Australian Hotelier July 2019

Hotelier AUSTRALIAN

AUSTRALIA’S NATIONAL HOTEL INDUSTRY MAGAZINE

Guest Paging

VOL. 36 no. 6 – JULY 2019

Push for Service

Two Way Radios

Staff Paging

Gaming Paging System

Boost Phone Charging

Table Tracking ®

On-Cue Seating Management System

PAG I N G & C O M M U N I C AT I O N S O L U T I O N S LRSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

IN THIS ISSUE: POS LATEST | BEER NEWS | DESIGN & BUILD

LRSAUSTR ALIA.COM.AU +61 2 9 955 5700

Be Connected Enhance the customer experience, increase customer loyalty and improve service with integrated tools and applications from LRS.

Elevate the guest experience with the durable sleek and reliable LRS Pager, it is the only all-in-one pager or mobile phone notification system.

This intelligent device uniquely acknowledges and confirms when a page is delivered. It’s adaptable too, you have the power to program it yourself, set pager numbers and integrate it with crucial operational solutions.

Light up your creativity with multi-coloured LED lights. Add your branding and you can truly make this pager your own.

MANAGE WAITLISTS

A complete waitlist management solution that offers the flexibility customers want with notification choices via Guest Pager or text to Mobile.

It’s simplicity is what restaurants need to notify staff where they are needed.

A table location system that identifies where guests are sitting so you can deliver food faster.

Table Tracker not only helps restaurants deliver a better guest experience, but enables an efficient operation through analytics and reporting functions.

View all paging and communication options at LRSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

LRSAUSTR ALIA.COM.AU +61 2 9 955 5700

Push For Service Push-button notification systems allow customers to alert staff and request immediate service.

Two-Way Radios Portable and wireless Radio Kits help staff members to communicate directly on-site. Bluetooth accessories are also available.

Boost Power Bank

A Smart Portable Charging Solution A new standard to hit the hospitality industry, these portable mobile phone chargers are designed exclusively for the service sectors.

Boost charging solution allows the venue to offer a highly efficient charging solution to their customers.

Staff Paging LRS Pagers keep your staff aware and connected with each other and guests, ensuring better all-round service.

Gaming Room Paging LRS Gaming Pagers help increase revenue and efficiency by allowing staff members to respond quicker and escalating unanswered calls to upper management.

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CONTENTS | ED’S NOTE

18 Editor’s Note

T

here was some fascinating news out this month about beer’s $16.5bn contribution to Australia’s economy. While there’s much more to our thriving pub scene than beer, these stats show what a pivotal role our pubs play both in the sense of social and community values, but also our central importance to the wider economy too. Read the story on page six.

On the topic of ringing the tills, we explore the latest POS and OpTech developments that means cash registers are increasingly central to operations.

Discover the full feature from page 10. Elsewhere this issue we have all the latest beer news from Australia and beyond, from page 14, plus our pales and ales focus from page 18.

In our regular Design and Build feature from page 20, we reveal the stunning redesign of The Shoreline Hotel in Tasmania to match its top-pedigree chef.

Over in our Tales From The Top interview on page 26, we speak with recruitment specialist Amber King to tackle the perennial issues around staffing.

Lastly with the ICC Cricket World Cup well underway as I write this, we have all your top sport picks on page 24.

Cheers, Craig Hawtin-Butcher, Editor E: craig@intermedia.com.au

NEXT MONTH AGE Preview | Security | Property

10 20 24

Contents | July Special Features

Regulars

10 POS: Latest OpTech ED’S PICK revolutionising sales, loyalty and security.

14 Brew news: From consumption to new openings, key beer news.

18 Pales and ales: Help your customers defy the chill with beer.

26 Tales From The Top: Staffing and recruitment specialist Amber King.

6 News: The most relevant stories affecting your business.

20 Design and Build: Discover this super-sharp Tasmanian reno, The Shoreline Hotel.

24 Sports Calendar: July’s ICC LIVE! Cricket World Cup, Wimbledon and more.

PUBLISHER: Paul Wootton EDITOR: Craig Hawtin-Butcher PUBLISHED BY:

