip they visited Bruno Loubet’s Grainstore restaurant. This bright 200- seater sustainably focused restaurant, using locally sourced foods, gives vegetables top priority on the plate while using creative flavour combinations with other health foods. Meat and other animal foods play a role that is more complementary or ‘decorative’.

Chefs Culinary Nutrition Showcase May 2017

What’s Hot Culinary Forecast 2017 Top 20 Food Trends

1. New cuts of meat 2. Street food-inspired dishes 3. Healthful kids’ meals 4. House-made charcuterie 5. Sustainable seafood 6. Ethnic-inspired breakfast items 7. House-made condiments 8. Authentic ethnic cuisine 9. Heirloom fruit and vegetables 10. African flavors 11. Ethnic spices 12. House-made sausage 13. House-made pickles 14. Ancient grains 15. House-made/artisan ice cream 16. Whole grain items in kids’ meals 17. Protein-rich grains/seeds 18. Artisan cheeses 19. Savoury desserts 20. Gourmet items in kids’ meals

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Top 10 Food Concepts 1. Hyper-local sourcing (e.g. restaurant gardens, onsite beer brewing, house-made items) 2. Chef-driven fast-casual concepts 3. Natural ingredients/clean menus 4. Environmental sustainability 5. Locally sourced produce 6. Locally sourced meat and seafood 7. Food waste reduction 8. Meal kits (e.g. pre-measured/prepped raw ingredients for home preparation) 9. Simplicity/back to basics 10. Nutrition

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forTHOUGHT National Commis Chef Apprenticeship Programme Update Over the past 18 months, the Restaurants Association of Ireland, the Irish Hotels Federation, Fáilte Ireland and ETBI have been working on developing a National Commis Chef Apprenticeship Programme. This programme has now been submitted to QQI (Quality and Qualifications Ireland) for validation and it is hoped that is will be granted by the end of the Summer. The National Commis Chef Apprenticeship Programme will be a two-year level 6 programme that will see Employers take on an apprentice for this time. The apprentice will spend two days per week in college and three days in employment and in summer time, 1 day in college, 4 days in employment. Apprentices will be paid for both on and off the job training. Once the programme has been validated by QQI, further information will be made available on the programme. We will now commence working on the development of apprenticeship across Chef de Partie and Sous Chef.

Supervisor Management Development Programme We are now taking expressions of interest for our Supervisor Management Development programme which will commence September 2017. This will run in Dublin and Cork at first and we hope to roll it out in other locations from January 2018. It will be an 8 day course run 1 day a week every 2-3 weeks. Topics to be covered include; • • • • • • • •

Business Planning and Marketing Planning and Role of the Manager Financial Management Kitchen & Waste Management Human Resources Service Skills/ Managing the Room Communication Customer Service and Selling

If you have a supervisor working for you that may be interested in the course, please send an e-mailof ofIreland interest to Kim Leonard, info@rai.ie Restaurants Restaurants Association RestaurantsAssociation Associationof ofIreland Ireland 11 11 Bridge Court Citygate St. Augustine Street Dublin Registered Company No. 56224 11Bridge BridgeCourt Court–––Citygate Citygate---St. St.Augustine AugustineStreet Street---Dublin Dublin888---Registered RegisteredCompany CompanyNo. No.56224 56224

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Allergens in a nutshell; A practical guide to Allergen Compliance for Food Businesses. In this edition, Sinéad Fox, Managing Director of Cater Care provides information on allergens and allergen compliance in food businesses. EU law states that the use of 14 specific food allergens in producing or preparing a food or beverage must be declared. These 14 food allergens are specified in the Food Information for Consumers (FIC) Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 which came into effect in December 2014. In Ireland, national legislation stipulates that food allergen information for non-prepacked food must, at a minimum, be provided in written format to the customer. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland provide a useful online information document “Allergen Information for Non-Prepacked Food”. In May 2017, the FSAI conducted an audit of 50 food service businesses to determine if correct written allergen information was being provided to consumers. 88% of food businesses audited had findings that required corrective action. So, how can food businesses become compliant? By simply providing written information to the customer in relation to the presence of allergens in the food and beverages that are sold un-packaged!

The template above is a clear and visual method of listing each dish and ticking any of the 14 listed allergens contained therein. This can be used by food businesses to capture and track the information required for menu boards, allergen booklets, websites, menu boards, etc. The starting point of this compliance exercise is to review all recipes of dishes and products and ensure they are standardised i.e. prepared/made using the same ingredients all of the time. The label of each food ingredient within each dish must be analysed and allergen information captured (this is where the allergen checker template is useful!). Once the allergen checker is completed by ticking all allergens in the dish, then the information can be transferred to the relevant location as the written food allergen information. RestaurantsAssociation AssociationofofIreland Ireland Restaurants

BridgeCourt Court– –Citygate Citygate- St. - St.Augustine AugustineStreet Street- Dublin - Dublin8 8- Registered - RegisteredCompany CompanyNo. No.56224 56224 1111Bridge

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THE 14 ALLERGENS 1. Cereals containing gluten 2. Crustaceans and products thereof 3. Eggs and products thereof 4. Fish and products thereof 5. Peanuts and products thereof 6. Soybeans and products thereof 7. Milk and products thereof, 8. Nuts, namely: almonds, hazelnuts , walnuts, cashews, pecan nuts, Brazil nuts, pistachio nuts, macadamia or Queensland nuts and products thereof 9. Celery and products thereof 10. Mustard and products thereof 11. Sesame seeds and products thereof 12. Sulphur dioxide and sulphites at concentrations of more than 10 mg/ kg or 10 mg/litre 13. Lupin and products thereof 14. Molluscs and products thereof Should you require information or assistance to ensure allergen compliance, Cater Care’s Allergen Experts can help you become compliant! Cater Care welcome your contact by phone on 061 469008 or email info@catercare.ie

Ireland has the highest Excise on wine in the EU! The Restaurants Association of Ireland is a member of the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI). A campaign, Support Your Local, has been put together by DIGI and is calling for a reduction in alcohol excise tax in Budget 2018. Did you know? • Ireland has the highest wine excise the EU • Irish wine excise is 5.7times the Belgian level, 4.8 times the Dutch level and 2.7 times the Danish level • 14 EU economies have no excise on wine • 64% of a bottle of wine accounts for Excise • Ireland has the second highest beer excise in the EU • Ireland has the third highest spirits excise in the EU Source: Tax and Alcohol: Ireland vs The EU by Anthony Foley, DCU Business School, April 2017

Contact your local TD to call for a reduction in alcohol excise http:// supportyourlocal.ie/

RestaurantsAssociation AssociationofofIreland Ireland Restaurants

BridgeCourt Court– –Citygate Citygate- St. - St.Augustine AugustineStreet Street- Dublin - Dublin8 8- Registered - RegisteredCompany CompanyNo. No.56224 56224 1111Bridge Official Sponsor of Official Sponsor of

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NEW MEMBERS FOODforTHOUGHT

NEW MEMBERS Restaurant Name

County

Restaurant Name

County

The Station House

Co Offaly

The Everest

Co Mayo

Rob's Ranch House

Co Wexford

Loko

Co Waterford

Rob's Ranch House

Co. Kerry

Mulhalls Restaurant

Co Laois

Ocean Lodge Killadoon

Co Mayo

Lagoon Seafood and Fusion Restaurant

Co Waterford

Angelina's

Dublin 4

The Hazel House

Dublin 16

Peruke & Periwig

Dublin 2

Ellie McGuire's

Co Mayo

The Bison Bar and BBQ

Dublin 2

Jacks Tavern

Co Wexford

Aprile Restaurant

Co Dublin

Kafe Katz

Co Kilkenny

Casanova's Woodfired Pizza

Co Dublin

Indulge Restaurant

Co Sligo

Sophie's at The Dean Hotel

Dublin 2

Emmet Restaurant at Doolys Hotel

Co Offaly

Marigold

Co Meath

Coachouse Bar @ Doolys Hotel

Co Offaly

106 Atlantic Restaurant @ Waterfront Hotel

Co Donegal

Baan Thai Ballsbridge

Dublin 4

Cuan Na Ri

Co Donegal

Baan Thai Leopardstown

Dublin 18

Howl at the Moon

Dublin 2

Brilliant Royal Asian Restaurant

Co Laois

Delhi Rasoi

Co Dublin

Ploughmans Bar and Grill

Co Dublin

Uncle Pete's Pizzeria

Co Cork

Fork Restaurant at Nox Hotel

Co Galway

The Blue Apron Restaurant

Co Offaly

The Black Church Inn

Co Dublin

The Old Convent

Co Tipperary

La Rose Cucina Restaurant

Co Kilkenny

Rob's Ranch House Killarney

Co Kerry

Dooley's Seafood and Steakhouse

Co Kerry

Ristorante Romano

Dublin 1

Token

Dublin 7

Trimmers Lane Café

Co Wexford

Bit and Bridle

Co Tipperary

Tracey's Café and Surf Shop

Co Sligo

The Oratory Pizza and Wine Bar

Co Kerry

The Parlour Café

Co Cork

Capones

Co Galway

Tanyard Lane Bar and Kitchen

Co Offaly

Reeds Restaurant @ Ferrycarrig Hotel

Co Wexford

Bar Rua

Dublin 2

Ballinacourty House

Co Tipperary

The Village Bistro Coffee

Dublin 6W

trade partners

Cloud Café

Dublin 3

New Fishery Killorglin

Co Kerry

The Village Café

Co Dublin

The Hungry Duck Araby Coffee House

Business Name

County

Website

Arkair Ventilation Services

Dublin 15

arkairventilation@gmail.com

Dublin 12

Ursula Courtney Solicitors

Co Dublin

www.ursulacourtney.ie

Co Mayo

Just Eat

Dublin 4

www.just-eat.ie

Bog Road Pub

Co Laois

Wild Irish Game

Co Kildare

www.wildirishgame.ie

The Empty Glass

Co Limerick Co Galway

Mac Ivors Cider Co

Co Armagh

www.macivors.com/

Rak Thai Union Café

Dublin 1

Nedas Tea and Coffee

Dublin 2

www.tea-coffee.ie

Liberty Café

Co Louth

Liberty Café North Link

Co Louth

Davy Macs Bar

Co Waterford

Garnish Restaurant at Eccles Hotel

Co Cork

147 Deli

Dublin 1

Perry Street Market Café

Co Cork

Perry Street Market Café Blackpool

Co Cork

Perry Street Market Café Citygate

Co Cork

Sitar Indian Cuisine

Dublin 2

Sitar Marina

Co Louth

Little Strand Restaurant

Co Louth

The StoneView Restaurant

Co Cork

Ollie's Bar and Lounge

Dublin 18

The Old Fire Station Restaurant

Limerick

PS Coffee Roasters

Co Kildare

Gym Trition Café

Dublin 8

Restaurants Restaurants Association of Ireland RestaurantsAssociation Associationof ofIreland Ireland

Foodie Destinations is back! Applications Open on 15th June 2017! Visit www.foodiedestinations.ie for further information.

Harrigans Bar and Kitchen

Co Kildare 11 11 Bridge Court Citygate St. Augustine Street Dublin Registered Company No. 56224 11Bridge BridgeCourt Court–––Citygate Citygate---St. St.Augustine AugustineStreet Street---Dublin Dublin888---Registered RegisteredCompany CompanyNo. No.56224 56224 The Everest

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IHI conference

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The Irish Hospitality Institute appoints 27th President Following the Annual General Meeting of the Irish Hospitality Institute on Friday 19thMay 2017 the Board of the Institute appointed Matthias (Matt) Muller FIHI, proprietor of the Abbey Court Hotel, Nenagh Co Tipperary, as its 27th President.

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A Fellow of the IHI, Matt has served on the board of the Institute for the past two years and commented “I look forward to growing and developing the IHI Membership and services nationally”. Retiring President Martin Mangan, General Manager of the Conrad, Dublin wished his successor every success.

Touch - Pause – Engage The IHI Annual Conference, and Trade Show 2017, was held on Friday 19th May in the Arroll Suite at the Guinness Storehouse and was attend by over 110 IHI Members. Delegates were welcomed to the Conference by the Chair Michael Vaughan and he set the scene for what was to prove to be a very interesting and interactive conference. Following the morning proceedings, Delegates were treated to wine and canapes as they mingled at the Trade show. This was followed by a most memorable food experience delivered by the team at the Guinness Storehouse. The key note speaker was Joe Schmidt, Head Coach of the Ireland Rugby Team.

The three elements addressed

Supervisor Management Development Programme Touch: Reaching New and Emerging Tourism Markets and the bid for 2013 Rugby World Cup. Niall Gibbons, CEO Tourism Ireland

Pause: Leadership, Development and Retention. Conor Kenny, Founder of Connor Kenny & Associates Joe Schmidt, Head Coach of the Ireland Rugby Team (Key note speaker) Engage: Developing Brand Recognition in a Customer Lead Digital World William Cotter, Managing Director Net Affinity,

Industry Panel Debate A panel consisting of Industry experts under the leadership of the conference chair Michael Vaughan, debated the key issues affecting our industry. The leading issue “How can we attract more young people to consider the hospitality industry as a career of choice”. It was generally agreed by the panel and delegates this continues to be a major issue for the Industry and must be addressed at second level education. This will require and Industry focus with more interaction with the career guidance councillors in schoolsAssociation throughout theof country in the promotion the Restaurants Restaurants Association Ireland Restaurants Association of ofIreland Ireland Hospitality and Tourism industry as a whole. It wasDublin88--Registered 11 11 Bridge Court Citygate St. Augustine Street Company No. 56224 11Bridge BridgeCourt Court–––Citygate Citygate---St. St.Augustine AugustineStreet Street---Dublin Dublin 8 - Registered RegisteredCompany CompanyNo. No.56224 56224 also generally agreed funding would be needed from Government to support such a drive. Official Official Sponsor of OfficialSponsor Sponsorof of

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Great National Hotels & Resorts

Off The Bone: Raising the Bar for Hotel Restaurants by James Sullivan, CEO, GN Asset Management

“One of the first things our guests notice about Off The Bone is the staff” comments James Sullivan, CEO of Great National Hotels’ management division, GN Asset Management. “More specifically, there’s a palpable, genuine motivation and interest in making each and every guest feel welcome and at home in what has since proven to be one of Limerick’s - if not Munster’s - most popular eateries.” Located in Limerick’s landmark Great National South Court Hotel, Off The Bone was conceived following extensive research into local preferences and emerging trends in not just food and drink service but also entertainment. Great National itself was established in 2010 and now comprises 60 4-star and 3-star deluxe properties throughout Ireland and U.K.; the brand is also ranked as one Europe’s fastest growing hospitality chains. The South Court is one of 8 hotels owned by Great National and managed by GN Asset Management. Off The Bone Limerick is the first in a series of locations which will break cover in the coming 12 months as part of the Great Nite Inn franchise, a budget boutique brand also owned and operated by Great National scheduled for roll-out in an initial 5 properties in Ireland followed by additional locations in the UK. Sullivan is therefore delighted to discuss the background and more importantly the impact Off The Bone has had in terms of the South Court business including pipeline opportunities for the gastro-pub brand.

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Farm Fresh - Ocean Fresh - Market Fresh “Limerick opened its doors in November 2016 and had a significant business impact from the get-go both as a separate strategic revenue centre within the South Court in addition to the hotel itself. Essentially, not only have we significantly enhanced the overall experience of our in-house guests by providing a superior yet well priced and engaging F&B experience, we have also managed to re-energise local demand from surrounding neighbourhoods and areas adjacent to the South Court.” “This really is the ideal outcome for us and indeed any hotel wishing to appeal to both guests and locals alike. Particularly as Off The Bone has not only increased turnover 5-fold but it also enabled us to drive average booking values and residential guest discretionary spend” added Sullivan. As to the secret of Off The Bone’s success, Sullivan further explained that this is based around a number of key pillars within the overall brand concept, central to which is the ease with which Off The Bone can be replicated in other locations, be it as a stand-alone food and beverage business or indeed as part of a wider hotel operation.

Great National Hotels & Resorts Off The Bone, Limerick

“Off The Bone is essentially a gastro-pub, the underlying tenet to which is ‘Farm Fresh, Ocean Fresh, Market Fresh’. With an emphasis on origin and a passion for freshness from farm to fork, this means that everything we source is the very best of produce so as to compile a unique, almost artisan menu experience which incidentally extends to our choice of signature wines, speciality spirits and craft beers.” “In what is a value sensitive market, pricing is key too. For example our Friday evening ‘Supper Club’ which is unique to Off The Bone, costs just €35 per person and includes a predinner drink, a delicious four-course dinner, and a ½ bottle of wine per person followed by live local entertainment.” It is clear too that careful consideration has been given to the interior design and feel of Off The Bone which has blended a mix of classic and contemporary styles, offering a spacious, relaxed environment with strong branding throughout including exterior signage. On this point Sullivan added, “aside from merchandising and social media, the signage being truthful was probably our most effective marketing investment: given the volume of traffic passing the South Court, it was obvious that our choice of signs should be impactful whilst also enabling us to accelerate the repositioning of the bar/restaurant. So much so that we installed the signage well in advance of the opening date in November so as to create initial awareness.” Looking forward, Sullivan outlined further Off The Bone locations which have been ear-marked for 2017/18 and these include Galway, Cork, Athlone, Shannon and Tullamore: “our ‘ground-up’ approach to developing the brand was deliberate

Off The Bone Branded Merchandise in that it has allowed us to create a template solution which is highly agile and can be replicated easily and quickly elsewhere without significant CAPEX investment whilst still delivering a transformative brand experience, both in respect of the business itself and its customers.” “We’re very excited about the programme for roll-out particularly as we’ve received a number of unsolicited trade enquiries from non-Great National properties to purchase an area franchise for Off The Bone.” One to watch so, in the meantime it certainly seems that Off The Bone is well and truly raising the bar when it comes to hotel restaurants. For further details on Off The Bone including franchise opportunities, visit facebook.com/offthebonegastropub or email James Sullivan at js@gnassetmanagement.com

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tourism ireland

Spotlight on Ireland in Nevada Nine Irish tourism companies joined Tourism Ireland at Global Travel Marketplace (GTM), in West Henderson, Nevada. The busy, three-day event involved a programme of bespoke one-to-one appointments and networking sessions – providing a wonderful opportunity for the Irish tourism enterprises to meet, and do business with, influential travel advisors from North America, ensuring Ireland is ‘top of mind’ for them when recommending destinations to their clients. Tourism Ireland has prioritised North America for 2017, as a market which offers a strong return on investment, in terms of holiday visitors and expenditure. A number of factors are working in our favour, including more airline seats than ever before, from 20 gateway cities across North America to the island of Ireland, with numerous new flights and expanded services in the pipeline for this year.

Carmel Flynn, Parknasilla Resort & Spa; Dermot O’Neill, Moloney & Kelly Travel; Hillarie McGuinness, Tourism Ireland; and John Callely, Portmarnock Hotel & Golf Links, at GTM in Nevada.