Food and Beverage Media Pty Ltd 41 Bridge Road GLEBE NSW Australia 2037 Tel: 02 9660 2113 Fax: 02 9660 4419

craig@intermedia.com.au

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GENERAL MANAGER SALES – LIQUOR & HOSPITALITY GROUP: Shane T. Williams

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4 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

WE ENCOURAGE RESPONSIBLE DRINKING Get the facts DrinkWise.org.au

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NEWS

THE MOST PROFITABLE GAMING VENUES IN NSW

BEER’S $16.5BN CONTRIBUTION TO AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMY Australian beer has been shown to be a huge supplier of local jobs, as well as a major economic driver and large revenue raiser for the government in the latest data from the Brewers Association of Australia.

The economic analysis by ACIL Allen Consulting shows that 84 per cent of all beer sold in Australia is made in Australia. As a result of that domestic production there is support for almost 103,000 full-time Australian jobs and $16.5bn a year in economic activity.

“Raising a glass is a part of who we are. Beer is a major ingredient in what brings families, friends, colleagues and entire communities together.

But it is also an important lubricant for our economy at national, state and local levels,” Brewers Association of Australia CEO Brett Heffernan said.

“While the data for 2017-18 has tracked down slightly since 2015-16, mainly due to an increase in imports (up from 14 per cent to 16.2 per cent), beer in Australia is predominantly a domestic industry, with the three major local brewers (CUB, Lion and Coopers) accounting for 79.4 per cent of sales volume.

“Locally brewed beer, independent of its flow-on effects through the broader economy, supports 12,564 full-time Australian jobs in its direct supply chain and generates almost $6bn in economic activity.”

Heffernan added: “When you add in the jobs and economic inputs beer drives across agriculture (primarily malting barley and hops); the broader supply chain, including manufacturing, packaging and transport sectors; through to pubs, clubs, cafes, restaurants and retailers; beer production in Australia generates a massive 102,816 full-time equivalent jobs and $16.5bn a year to the economy.

“Every Australian schooner of beer sold in pubs and other licensed premises contributes $6.46 to GDP. “The 2017-18 data on beer taxes is telling. Australian beer drinkers poured $3.613bn into government coffers – that’s just over $2bn in excise and $1.6bn in GST. Australian Government tax is the single biggest cost in the price of a beer.

“Demand for light and mid-strength beers has remained constant at 26.5 per cent of sales volume, however, the trend to lower strength beers has seen full-strength beers sold in Australia average 4.4 per cent alcohol by volume, down from the once typical five per cent.

“The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that Aussies are drinking less alcohol today than at any point in the last 55 years, with 84 per cent of us drinking within recommended guidelines. That’s very positive cultural change.”

FOR MORE INDUSTRY NEWS FOLLOW US ON 6 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

Liquor & Gaming NSW has published its latest gaming machine data updates, which detail the gaming machine numbers and net profit for each NSW local government area as well as the net profit rankings for all NSW venues with gaming machines.

LGNSW publishes the data every six months which it says is “part of the NSW Government’s commitment to boost transparency on gambling activity in local communities.”

The latest reports cover 1 June 2018 to 30 November 2018 for clubs and 1 July 2018 to 31 December 2018 for hotels. LGNSW said that “due to seasonal factors, gaming machine profits are historically higher in the second half of each calendar year”.

For this period the most profitable hotel in NSW was the Cross Roads Hotel in Casula, while the most profitable club was Mount Pritchard & District Community Club (trading as Mounties).