‘Big drive’ to grow golf tourism Tourism Ireland’s drive to grow golf visitor numbers to Ireland continued at the recent BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, in south east England. A number of golf and tourism operators from Ireland joined Tourism Ireland at this important event in the golfing calendar. Pictured are Joseph Cruise, Tourism Ireland; Jerry Foley, West of Ireland Golf; Aifric Smyth, Tourism Ireland; Claire Anderson, Lough Erne Resort; Hemixsha Raval and Colleen McEnroy, both Tourism Ireland; Larry Walsh, North & West Coast Links; and David Boyce, Tourism Ireland. One of the European Tour’s biggest golf competitions, the BMW PGA Championship attracts top players and thousands of spectators and international media each year – providing a fantastic platform to highlight our world-class golf. Golf holidays on the island of Ireland are a major focus for Tourism Ireland in Britain, and in other key markets around the world, and the organisation has a busy programme of promotions under way to grow the number of golf tourists in 2017 and beyond.

Tourism Ireland partners Tourism Ireland board meets in with Shannon Airport to grow Ardmore German tourist numbers Tourism Ireland joined forces with Shannon Airport, to promote the new Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt and to grow German tourist numbers this summer. The campaign has been highlighting Shannon Airport as an important gateway to the Wild Atlantic Way, reaching almost 300,000 Germans – through over 200 eyecatching ‘city light’ poster ads, as well as ads on infoscreens in tube stations and S-Bahn (railway) stations, around the city of Frankfurt. The campaign also included email marketing to a database of 60,000 potential visitors, directly them to a specially created section on Ireland.com.

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The Cliff House Hotel in Ardmore was the venue for Tourism Ireland’s most recent board meeting. The board members took the opportunity to meet with local tourism operators prior to the meeting, to discuss the tourism season and the extensive promotional programme which Tourism Ireland is undertaking to highlight Waterford, Ireland’s Ancient East and the island of Ireland around the world this year. Pictured at the Cliff House Hotel are Joan O’Shaughnessy, Chairman of Tourism Ireland; Richard Hurley, Granville Hotel; Margaret Jeffares, Good Food Ireland; and Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland.

tourism ireland

Inside track for Ireland in Italy! Millions of commuters in Milan have been seeing eye-catching ads for Ireland on trams operating in the city. It’s all part of Tourism Ireland’s latest promotion in Italy, to highlight Ireland for holidays and short breaks in 2017. Tourism Ireland aims to ensure as much visibility as possible – both online and offline – during key booking periods for holidays and short breaks over the coming months. The campaign is being rolled out in partnership with Logitravel, one of Italy’s leading online travel agents, and will reach an estimated 5.2 million commuters. As well as the tram adverts, the campaign includes online ads and a video campaign on YouTube and Facebook; Ireland ads on the website of Logitravel, driving prospective visitors to a special Ireland microsite; and e-mail marketing to the Logitravel database of 1.5 million travellers.

Milan tram ‘wrapped’ in an ad for Ireland.

Growing tourism from the United States and Germany Tourism industry leaders from around the island of Ireland participated in two workshops, looking at ways to maximise growth from the US and German markets for Irish tourism over the coming years. The United States is one of the greatest contributors of visitors and tourism revenue to Ireland. Tourism revenue from the US grew by +72% and visitors by +48% over the period 2010-2015. And, outbound travel from the US to Ireland has grown faster than to many of our competitor destinations – so that today, over one in ten American travellers to Europe now visits Ireland. Germany is the largest source of visitors and tourism revenue from Mainland Europe to Ireland. After some decline during the economic downturn, the market has returned to strong growth and had its best year ever in 2016 – with 650,000 German visitors contributing almost €400 million to the Irish economy. In fact, German visitor numbers have grown by +58% and revenue by +64% over the period 2010-2015. Tourism Ireland – working closely with the tourism industry and sister agencies – is re-assessing opportunities in both of these important tourism markets, particularly in light of Brexit, to ensure that Ireland continues to grow its share of visitors from both countries.

Ruth Andrews, CEO of the ITOA (Irish Tour Operators Association); Adrian Mooney, The K Club; Alison Metcalfe, Tourism Ireland’s Head of North America; Áine Mangan, Dublin East Coast Golf Alliance; Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland; and Alison Johnston, Kildare Village.

3+ million see promotion for Ireland’s Ancient East in Britain

Tourism Ireland teamed up with Irish Ferries to promote its Pembroke to Rosslare ferry service and Ireland’s Ancient East. A joint campaign – supported by Wexford, Waterford and Kilkenny County Councils – was rolled out in Wales and southern England. The campaign targeted our important ‘culturally curious’ audience with attractive fares, encouraging prospective visitors to come and “explore in your own car”. Activity included press ads in national newspapers which reached almost 9 million readers; highly visible outdoor ads at 10 different railway stations within easy reach of Pembroke port; radio ads on the Heart network, reaching about 1.8 million listeners; as well as online ads on popular websites, targeting people living in cities in South Wales and in the Home Counties of England.

Ad highlighting Ireland’s Ancient East, which appeared in national British newspapers.

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Dublin: Unit 9, Rosemount Business Park, Ballycoolin Rd, Dublin 11 Cork: Unit B3, Fota Retail Park, Cork +353 (0) 21 485344 Contact Numbers: +353 (0) 87 967 4335 and +353 (0) 87 258 0931

Delighted to be associated with Audrey Gaffney Architectural Designers and the Markree Castle Hotel

Clontibret, Co. Monaghan, Ireland. H18 X406 T +353 47 80745 E sales@mcguiganfurniture.com W www.mcguiganfurniture.com

Wishing continued success to Markree Castle Hotel

Markree Castle

Markree Castle Markree Castle in Collooney Co Sligo is the latest property in the Corscadden family’s luxury castle hotel portfolio. The Victorian, Gothic Revival castle has undergone extensive renovation and refurbishment, bringing the stunning property back to life and creating a 5-star destination experience in the Sligo area. For Howard Corscadden, the redevelopment of Markree has been a labour of love, he says, “I used to go and visit Markree anytime I was in the area just because it is such a beautiful, historic building. We never thought we would be in a position to purchase it and when the property came on the market initially it was with 500 acres and we would not have been in a position to take on that much land. However, we were the only interested party and we suggested purchasing the castle along with 40 acres of land. That was accepted by the seller so we were delighted”. The refurbishment of the castle began during the summer of 2015 and work began on the outside of the property so that by winter, the work could move to inside the building. Howard continues, “it was a refurbishment from top to bottom and inside and out! We added a new heating system which meant new pipes throughout the hotel, all the windows were taken out and repaired and painted, we re-pointed and sprayed the building also. We brought two master craftsmen over from France who are specialists in plaster work and they restored the plaster work in the dining room. We extended the dining room also and these craftsmen recreated the same original plaster work in the extension and you wouldn’t know the difference, the work is incredible”. Howard’s attention to detail in the conservation of as much of the original castle as possible, is evident by his trip to the national archive to access old photos of the castle. He explains, “there was a tiny fire place in the long gallery which just didn’t fit such a big room. When we went into the sheds, we found pieces of old oak but we didn’t know whether it was from a bed or what it was. So, I went to the national archive and I found old photos of the castle which showed a large oak fireplace in the long gallery and we knew then that’s what the pieces of oak we found were from”. The craftsmen Howard worked with were able to restore the oak fireplace in the long gallery with 60% of the original pieces. So how long did the complete restoration take? “It took two years”, explains Howard, “but we made a point of not putting a date on it. We knew with an old building like this that we would run into the unexpected and we did. The oak staircase in the castle was dangerous and it had to be taken out and reinforced and the stained-glass window was completely restored which took

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Markree

three months. We had taken a booking for a wedding in March of this year so that was our outside deadline and we did try to work towards that”. “The castle is of national importance”, explains Howard. “Markree is a stunning property and we wanted to bring it back to life to the standard of a 5-star property. We worked very closely with Sligo county council and we opened up communication with them from the start of the project. We brought them to the other castles we have restored and they could see that we don’t knock buildings down, we restore and we found the council were delighted to work with us”. While restoration of this scale would put many people off, it has become the forte of the Corscadden family, as is their knowledge of their market. As Howard explains, “this year we opened the castle for private parties only. We have had one wedding, a private dinner and we will open for private bookings. Next year we will open completely”. The 30 bedroomed castle will be available for weddings on an exclusive basis including the ground floor, the lower levels, all the bedrooms and the church, which is a beautiful room within the castle.

For a restoration project of this scale, it was crucial that the furniture and decor be in keeping with the grandeur of the castle, but again that didn’t faze Howard. “I actually love sourcing pieces for our castles. I have four auction houses that I go to regularly; it’s a hobby of mine. The only problem I had was storing everything!” Howard continues, “We have used the Downtown Abbey theme of upstairs – downstairs. When we have a wedding, the guests dine in the dining room and then everyone leaves that room and goes downstairs where we have a gin bar, a cocktail bar and the dance floor. It is unique. The guests also have access to their own kitchen and sitting room on that lower floor. Castles like Markree were meant for entertaining big parties and that is what we’ve brought back. The wedding can be as bespoke as the Bride and Groom want; they can say what time they want the meal at, they can determine everything. We also encourage them to put pictures of themselves and their family up in castle to make the experience personal to them”. However, the wedding market isn’t the only market the Corscaddens will be targeting. “We see weddings being very successful here but we are already getting requests from businesses in Sligo to hold conferences here, as well as group business and private functions. Of course, Markree is also a destination in itself because of its history, the historical attractions locally and the proximity to the Wild Atlantic Way”, explains Howard. With the addition of Markree castle to their portfolio, the Corscaddens now have a castle hotel within each province. So, does this make the family the kings of the castle hotel market in the country? Howard says, “well, that wasn’t intentional and it sounds more grand than it actually is. Each of our castles is distinctly different and has its own personality and they are each run by a family member so we have retained a family feel in all of them. We see this even in our very low rates of staff turnover. Some of our staff have been with us for 25 years and they have become more than staff now, we see them as extended members of the family”. Given the success of the Corscadden’s other castle hotel properties: Ballyseede Castle in Co. Kerry, Bellingham Castle in Co. Louth and Cabra Castle in Co. Cavan, There is no doubt that Markree castle with see this family remain the among the royalty of Irish hospitality.