Top 10 gaming machine net profit hotels in NSW: 1. Cross Roads Hotel, Casula 2. Railway Hotel, Lidcombe 3. Markets Hotel, Flemington 4. Meridian Hotel, Hurstville 5. The Crown Hotel, Revesby 6. El Cortez, Canley Heights 7. Campsie Hotel, Campsie 8. Twin Willows Hotel, Bass Hill 9. Royal Oak Hotel, Lidcombe 10. Pritchards Hotel, Mount Pritchard Read the full story online at: http://bit.ly/GamingTop10

Gaming room at The Glebe Hotel

CHECK OUT THESHOUT.COM.AU

NEWS

MERIVALE’S FORMER CONSTRUCTION BOSS PLEADS GUILTY TO DECEPTION Justin Hemmes’ former Merivale Left: Joel Cheeseman (Image (c) Joel Cheeseman / LinkedIn) and colleague Joel Cheeseman admits right, Merivale’s CEO Justin Hemmes $230,000 fraud against Merivale.

Merivale’s former construction lead Joel Cheeseman, 30, appeared in front of deputy registrar N Hoffmann at Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney on 29 May, where he plead guilty to a charge of dishonestly obtaining a financial advantage or causing disadvantage by deception.

Police allege Cheeseman authorised fraudulent invoices amounting to nearly $230,000 to be paid by Merivale to his bank account. Five separate instances were alleged to have taken place between August 2017 and October 2018.

Cheeseman’s lawyer, Jason Hanna, sought an adjournment in the case to 21 August so a mental health assessment of Cheeseman could be undertaken.

In a related civil case brought by Merivale and heard by Justice M Pembroke on 23 May at NSW Supreme Court, Cheeseman agreed to pay $229,811 to Merivale, the same amount alleged in the fraud criminal case, though Cheeseman made no admissions and the judge did not make any decisions about liability.

According to Cheeseman’s LinkedIn profile – now removed – Cheeseman was a Merivale employee from August 2015, joining as Group Facilities Manager and in June last year took on the role of Construction Project Manager where, according to Cheeseman’s LinkedIn profile, he “currently oversee[s] and manage[s] all construction for Merivale.”

Cheeseman was until recently considered a close associate of Hemmes and Merivale, but Merivale’s legal firm Johnson Winter & Slattery on 2 May successfully applied to the Supreme Court to freeze $300,000 of Cheeseman’s assets. The group also sought access to three of Cheeseman’s bank accounts between August 2015 and May 2019.

Cheeseman remains on bail until his next court appearance. A spokesperson for Merivale declined to comment when contacted by Australian Hotelier. Australian Hotelier has been unable to reach Joel Cheeseman for comment.

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SYDNEY LOCKOUT LAWS COMMITTEE CONFIRMED The composition of the Joint Select Committee on Sydney’s night time economy has been confirmed, the full terms of reference for the inquiry have been established and the committee has sought submissions from interested and impacted parties.

The closing date for submissions to the inquiry was Tuesday 2 July and public hearings will take place on 5 and 12 August and the committee has also confirmed that it is planning to visit affected areas.

The committee members are: • Chair: Natalie Ward (LIB, LC Member) • Deputy Chair: Alex Greenwich (IND, LA Member) • Members: Kevin Conolly (LIB, LA Member) • Cate Faehrmann (GRNS, LC Member) • Ben Franklin (NAT, LC Member) • John Graham (ALP, LC Member) • Mark Latham (PHON, LC Member) • Geoff Provest (NAT, LA Member) • Felicity Wilson (LIB, LA Member) • Guy Zangari (ALP, LA Member)

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NEWS

HOTEL PORTFOLIO SELLS FOR CIRCA $30M

Foreshore Tavern, Hobart

Sydney-based EBC Hotel & Leisure Fund have sold their Tasmanian hotel group in a circa $30 million deal to Melbourne-based boutique investment house Pentagon Group.

The sale marks the first portfolio hotel sale in Tasmania since the part sell-down of the Goodstone Group in 2011 for $27million.

Both transactions were managed by JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group.

The offering included three freehold going-concern hotels – the Old Tudor Hotel in Launceston, The Bayside Inn in St Helens and the Foreshore Tavern on the outskirts of Hobart. Together they comprised 4.58 hectares of land, 132 accommodation rooms, 90 gaming machines and revenues of around $17 million.