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Design

The importance of listening to the client Audrey Gaffney

is the founder of Audrey Gaffney Associates, one of Ireland’s leading interior architectural firms specialising in hospitality interiors. Here, she discusses her time within the industry and what has brought about her firms success. The firm, which began trading in 2008, provides solutions for both new builds and retrofits and counts a wide variety of hotels and dining establishments amongst its client base. Furthermore, Gaffney has also carried out conservation work on some of the most historic hospitality venues in the country. Before starting work on interiors back in 1999, Audrey had spent time in retail design, starting with architects Project Architects as a designer. Before this she had worked with Hickey’s as a department manager while also attending Griffith College for a Degree in Interior Architecture and Design and after this moved onto Project Architects. “At Project Architects it was an absolutely brilliant foundation because it also taught you about building construction and being on site”. While aesthetics may be a key part of hospitality design, Gaffney believes that function and business models are as equally important when determining the layout of a property and what owners are looking to achieve. “The way I look at things is that it’s always about the customer experience, so I need to sit down and go through who is your customer or who is the customer that you want”.

While many clients of both new and existing properties may already have determined a version of what they want their finished property to look like, Audrey sees it as her role to present options to modify certain elements in keeping with their overall brief. This can be done as a means of creating more space or functionality, as well as increasing revenue. “A lot of the time they will have a layout that they want and we will put options to them, as a means of easing any problems that they may be having”. When working with a client’s brief, Gaffney looks to fit end users and staff workflows around new and existing elements of a design – with repeat clients often giving further creative control to her with their focus shifting to price and delivery concerns. “When they’re kind of on the fence and there not sure, I just say trust me. It could be a feature, it could be something dramatic with lighting or it could be a seating arrangement or wall colour”.

In such a diverse industry, Gaffney is quick to note the variance found amongst clients, with individual properties looking to strengthen specific aspects of their offering. “There’s a design ethos for retail, for offices and for hospitality. You listen to what hoteliers are telling you with regards to their issues”, detailing the desire of many to open up additional revenue streams as part of a redesign. Taking the example of the Silverbirch Hotel in Omagh, Gaffney began the first phase of rebuild in November of 2014, eventually completing the work last summer. The refurbishment included new business conference facilities, two new bars and a 450 capacity function room that can be subdivided. Following this the basement was redeveloped as a music venue, with this completed in a time period of just over six weeks from commission to opening. The wedding market presents a particular challenge for clients, with this busy segment allowing for a limited window of opportunity throughout the calendar in order to make adjustments to properties. Gaffney notes that the use of 3D imaging in order for clients to get perspective before work begins, can also be used as a strong selling point for potential guests for this market and is part of a wider approach of detailed planning used by the firm for each project they undertake. “Our thing is to make sure everything is planned out as much as you can plan it out, so one of the problems with castles and conservation projects is that you don’t know what you are going to get”, going on to further detail her inclination for rectifying such situations as a necessary ability for the job.

Working with older properties is also something that Gaffney has gained experience in over the years, with several landmark properties displaying the results of her work. This includes several different projects at Cabra Castle in Co. Cavan, the first beginning in 2009 with a redesign of the ballroom – which was completed in a four-week turn around period due to the hotels busy wedding schedule. Further from this the firm has also created several blocks of new bedrooms along with overhauling the restaurant, bar and

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design bridal suites. “A building and what it looks like on the outside is going to dictate how it will look on the inside”, said Gaffney when discussing the need to be authentic to existing structures, particularly those with influential features. This was the case also for the work carried out on Bellingham Castle and the gothic styled Markree Castle in Co. Sligo. The previously closed property has seen extensive work carried out by Gaffney’s firm where they were responsible for the interior architecture, design and project management over a two year period.

When it comes to redeveloping the interior of existing properties, Gaffney believes that respecting the legacy of buildings is an important consideration when looking towards the future. “Sometimes you can’t get everything in a conservation building due to protected status or structure, being respectful and retaining, to me is hugely important”, noting that the inspiration for refurbishments often comes from the existing elements that are part of such structures. Conversely, new builds according to Gaffney can bring increased responsibility due to the need to already future proof properties that may not yet be opening their doors to the public for several years from the point of design. “You have to create and ensure that all the internal space is right, restaurants and bars also need their own feel”, on discussing a new hotel spa project in the North West set to open in 2019. Part of the firm’s requirement for this brief will be to not just bring a strong product to the market day one, but to also ensure its longevity throughout the next decade.

On looking toward the future, Gaffney believes that the hospitality industry has slowly recovered since the downturn in the economy and this has been reflected through new projects that are being put to tender. “There is definitely a lot more happening but when I started

Hotel & Office Interiors International Ltd Suppliers of bespoke Axminster carpet to the hotel and leisure industry

back in 2008 I didn’t know what to expect, so it was all great”, she stated when speaking of what she has seen over the past few years, and believes that her firm has grown to its strong position going forward to compete as the best of what this country has to offer in interior architecture and design. The team assembled by the firm has slowly grown, with a high rate of staff retention, something Gaffney considers to be a key attribute to the company’s success and has been mirrored with a similar retention of clients. With the future looking good for the firm and several key projects initiated, success has so far in her words been defined by what the firm has already delivered so far, along with a strong emphasis on what is best for each unique client given their circumstance. “I suppose we have built our profile and reputation on creating and delivering honest unique interiors”, said Gaffney on looking ahead with the aim to now further develop her firms standing within the Irish hospitality industry.

Hickey’s Fireplace and Stove Centre is a family owned business with over 21 years of expertise in the heating industry and have established a reputation as a company who pride themselves in supplying award winning products to: Homes, Hotels and Castles throughout the length & breadth of Ireland. Also, with Ireland’s largest Fireplace and Stove showroom, they have everything you will need to see when it comes to making the best choice for your situation.

Pleased to be associated with Audrey Gaffney Architectural Designers.

Mark Finnerty 304 Sutton Park, Sutton, Dublin D13 H9P8 087 2492442 mark@markfinnerty.ie

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Hickeys Fireplaces & Stoves Ladyrath, Wilkinstown, Navan, Co. Meath. Phone: 046 905 4285 Email: info@hickeysfireplaces.ie Web: www.hickeysfireplaces.ie

Design

ITIC elects Maurice Pratt as its new Chairman At the AGM of the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation (ITIC), Maurice Pratt was unanimously elected by ITIC Council members as their incoming Chairman to serve a 2 year term. Maurice thus becomes the 18th Chair of ITIC since its foundation in 1984 and he replaces Paul Gallagher. ITIC is the umbrella group for tourism business interests in Ireland representing airlines, hotels, tour operators, restaurants and airports amongst others as well as public sector tourism stakeholders and tourism state agencies. Maurice is currently Chairman of B&B Ireland and has a significant tourism background including a stint as director of Tourism Ireland. His business knowledge is in—depth and varied having been CEO of both Tesco Ireland and C&C and he is currently chairman of Uniphar Group plc and children’s charity Barretstown. Maurice assumes the role of Chairman of ITIC at a key time for the industry in light of Brexit challenges and on his election to the position said: “Tourism has performed extremely well in recent years and is now Ireland’s largest indigenous sector by employment. It is one of the few industries that can provide regional balance and jobs in all parts of the country and has great potential for the country. However tourism is notoriously vulnerable to external factors and Brexit is a real challenge for the sector that will need to be managed carefully. ITIC has a fundamental role in advocating that pro-tourism policies are pursued and appropriate investment strategies are implemented”. Maurice paid tribute to his predecessor Paul Gallagher and noted that, during Paul’s stewardship, ITIC led the way on key issues from the necessary Brexit policy response to Dublin’s accommodation shortfall and the industry’s voice has been strong and consistent with the profile of the sector elevated to a new level. Maurice has committed ITIC during his term to developing an industry-led strategy for sectoral growth: “This year the ITIC Executive and Board will develop a new strategy for our sector to 2025 – we envisage this to be ambitious for Irish tourism with stretching goals and aspirations. Our aim is that this strategy will be industry-led, Government-enabled and agency-supported. Given the right environment and remaining competitive I am confident that tourism can grow its value, volume and contribution to the economy over the coming decade.” Maurice will serve a 2 year term and at the AGM Ruth Andrews, of the Incoming Tour Operators Association, was elected Deputy Chair of ITIC.

Irelands project lighting supplier

For further information contact us at Unit 2A Ballyhimmon Business Park Castlecomer Co. Kilkenny

Tel: +353 (0) 56 440 0861 www.nirvanalighting.com H&RT JUNE/JULY 2017

Fáilte food focus

Enhancing the culinary experience John Mulcahy, Head of Food, Hospitality Education and Standards, Fáilte Ireland

In recent decades, Ireland’s food offering in a European context has advanced from a position of wretched stragglers to lean competitors. The confidence of Irish cuisine is on a high. Standards that our parents regarded as acceptable are a laughable distant memory now and we seem to be increasingly producing generations of innovative chefs that marry the best of tradition with best international practice. What is important, however, is to keep one’s eye on the ball in terms of the visitor’s experience. We may be riding the crest of a culinary wave from our perspective but some rocks still lurk beneath the surface and steering our national food offering is an important element of the overall tourism product. Fáilte Ireland’s imminent Food Tourism Strategy plan seeks to significantly enhance the visitor experience through food and beverages, aiming to ensure that whatever else happens on holiday, they won’t have a bad experience at the dining table. “Over the summer, we’ll be pushing out a new Food Tourism Strategy for the next five years,” says John D Mulcahy, Head of Food Tourism, Hospitality Education and Standards at Fáilte Ireland. “We’ve had two strategies to date – the last one finished up at the end of 2016 and between the end of last year and now, we’ve been going around the houses, talking to all the key stakeholders.” In these, he includes all the active elements on the ground such as restaurants, hotels and pubs, as well as the more peripheral players such as Bord Iascaigh Mhara and An Bord Bia. “Instead of Food Tourism, we’re now talking about Food in Tourism,” he says. “It’s a subtle but very important distinction. We’re not seen as a food tourism destination in the way that you might consider France or Italy or Spain but food is certainly important to our visitors so if we get food in tourism right, we could change the perception of food in Ireland and maybe, in the future, we could authentically move into a food-tourism sphere of our own.” This is something of a refreshingly realistic take on the Irish food scene. We do have a tendency in Ireland to shove ourselves up onto the highest step of any area

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in which we show some promise – whether it’s international soccer or culinary might, only to get a cold slap in the face of a reminder that we’re possibly not as all-conquering in that field as we thought we were. Not yet, at least. Mulcahy says that, following the guidance of their own ongoing market research (and drawing on international bodies such as the World Food Travel Association in the US and the Madridbased UN World Tourism Organisation), they are aware that some visitors do come to Ireland primarily for the food experience but these are still a very small minority of our tourists. According to Mulcahy this amounts to “ in and around 8-10% in any market – no matter where you go,”. This 10%, he continues, are what is known in marketing speak as important “influencers” who will go back home and encourage more people to come to Ireland for food because of their keen interest and perceived expertise. There is another 10% who will only regard food as fuel for their journey and pay little or no heed to their gastronomic environment. “For the remaining 80% of our tourists, food isn’t the only reason for coming here but it is significantly important in terms of satisfaction…

“

For us, that is what’s important in food in tourism; that the food experience drives that satisfaction.

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Fáilte food focus

They can spend all day up on the Wicklow Mountains or the Burren having a magical time but if they come back and have a poor meal experience at the end of their day, they’re going to be talking about that when they go home.” Conversely, he says, the experience of the food should be one of the highlights of their visit. “For us, that is what’s important in food in tourism; that the food experience drives that satisfaction.” In terms of looking at the examples in other countries, Mulcahy says that Fáilte Ireland has tended to benchmark the Irish plans against countries of a similar size and/or where food plays a similar role. As opposed to following the likes of France, therefore, he believes that we have more to learn from countries less renowned for their food and with a less sophisticated offering: “We’d be inclined to look at places that have a similar market to us with the same size, population or geographical footprint so we’d be looking at places like New Zealand or regions like Ontario in Canada. These are places that are pushing as food destinations. We think that’s a crowded marketplace and we can differentiate ourselves by making sure that, on scale, no matter where you go in Ireland, as a result of this strategy, you’ll bump into good food and beverages.” Mulcahy also talks about the food experience in tourism being about making something special using what we have (i.e. local produce) and marrying it with what we do best, like our sense of hospitality and welcome. This makes our offering to the visitor very site specific and not easy to replicate, so its unique to Ireland. That, he says, could be the tipping point in the decision making process of a potential visitor when they are deciding where to go on their next holiday. It’s all very positive and seemingly moving in the right direction but is such a strong and important strategy future-proofed? What about the chronic shortage of chefs, for example? What kind of dampening effect (if any) will this phenomenon have on the Fáilte Ireland Food Strategy? “This is an integrated strategy. It’s not something that can stand on its own - We are working in a lot of other areas to ensure that this strategy can be a success. We’re working very closely with the Irish Hotel Federation, with the Restaurants Association of Ireland and education providers to put a culinary apprenticeship in place. This will help by creating a sustainable, industry-driven solution which will deliver chefs who are both at work and learning at the same time. “Aside from that, we’re promoting careers in food and hospitality through a website called Tourism Insight, an initiative being led by Mary Rose Stafford (Tralee IT) and Natasha Kinsella (Regional Skills Forum, Dublin), as well as a number of other initiatives that will drive this strategy forward.” The importance of the Michelin star rating system has its place too, he feels: “I don’t think that it’s over-hyped. It’s important in terms of that 10% that I spoke of earlier. JP (McMahon) in Aniar in Galway,Ross here in Dublin in Chapter One and Martin at the Cliff House … these are the chefs the 10% of food fans want to come to and they’re providing the benchmark on how to take

Irish ingredients and do great things with them. They’re important, they’re just not the only game in town. “If we can maintain those standards that ‘influencers’ watch and measure you against, that’s a game-changer and I’d be optimistic that we’d hit that within the course of the next five years of this strategy.” “Overall, this isn’t about gastronomy. This is not about haute cuisine or the rarefied 10%. This is about every coffee shop and every pub; every catering establishment in the country from the petrol station to the SuperValu store. They all have a role to play in this and by doing something small, like ensuring that they have local products or explaining to tourists where the food comes from. If that helps us make sure that our almost 7 million tourists all bump into great Irish food while they’re here, it increases spend, it increases jobs and improves our reputation overseas. Which means, we don’t have to spend as much money getting them to come back again and again.”

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IFSA news

New Chairman Elected at IFSA AGM

The inaugural IFSA Golf Society event took place on Thursday, 27th April at the Grange Golf Club. The event, co-sponsored by Dublin Food Sales and the Flannery Group was a great kick start to the summer golf season. Upcoming Diary Dates • Thursday 8th June PRESIDENTS (PAUL BOCKSBERGER) PRIZE at the K Club Sponsored by Marco Beverage Systems • Thursday 13th July CARTON HOUSE • Friday 25th August NEWLANDS • Thursday 14th September RATHFARNHAM Individual Membership of the IFSA Golf Society is available at €30 per annum. Corporate Membership is available to IFSA Members at €100 per annum or €150 per annum for Non Members. Corporate membership allows Companies to nominate 4 x Members per annum. Contact Catherine Bennett at 087 120 8015 / Brenden Fetherston 087 258 0417 / Joe Gallaher 087 258 0418 for more information.

Trailblazer – Try before you buy

We are frequently asked, “Where can I see a Trailblazer in action?” It’s a difficult one! We don’t know when our customers are using them, where they will be or what they are using them for.

Solution!

We have developed an outdoor demonstration area at our factory and we would love you to come and try a Trailblazer for yourself. As the saying goes... “The proof of the pudding is in the eating.” So don’t just take our word for it, have a go for yourself, grilling your own produce on our flagship 600s Grillmaster and experience exactly what Trailblazer has to offer. We are easy to get to from most airports in the UK so you will be back home the same day, we have had visitors from all over the UK and Europe visit us, it is so easy. “Just a one hour flight brought us to the Trailblazer factory and showrooms. It was well worthwhile as we were super impressed with the facilities and with the guys there. Having, up to then, only seen the Trailblazers online in Streetzine it was amazing to see them for real. So much so we placed an order there and then. We have been using our Trailblazer for just over a month now and are really pleased with its look and performance and are

A banqueting solution you can bank on

John Cunningham of Total Produce was elected as the new Chairman of IFSA at the association’s AGM which took place on Monday, 15th May in the Red Cow Hotel. IFSA Members were given an outline of the activities and events undertaken by the association over the last 12 months. Business & Networking John Cunningham, Total Produce, IFSA Chairman (left) Events hosted by IFSA, with Larry Smith, Calor Gas, outgoing Chair which now boasts 195 member companies, over the last year have included CATEX 2017, DAVY Business Breakfasts, IFSA BIM Workshop, Golf Outings, Family Christmas Movie Screenings in Dublin and Belfast. Food & Bev Live 2018 will be next large foodservice event hosted by IFSA taking place on 6th and 7th February 2018 in the City West Conference and Events Centre. Members also received an update on the development of Chef Network which has grown to over 2,400 Chefs members since its launch in February 2016. Chef Network is focussed on education and training, business development and professional development and aims to foster greater cooperation and engagement between Ireland’s Chefs John Cunningham of Total Produce, was elected as the incoming Chair of IFSA for the period 2017 - 2019. He will be assisted by Alan Cruite of Trinity Hospitality who will take the position of Vice-Chair. All at IFSA would like to wish the new Chairman the best in his position for the forthcoming period and to thank Larry Smith, outgoing Chair for this hard work and dedication over the last two years. receiving lots of positive comments on the food and look of the unit. It’s a fab unit to work with and we’re managing to produce some amazing Street Food that was not possible before.” Leigh White – Feast (Trailblazer 600s Grillmaster) While you are here, we can show you the whole range of our products and accessories and give advice on how to get the most out of your new or existing outdoor catering business. Give us a shout and get a date in the diary, you’ll not be disappointed! Looking forward to seeing you at Trailblazer Contact : Lester Manley Tel: 0044 28 9057 9000 Email: lester@trailblazerbbq.com