JLL’s National Director, John Musca said, “The scalability of these assets drove significant interest from mainland hotel groups who valued the stable earnings platform in a key Australian growth market.”

Peter Harper, Executive Vice President of JLL said, “The interest in, and sale of, this portfolio again highlights the increasing recognition of Tasmania’s underlying tourism product and the growth anticipated over

the long term due to these excellent fundamentals together with several significant infrastructure projects.”

The asset was the last in the special-purpose EBC Fund, which last year sold its Ophir Tavern in Orange for $6.2million.

Mr Musca added, “The Tasmanian Liberal government has proposed new gaming legislation, which is expected in the next 12 months and believed to likely mirror the highly lucrative Victorian model. This would see the system moving from a three party operator structure to a two party owner-preferred operator system. Anticipated to take positive effect in 2023, the changes are expected to deliver an earnings windfall for hotel operators.”

AIRBNB PUTS UP $250,000 IN GRANTS FOR PUBS Five country pubs across Australia to share $250,000 in Airbnb campaign to boost regional tourism.

Airbnb today announced a national campaign to award five pubs across Australia a grant of up to $50,000 each to refurbish and promote their business.

The campaign, dubbed The Country Pub Project, aims to encourage more Australians to explore regional communities, while breathing new life into local pubs.

Airbnb spokesperson Brent Thomas said: “Pubs are important places of reconnection for locals and travellers alike. They offer more than just a meal and a bed. As is the case in many rural towns, these pubs are a central meeting place, post office, corner store, town hall and much more,” said Thomas.

“As a community-first platform, we continue to look for ways to help the everyday Aussie. As of January 1 2019, Airbnb has hosted almost 10 million guests in Australia and New Zealand and as a result we’re uniquely positioned to connect publicans with new guests and encourage Australians to discover destinations off the beaten track.”

Airbnb will award five pubs across Australia a grant of up to $50,000 each to help them revive and boost business via the online booking platform. This initiative aims to support Aussie publicans by generating renewed interest in small towns and communities, which have been under threat in recent years due to declining populations, drought, economic disruption and waning tourism.

Nominations can be made until 12 July 2019 via The Country Pub Project website.

The fives pubs to receive a grant will be revealed on 5 August 2019. A spokesperson for Airbnb said: “Each pub will be paired with a Project Manager to oversee the on-site rejuvenation process and an experienced Airbnb Host to guide the publican on registering on the platform. In addition, Airbnb will support the town in creating a unique experience to attract guests from near and far to their

8 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

establishment, launching a campaign to help put the pub and its town back on the map.”

“Pubs will be selected based on the strength of their application," said Thomas, "but specifically we’re looking for establishments in interesting towns with compelling stories and great publicans. Our efforts are geared towards helping publicans list on Airbnb to drive renewed enthusiasm and interest in exploring the great Australian Outback.”

The NSW Government has thrown their support behind the project, with Minister for Tourism Stuart Ayres saying the program will help deliver a boost to country towns and communities, particularly those impacted by drought.

“Country pubs offer more than just a good meal. They are often the beating heart of their community and bring locals and travellers together,” Mr Ayres said.

“This project is about shining a light on these institutions and getting more Australian travellers to visit regional towns.”

Recent research from Airbnb found two in three (70%) Aussies would like to take a regional or rural road trip to see more of the real Australia, yet only 14% of Aussies have in fact spent a night in a regional pub during the past 12 months.

Hotel Esplanade, of St Kilda

POS – OP TECH

ON POINT WITH OPTECH LATEST

MODERN OPTECH GOES FAR BEYOND MERE CASH REGISTER FUNCTION. THREE OF THE BIGGEST MAKERS IN THE BUSINESS TELL CRAIG HAWTIN-BUTCHER HOW THE PUB SECTOR CAN MAXIMISE EFFICIENCIES THROUGH THE LATEST SOFTWARE AND HARDWARE.