FEM’s Alto-Shaam range of heated banquet carts. The key to a successful banqueting operation is holding food in bulk quantities at the optimum temperature prior to serving. FEM’s Alto-Shaam range of mobile heated banquet carts hold pre-plated food at the right temperature for serving, without deterioration, shrinkage or drying out. This is because of the ‘Halo Heat’ system, which offers a controlled, uniform heat source meaning there are no cold or hot spots, no air movement, which dries out food, and the cabinet radiates less ambient heat. Food is every bit as good when it comes out as when it went in, so the meal gets to the customer in the condition the chef intended. Constructed from durable stainless steel, the carts can withstand the demands of busy catering environments. Transport handles on each side and heavy duty castors enable them to be safely and easily manoeuvred and stored until needed. Food can be held from 16° to 93°C, an adjustable thermostat monitors the internal temperature. Insulation ensures only about 1°C is lost for every 45 minutes, when the food is held in the cart with the power off and the door shut. The carts are designed to offer a solution for any type of banquet, holding stacked, covered or uncovered plates ready for service, available in 96, 128, or 192 plated meal capacities. For more information email sales@fem.co.uk

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IFSA news

The Noel Group

Over the last twenty-five years The Noel Group has grown to become one of the largest recruitment companies in Ireland, with an award-winning heritage. The Noel Group has six specific divisions catering to client and candidate needs across retail, hospitality, industrial, healthcare, driving and construction sectors. Our specialised consultants and administration staff operate from strategically located offices throughout Ireland including Waterford, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Naas and Dublin. Our hospitality division, Noel Hospitality, is Ireland’s premier hospitality recruitment brand with a proud reputation earned by consistently delivering excellence to clients and candidates. Noel Hospitality place fully screened, temporary and permanent candidates across the hospitality sector, in areas as diverse as front and back of house, reception and venue management along with providing all levels of recruitment from entry level to Chefs, Senior Management and above. Noel Healthcare is fast becoming the country’s leading healthcare recruitment provider, covering both permanent and temporary assignments. We are proud to be Ireland’s only healthcare brand providing a complete clinical and non-clinical recruitment solution nationwide from public to the private hospital sector and from long-stay to homecare. The award-winning Noel Industrial supplies all levels of staff across the industrial sector in Ireland. Our assignments range from placing one temporary member of staff for one day to hundreds of warehouse operatives on an on-going basis. With industry specific brands and specialised consultants and administration staff providing a complete out of hours and weekend support service for our clients, we believe The Noel Group are the total recruitment solutions partner for you. Find out more at www.noelgroup.ie

Down2Earth Materials are the award-winning suppliers of the largest

range of eco-friendly food packaging in Ireland. With over 350 products in the range, businesses and individuals can easily adopt a more eco-conscious, by implementing our sustainably sourced packaging into their day-to-day operations. So, what exactly is ‘compostable’ packaging? If an item is certified compostable it means that it will break down into nutrient-rich soil, within an 8 to 12-week time-frame, when commercially composted. Compostable packaging does not need to go to our already over-crowded landfills, instead it can be organically recycled along with food waste, in the brown bin. Electing to use Down2Earth’s compostable packaging will save time, money, energy and precious resources. There’s no separation of foods from packaging, no rinsing, everything is disposed of in one easy step, straight into the brown bin. Simple. This efficiency eliminates consumer confusion over what bins are for what – It can all go into the one brown bin – food + packaging, which can be organically recycled into compost. Like the products we promote, we aim to be a sustainable resource for our customers in terms of products, services, support and benefits. We are happy to help our customers in any way we can, because we believe that our customers should get as much assistance as possible, in return for making the greener switch to compostable products. We see this as a key step in improving consumer experience and acceptance of organics recycling. Namely, our Compostable Specialists provide the vital education needed, for food businesses to comfortably and confidently make the switch to compostables.

Henderson Foodservice,

KBR Foodservice Equipment have recently celebrated 10 years in business. Like all equipment suppliers, the past decade has been challenging but having recently completed some significant projects including the complete kitchen refurbishment at the landmark ‘Jack White’s Inn’ we can see an upturn in the market. We are delighted to announce that we have recently moved to a new state of the art premises at The Village Mill Enterprise Park in Rathnew, resulting in the creation of two new jobs. We credit our continued success to the premium brands we represent such as Rational, Sagi, Counterline, True Refrigeration, Lincat and Merrychef to name but a few. The continued growth in Merrychef Sales and accessories as well as our specialist knowledge has resulted in the creation of our dedicated Merrychef Website: www.themerrychefcentre.ie . For Merrychef enquiries you can e-mail us at sales@themerrychefcentre.ie Our services include Kitchen Equipment, Refrigeration, Stainless Steel Fabrication, Cold Rooms and Servery Counters. We provide a full kitchen design and layout service and look forward to any enquiries either by phone on 01-2916261 or e-mail: sales@kbr.ie We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our new and existing customers for their continued support and loyalty throughout the years.

one of Ireland’s leading foodservice distributors, are celebrating 50 years in business in 2017. Supplying a broad range of catering essentials across multiple temperature bands from ambient and frozen to fresh and chilled produce and non-food, we pride ourselves on our quality and service. Working with local and national suppliers, you can be assured we have something for you – whether it’s store cupboard ingredients for scratch cooking or if you need something to speed up service, we also have a variety ready to finish dishes and desserts. Our fresh meat is locally sourced from accredited suppliers to ensure we deliver great quality every time. Our fresh solutions can help you maintain your reputation to serve delicious meals. If you’re looking for on trend solutions, we can help. Afternoon Tea continues to be a booming occasion in Ireland and it’s set to continue. With hotels and restaurants competing for the most inspiring service, we can supply a wide range of local and branded breads, scones, cakes, pastries, jams, and butter as well as a large variety of teas and coffees, to really bring your creativity to life, keep margins high and customers delighted. Contact us today on 1800 805593 to find out more about how we can help you deliver quality.

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technology

investing in the very latest technology VDA is a family owned company and based in Italy. Formed over 35 years ago, the company began providing in-room controls and TV systems. Now in its 14th year in Ireland, much has evolved in the company as digital technology has progressed. VDA’s latest project is with the luxury boutique hotel The Address, the newest of the McGettigan Hotels in Dublin. Warren Edwards, GM for VDA Ireland explains, “The Address is a new hotel by Brian and Ciaran McGettigan, sitting adjacent to the North Star Hotel in Dublin. Our brief was to design technology with simple and clear controls that add to the luxurious guest experience that the McGettigan’s wished to create in their new property”. Although The Address and The North Star Hotels will share a new and specially designed reception area, The Address has its own lift to allow guests to access their rooms. As such, in order to meet the unique requirements of this new hotel, VDA created a system specifically to meet that brief. Warren says, “We designed a key-card which allows the guests of The Address to access the lift, the doors to the corridors of their rooms, as well as access their own particular room. The guests of The Address on the other hand, also have access to the Exclusive Club Lounge at the top of the property, all from the one key-card designed by VDA. This area, which has stunning views of the city, is also the area where breakfast is served to their guests”. VDA has developed technology which enhances the guest experience as well as providing cost saving solutions for hotels. The technology VDA designed at The Address had such an impact on their guests that reviews such as the below mentioned were shared on TripAdvisor; “…the hotel was very new, lift access was only allowable with our room key. We were on the 5th floor, rooms are very modern – touch buttons for lights and curtains. Wi-Fi was accessed through the TV with our unique code.” And another from an American guest, “We spent 8 nights at this hotel and would recommend it. It was new with a nice TV bed and bathroom. Cool features like automated lights and curtains”. The type of systems that VDA installs also can include the controls for electric curtains, which can open and close automatically. Warren explains, “In a southfacing room for example the curtains can close automatically when the guest is out of the room, to keep the room cool, but also to save furnishings and upholstery from sun damage. These curtains can also be started and stopped at any point using the TV remote or Ipad. The TV remote also controls the lighting, room temperature and can be used to order in-room services as well as look up local attractions by way of an app installed on the TV. The guest’s mobile and tablet devices can also be used to access this app and avail of the simple to use in-room controls”. VDA has been investing in the very latest technology that will allow guests to download their key card onto their mobile phone. This makes the guest experience easy and convenient, as they can have access to their room using their mobile phone as their key-card. Another feature of the in-room technology which VDA has brought to The Address is the suitable lighting from bed to bathroom. Warren continues, “We installed PIR sensors so that when guests are in bed, instead of having to turn the lights on to go to the bathroom, a low wattage light switches on under the bed automatically and lights the way to the bathroom. This enhances comfort and convenience for the guests, them not having to switch on a bright light during the night in order to locate bathroom, and thus also not disturbing their partner”.

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technology

VDA has increased its presence in the Irish market, servicing over 65 hotels and 9,000 rooms. Another recent addition to the Irish portfolio is the 28 room extension to the Dylan Hotel in Dublin. VDA is also a global company and recently secured a contract with MGM Grand in Macau, China for a 2,500 bedroomed hotel. VDA also are the technology providers to the “Hub” by Premier Inn, they supply in room controls to the ALT Hotel group, where their equipment is installed into pod constructed rooms in Poland, shipped out and erected in Canada. However, the company continues to develop their services to the hospitality industry by expanding their digital signage for hotels which includes; signage for reception areas, meeting rooms, events as well as F&B service areas. The company has also expanded its support services to the Dublin region. As VDA’s presence within the Irish hospitality market grows, it is reassuring to know that its attention to its customers’ needs remain as personal as ever.

Warren Edwards sales@vdaireland.com +353 (0)93 36691 M: 086 825 7171 www.vdagroup.com

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food & bev live

Food & Bev Live

Set to Serve Up a Tasty Show

FOOD & BEV LIVE, taking place on the 6th and 7th February 2018 at the Citywest Events Centre, is shaping up to be an excellent twoday event, with the show being jointly driven by a new partnership between the Irish Foodservice Suppliers Alliance (IFSA) and the Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI). Attracting thousands of visitors from the food, hospitality and technology sectors, Food & Bev Live is building on the huge success of renowned IFSA-event, CATEX. Floorspace is already being secured by companies who have both exhibited at FOOD & BEV in 2016 and at CATEX 2017, and who recognise the benefits that these events bring to their business. From meeting new suppliers to learning from best practice and availing of expert advice, there’s exciting developments in store for next year’s event, the team that delivered CATEX on behalf of IFSA. In a first for the sector, Food & Bev Live 2018 will host the largest Hospitality Technology Forum in Ireland, bringing the world’s latest hospitality and tourism technology start-ups to Ireland for the innovation forum. John Cunningham, Chairman of IFSA comments: “We’re delighted to be able to grow our show in partnership with the Restaurants Association of Ireland and attract market-leading food & hospitality exhibitors to the show. With a joint database of thousands of visitors from both CATEX and FOOD & BEV, we’ll be working hard to deliver a larger event, both in terms of floor space and visitor numbers, providing new ideas and networking opportunities for our members and visitors. “With eight months to go, the show has attracted exciting new partners, whilst still being supported by our ongoing associations such as the Panel of Chefs and BAI. FOOD & BEV will be an event that’s relevant to everyone in the food, drink and hospitality sectors, and it’s the show where business will be done in 2018.”

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In addition to exhibitors from 2016 who have pledged to return to next year’s event, new names will be showcasing their products and services alongside a host of CATEX exhibitors who have signed up for FOOD & BEV. Confirmed exhibitors include Calor Gas; Hugh Jordan, Mark Rafferty Solutions, Dairy Glen, Koppert Cress, and Bunzl McLaughlin, who are once again sponsoring FOOD & BEV. “Following the success at CATEX, we decided almost immediately to exhibit at Food & Bev Live 2018. Dairyglen are thrilled to be a part of the show, as not only does it give us the opportunity to meet with our customers – both existing and new - it allows us to stay up to date with changes in the industry and to showcase our new products including our innovative ice cream machines,” comments Greg Maher, Marketing Executive at Dairyglen Products. Food & Bev Live is taking place on the 6th & 7th February 2018 at the Citywest Events Centre. To keep updated on new features, exhibitors and partners, follow the show on twitter @FoodandBevLive or log onto www.foodandbev.ie If you would like to be a part of Food and Bev Live, please contact Niamh Kenny at Niamh.Kenny@eventhaus.ie. Alternatively, please call 00353 (0)1 846 0020.

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food market

Small Food & Drink Companies Target Foodservice Sector Bord Bia & KSG Catering unite to form the “In.gredients” supplier initiative

Seven Irish food and drink companies have joined a new Bord Bia and KSG Catering initiative that seeks to help smaller companies get their product ranges listed in the foodservice market. For the first time Bord Bia and KSG Catering have come together to form the ‘In.gredients’ programme, aimed at providing these businesses with tailored support to assist them secure and grow business in some of the 110 outlets run by KSG Catering around the country. KSG Catering, an Irish owned company, currently employs over 1,100 people and serves food to more than 12 million customers annually. Companies benefitting from the programme reflect the areas where KSG is looking to grow their supply base and range from natural and healthy snacks, to indulgent hand cooked vegetable crisps, premium Irish charcuterie and award winning spices, sauces and chutneys. According to Sandra Burns from Joe’s Farm vegetable crisps, “This programme offers me invaluable access to the necessary people and insight into how companies such as KSG operate and choose suppliers. I am delighted to be taking part as foodservice is a sector I have not looked into supplying yet, so I hope I can open doors for the business and take it to the next level.”

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“Out of Home” Food Market in Ireland

The foodservice or “out of home” market has grown to a record €7.5 billion in 2016, and is forecasted to grow to over €9 billion by 2020, according to Bord Bia. Foodservice describes all food consumed out of home, from restaurants, hotels, coffee shops and bars to workplace catering, hospitals, education and vending. This market has benefited from better than anticipated economic growth, buoyant consumer confidence, a strong domestic and international tourist market (including business tourism), an unemployment rate that is now less than 7%, and the continuation of 9% VAT for hospitality. Highlighting the sector’s prospects, Maureen Gahan, Bord Bia’s Foodservice Specialist said, “Foodservice in Ireland offers major opportunities for food and drink companies providing innovative products and solutions to meet changing consumer needs. Through programmes such as this, we are equipping companies with the necessary skillset to target this growing industry. ”

food market

Forage & Cure – a Dublin based 4th generation Master Butcher, produce a range of locally cured Irish pork charcuterie. Rick Higgins M: 086 601 0592 W: www.forageandcure.com E: rick@forageandcure.com

The Galway Food Company – a manufacturer of a range of shortbread biscuits that uses locally sourced ingredients including Galway Bay lavender and Connemara seaweed. Clare Colohan M: 086 326 6903 W: www.thegalwayfoodcompany.com E: info@thegalwayfoodcompany.com

About the In.gredients Initiative

The six-month long workshop based programme, coordinated by Bord Bia, will support companies at varying stages in their development. In addition, participants will receive bespoke mentoring and access to relevant KSG personnel and route to market partners in order to gain an understanding of the organisation’s processes and procedures. Clear objectives and targets are set for each company to help them achieve key opportunities identified for their business with KSG.

Urban Artisan – owners of the Cracked Nut shop in Dublin and a family owned business, producing a range of 100% natural, dairy free, gluten free raw energy balls. Nikki Carruthers M: 086 835 4956 W: www.crackednut.ie E: nikki@crackednut.ie

KSG provides bespoke contract catering solutions to a broad range of clients operating in the following industry sectors - professional offices, healthcare, education and travel. The company also operates a number of restaurants in shopping centres around the country including SoMa Burger, Noah & Co Bistro Cafe and Leopold Coffee Houses. The company has also partnered with Michelin-starred restaurateur, Patrick Guilbaud, on a premium hospitality focused catering offering for corporate clients. KSG was awarded Ireland’s Sustainable Restaurateur of the Year 2016. Nick Andrews, Group Head of Culinary Operations, KSG, commented “As a 100% Irish owned company, KSG is proud to partner with Bord Bia to support the development of local food producers. We are delighted that through this programme, Irish companies will have the opportunity to use KSG’s scale to grow their business and learn from our foodservice experience and consumer insight.”

Green Saffron – a multi-award winning family business producing spice blends, sauces and chutneys from spices sourced in India. Arun Kapil M: 086 729 9992 E: arun@greensaffron.com W: www.greensaffron.com

Synerchi – a certified organic, naturally free from dairy and gluten range of refreshing, effervescent Kombucha drink with only 59Kcals per bottle. Ryan O’Hagan M: 086 014 9846 W: www.synerchi.ie E: ryan.ohagan@synerchi.ie

Joe’s Farm Crisps – for their vegetable crisps, grown and cooked on their own farm in East Cork. Sandra Burns M: 087 632 9334 W: www.joesfarmcrisps.ie E: sandra@joesfarmcrisps.ie

For more information on any of the suppliers or for general queries, please contact Maureen Gahan, Foodservice Specialist, Bord Bia. M: 087 668 6129 E: maureen.gahan@bordbia.ie

Natasha’s Living Food- Suppliers of a vegan and raw food snack range Natasha Czopor M: 087 974 3455 W: www.natashaslivingfood.ie E: natasha@natashaslivingfood.ie

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economy

Converting business success into personal success Graham Cawley Senior Private Client Adviser, Davy Private Clients I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Pat McCann, Chief Executive of Dalata Hotel Group, in front of an audience of hoteliers, restaurateurs and their suppliers during an event Davy hosted for IFSA. It was very evident from the discussions with attendees both during and after the event that the sector is growing and benefiting from the general economic recovery in Ireland. To some extent it is even benefitting from the Brexit effect as Ireland, and Dublin in particular gains an advantage over London in attracting financial services companies which have been scouting new locations. Davy’s outlook on the Irish economy is currently positive and we expect the hospitality and food service sectors should stay strong for the foreseeable future. Longer term, it’s more difficult to predict what lies ahead but there seems to be an increasing requirement to be adaptable in our approach to business.

Finding the bandwidth

As a private client adviser, I advise a variety of business owners on how they can convert business success into personal success. Driving their business in a competitive world is typically a demanding if not all-consuming occupation. Because of this, successful business owners struggle to find the bandwidth to effectively manage their personal financial success. When business owners ask me for advice on achieving personal financial success, I start by asking ‘what are you trying to achieve?’. The answer should be obvious, but for many, succinctly articulating their objectives requires some thought and consideration. An example of an objective that will resonate with many is: ”I want to retire at 60 with no debt, having educated my children and build up enough pensions and other assets to keep myself in the style to which I’ve become accustomed”. An eminently intuitive and sensible objective, however, it prompts more questions: how much do I currently spend?; how much will I need in retirement?; how should I fund it?; is there a tax-efficient way to do it?; am I on track to achieve it?; what happens if I become ill?; what happens if my business partner dies?

Efficient structure

I read a book on card games many years ago. In the tips for Gin Rummy, the author acknowledges that we cannot control the cards we are dealt. He did think, however, that we can improve our chances of winning by arranging our hand in a structured way to make the most of the cards we have been dealt. In many instances, successful business owners ignore or make little use of one of the most efficient structures for converting business success into personal financial success. This structure can also be a useful life cover instrument, succession planning instrument and perhaps improve sense of well-being through the security it provides It is one of the most underrated and underutilised structures, while also being one of the most widely available. I am of course talking about a pension. In many cases, the potential positive contribution a pension can make to their financial affairs can be under-appreciated by many business owners.