“

We are finding more and more venues today are managing multiple styles of operations within one venue,” says James Verlaque, National Sales Director with Bepoz.

These large-format, multi-offering venues range from huge suburban venues such as Laundy Hotels’ The Marsden and Parras Hospitality’s The Ambarvale Hotel to Sand Hill Road’s Hotel Esplanade. The different operational demands these place on venues are complex and in many cases rely on different technology solutions to ease operations and maximise revenues. “[Take] the Espy in Melbourne or Howard Smith Wharves in Brisbane,” says Verlaque, where “we have multiple bars, functions spaces, band rooms, kitchens, restaurants and wine bars. With Bepoz these are all managed under one centralised head office solution giving greater control for stock management, reporting and staffing.”

It’s not just the scale and complexity of operations that are evolving, but the more central positioning of OpTech within a venue’s planning and execution.

10 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

“The Point of Sale is now treated like the nervous system of your business,” believes Cashpoint’s Sima Hanimyan. “It allows business owners to manage their business and improve their bottom line because all the information they need is in the one spot – whether you are after stock management, staff management, marketing, accounting or reporting. And if it’s not – it will integrate into an application that you need.”

Prominent OpTech suppliers LRS also point to recent technology advances, which are making table locations systems even more accurate. Quickly delivering food to patrons is a key element to providing great service, they say.

LOYALTY OPPORTUNITIES Bepoz’s Verlaque highlights customer engagement and loyalty as being key trends within the OpTech scene.

“Most venues using Bepoz take advantage of our advanced voucher and promotional capabilities,” says Verlaque, “but many are now looking to take their loyalty program to the next phase with app-based programs.”

Suppliers such as Verlaque highlight the opportunity to integrate loyalty apps into POS solutions, citing their proprietary MyPlace loyalty app as one solution. Such apps remove the need to employ a third party solution, ideally minimising integration issues and reducing logistical efforts.

“We are working with venues in Melbourne such as Transport Bar in Federation Square to speed up onboarding,” says Verlaque. “New members can sign up in the app and join programs pretty much straight away, avoiding paperwork for management teams.”

The ability to manage multi-tiered membership directly with Bepoz is a key advantage, says Verlaque, while the ability to integrate customer retention programs directly with core POS software such as Bepoz “has been a big incentive for business[es] wanting to streamline their solutions and time,” Verlaque argues.

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE Elsewhere in the industry, Cashpoint’s Sima Hanimyan points to some key progress being made across Customer Experience (CX) and

POS – OP TECH how successful venue owners are enhancing the overall experience.

“Customer satisfaction, loyalty and advocacy is directly linked to the overall customer experience,” says Hanimyan.

“The Point Of Sale needs to be able to facilitate not only the sales process, but help drive loyalty and return business. At the end of the day it’s all about improving your bottom line and having the right tools for the job.

“The Customer Experience is the sum of all experiences and moments a customer has before, during and after visiting your venue,” says Hanimyan. “It’s the overall impression that is linked to satisfaction, loyalty and advocacy. Your Point of Sale [has] payments at its heart [but] the Point of Sale has evolved into a full and irreplaceable business management tool that enhances an engaging customer experience.”

Hanimyan highlights Cashpoint’s proprietary software ‘myPOS’, with over 40 years of research and development behind it and 1,000 installs across Australia, which in addition to offering fast and efficient sale processing at the terminal, also enables multiple and split payment methods. The software also syncs with

“One of the biggest shakes ups we’ve seen is the uptake of our Point of Sale interface with CCTV surveillance” – Bepoz’s Verlaque. live menu boards and can let customers know when venues are running low on a particular menu item.

“Gone are the days when you have to send for your menu to be designed by a graphic designer and loaded onto a USB or remotely sent to screens above the bar/bistro,” says a spokesperson for Cashpoint.