Complex financial affairs

It is not unusual for a business owner’s financial affairs to be quite complex. Any advice or recommendations can only be made after a complete review. This review of the client’s circumstances, assets, liabilities and any corporate structures involved tends to 52

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be the basis of meaningful conversations about their plans for the future and any concerns they have. Many business owners are working towards an eventual sale of their business. This can have implications for how the business is structured. It might warrant setting up a holding company. If there is scope to take advantage of retirement relieve to extract cash from the business, there are certain criteria that need to be followed. Another common objective is to pass the business onto the next generation. We find it useful to talk about wealth in three broad categories: • Needs: a roof over head, shirt on back, food on table, pay the bills • Goals: future consumption, a core of wealth invested to achieve growth over time and that we cannot afford to lose. • Aspirations: speculative and opportunistic investments that we hope will do very well but the loss won’t affect our lifestyle if they disappoint. A financial plan would not be complete without an investment strategy. At Davy we have teams of analysts who are tasked with researching, analysing and managing portfolios that aim to protect and grow our clients’ wealth.

Knowledge and experience

When advising clients on these matters I have the advantage of the collective experience and expertise of Davy, in addition to the network of legal and tax professionals with whom we have built relationships. Davy’s knowledge and experience puts us in a strong position to provide the direction we think a client should consider. However, before implementing a plan, it is critical that the client seeks the advice of a qualified tax professional. I have seen the financial planning process work very well many times and have yet to meet a client who did not see the benefit of creating a financial plan. A plan provides peace of mind and confidence that is achieved through having an understanding of where you are going and how you are going to get there. Having a considered plan won’t reduce the hard work and toil owning a business so often brings. It should however bring a sense of purpose and a focus on where the journey is going to take you.

Start today

A core objective of financial planning is to cultivate and grow a client’s core portfolios so that when they do need to rely on it, it is there for them when they need it. Financial planning is a big step, but not daunting when you partner with an experienced adviser, and well worth the effort. My final piece of advice is to get started today. Graham Cawley is a senior private client adviser with Davy. He works with business owners to provide best-in-class financial planning, investment management and asset selection. Graham can be contacted at: graham.cawley@davy.ie Please note that this article is general in nature and is not intended to constitute tax, financial or legal advice. It does not take account of your financial situation or investment objectives. Prior to making any decision which may have tax, legal or other financial implications, you should seek independent professional advice. There are risks associated with putting any financial plan in place. The value of investments may go down as well as up.

awards

Executive Pastry Chef,

Paula Stakelum

is crowned Valrhona Patisserie Champion 2017 Ashford Castle continues on its winning streak. Executive Pastry Chef, Paula Stakelum has been crowned 2017 Valrhona Patisserie Champion. The 5th bi-annual Valrhona Patisserie Championship took place in DIT Cathal Brugha Street on Tuesday, 30th May where Ashford Castle’s talented pastry chef was successful against five other patissiers to take home the coveted title. Judges were captivated by Paula’s winning dish, ‘Tá an taobh istigh iompú amuigh’ – the old Gaeilge phrase, “the inside is turned outside”. The dish was a contemporary and avant-garde take on the classic French bavarois combining Guanaja, Pine Oil and Wood Sorrell to create a beautiful story. As with all her creations, Paula used the beautiful surroundings of Ashford Castle and Estate as inspiration, incorporating pine tips and wood sorrel which had been foraged on the estate. Head Judge, Benoit Blin – Chef Patissier at 2 Michelin Star Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons and judge on BBC2’s Bake Off: Crème De La Crème – was joined on the judging panel by some of Ireland’s most regarded pastry chefs including Aoife Noonan, Executive Pastry Chef at Luna, Clare Fletcher of The Firehouse Bakery, David Geszler, Head Pastry Chef at The Marker Hotel and Ludovic Lantier, Executive Pastry Chef at Fade Street Social, Rustic Stone and Taste at Rustic. A native of Thurles, Co. Tipperary, Paula joined the team at Ashford Castle in 2010 and since then has been delighting, and surprising, guests with her exceptional culinary skills. Each morning, Paula forages on the vast 350acre Ashford Estate to find unique and seasonal ingredients which are then incorporated into her desserts, truly capturing the spirit of Ashford. Paula’s ambition is that dessert is more than simply food on a plate – dessert should be visually striking and exceptional in flavour, exciting and unexpected. It should be unique to its setting. Commenting on her award, Paula Stakelum said: “I am honoured to have had the chance to represent Ashford Castle at the 2017 Valrhona Patisserie Championship – winning the title was certainly the highlight ! 7 years ago when I last entered the competition I created a bavarois dish but this year I felt it was my time; it is all a part of my story and journey as a pastry chef. I won thanks to the continuous support and encouragement I have at Ashford Castle; I work with an amazing team.” Ashford Castle’s General Manager, Mr Niall Rochford also commented: “We are all very proud of Paula’s achievement. At Ashford Castle we strive to deliver a guest experience incomparable to anything they have seen before, and that includes our dining experience. Thanks to our stellar team and having Paula’s exceptional talents on our side, we are doing just that.”

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industry focus

AVEA is the newly formed

Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions Paul Carty, Guinness Storehouse Managing Director, recently launched the new national representative Association for the Visitor Attractions and Experiences sector in Ireland – AVEA. The launch took place at an event in The National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, where leaders of the sector were joined by other tourism industry representatives, associations and tourism agencies to launch the organisation. The event was hosted by Paul Carty the newly appointed Chairman of AVEA. The AVEA launch marks the first time that the sector will be brought together and recognised as a voice within the tourism industry. AVEA will provide a forum for the exchange of knowledge, information and advice between members as well as offering external support systems and professional insight into the delivery of best practice in customer care, interpretation and service standards. Supporting the AVEA launch,, Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Patrick O’Donovan said; “The Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions represents a very important sector of the tourism industry. Visitors to Ireland want to experience every aspect of our unique Heritage and Culture and the businesses who deliver this are vital to the tourism economy. These businesses employ some of our best story tellers, people with special skills to maintain, preserve and enable access for the millions of visitors, both overseas and domestic, who enjoy the wide range of built and scenic attractions on offer in Ireland. In many cases, the attraction operators are the custodians of what secures Ireland’s appeal as a holiday destination year after year. The Government’s support for this sector is demonstrated by its continued capital investment in tourism and in the maintenance of our national Heritage and Cultural assets. I am

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confident that this investment, combined with the investment made by local government in tourism infrastructure throughout the country will sustain the Visitor Experience and Attractions sector into the future. I look forward to working with AVEA and its members to support and strengthen their role in Irish tourism.” AVEA’s board is comprised of some of the best-known individuals from visitor attractions and experiences from around the country including Ann Daly (Head of Marketing, the National Museum of Ireland), Michael Counahan (Managing Director, CHL Consulting), Seán Connick (Chief Executive, John F Kennedy Trust, New Ross), Denise Brophy (Managing Director, Dublinia), Anne-Marie Diffley (Visitor Services Manager, Trinity College), Biddy Hughes (Sales and Marketing Director, Westport House), Pat Ó Súilleabháin (Managing Director, National Sea Life Centre, Bray) and John Ruddle (Chief Executive, Shannon Heritage). Speaking about the launch of AVEA, Chairman Paul Carty said; “AVEA has long been an ambition of mine and indeed shared by many others, to have this sector of the industry come together under one umbrella with a unified voice in the tourism industry. Visitor Attractions and Experiences are key drivers of the business of tourism in Ireland - we are a huge part of what motivates overseas visitors to come to Ireland. Attractions and experiences tell the stories of Ireland through the ages and we are blessed with some of the most spectacular sites around the country. What we add to the overall destination experiences are holiday memories that endure a lifetime and, when shared, encourage even more visitors to come to this great Island year after year.” Membership is open to a variety of Visitor Attractions and Experiences including gardens, leisure and entertainment visits, museums, galleries, historic buildings and estates, monastic sites, cathedrals, churches, farm visits, themed trails, guided boat trips, evening entertainment and theatres. Paul Keeley, Director Business Development at Fáilte Ireland welcomed the establishment of AVEA saying that Fáilte Ireland is very pleased to support this initiative in terms of advice and funding. A compelling portfolio of attractions is crucial to tourism and having a representative group dedicated to greater professionalism and the further development of the sector will enable us to raise our game in terms of the visitor experience. Fáilte Ireland looks forward to working hand in glove with the Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions to secure the continued growth in tourism which will be vital for generating revenue and jobs throughout the country.” Membership is open to all Visitor Attractions and Experiences including Gardens, Leisure & Entertainment Visits, Museums, Galleries, Historic Buildings & Estates, Monastic Sites, Cathedrals/Churches, Farm Visits, Themed Trails (guided), Boat Trips, Evening Entertainment & Theatres. Further information on AVEA is available from www.avea.ie

The only place to do business in 2018 From the team that delivers CATEX

CATEX was the show that gave you a great start to 2017 with 82% of exhibitors satisfied with the level of business generated. Why not continue that upward curve of business growth and exhibit at next yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Food & Bev Live, the place where your industry will be doing business next February. For Further information on how to book your stand, please contact: Niamh Kenny - E: niamh.kenny@eventhaus.ie Margaret Andreucetti - E: margaret@eventhaus.ie Richard Byrne - E: richard.byrne@eventhaus.ie T: +353 (0) 1 846 0020 Or visit: foodandbev.ie