“You can manage your menu straight from [Cashpoint’s proprietary software] myPOS. In fact the menu is that up to date that it will let your customers know when you are running low on items or if you have sold out. It’s all about having that level of stock management in-built that not only improves forecasting and ordering but the overall customer experience.”

REAL-TIME SOLUTIONS “myPOS is a solution rather than a system,” says Hanimyan, “a solution incorporating

highly advanced POS software and industry leading support.”

Cashpoint is looking to address a venue’s need to source a “robust and comprehensive solution that is easy-to-use, reliable and flexible” says Hanimyan.

LRS also flag that they have recently released a number of applications for tablets, PCs and smartphones, all with the express aim of giving the customer more control in real time.

Many OpTech suppliers are also looking to give venues greater knowledge and control over items such as stock control, staff performance levels and targeted promotions along with online food and beverage ordering.

Hanimyan says customer feedback highlights the need to appreciate that a POS system is not simply a cash register, it goes beyond being a mere till. Hanimyan also emphasises the importance for venue owners and operators –

POS – OP TECH Look for those with local customer service representatives and training solutions most relevant to your situation.

ESSENTIAL POS CONSIDERATIONS

Cashpoint's dual-screen solution as well as those at the coalface operating these systems – to understand the systems that you have installed and to make the most of the modules that are available.

POS AND CCTV COMBINE “One of the biggest shakes ups we’ve seen is the uptake of our Point of Sale interface with CCTV Surveillance,” says Bepoz’s Verlaque.

“Venues such as Hampton Park Tavern, Clifton Springs Golf Club [and] Richmond Social, all located in metro Melbourne, and Courthouse Hotel in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria, have fully interfaced POS/CCTV management.”

The benefits, says Verlaque, include the ability to overlay POS information onto CCTV footage, which allows for every transaction to be tracked and reviewed.

“The ability to generate reports or receive notification on credit or discount card fraud, cash theft, failure to ring up sales, unauthorised discounting, customer and staff collisions, or price and barcode switching,” says Verlaque.

“I believe in training staff with the correct access,” says Simi Hanimyan. “From a user perspective bar staff POS need a robust touch screen that is intuitive and easy to use and see in all conditions.

“Management need to use it differently again and require an understanding of what information they want to get out of their system. Maximising the relationship is all about understanding needs first. Once you have that the rest is easy,” says Hanimyan.

A number of solutions providers point to their credentials as Australian owned-andoperated, and a number have POS offerings that are tailor made for the Australian market.

“The Point of Sale is now treated like the nervous system of your business” – Cashpoint’s Sima Hanimyan.”

OP TECH AND TRAINING When it comes to maximising the relationship between POS/OpTech and staff, training is key.

“It’s all good and well having the best tools but you need to learn how to use them properly to get the best out of them,” says Hanimyan.

“So for those who are starting or starting again – invest the time to understand the power of your point of sale. You get out what you put in to it.”

“Good venues invest in training their staff on an ongoing basis,” says Verlaque. “Bepoz has also recently launched myBepoz, which is our online learning university… Users can do tutorials, watch videos or read detailed step-bystep guides on Bepoz functionalities.”

12 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

Bepoz CCTV and POS interactivity

For publicans starting up or starting again, there are a number of considerations to take into account when it comes to installing and running your POS solution.

“The three key things for any venue to have in place when starting up or buying a new business are solid stock control, cash management and advanced reporting systems,” says Bepoz’s Verlaque.

“Depending on the size of the establishment, when advising the right system the key points taken into account are efficiency, productivity and cost,” says a spokesperson for LRS. “The obvious kit essentials are touch screen, cash drawer and receipt printer,” says Cashpoint’s Hanimyan, “but dual-screens where customers see the sale is essential – it allows for promotion, cross promotion, keeping your customers informed of specials and happy hours, etc.”

In hardware terms, LRS highlights the following three relevant systems: 1. Coaster call system – a simple plug and play system designed to increase efficiency and enhance guest experience in a discreet manner.

It also integrates with the Guest Sessions application, allowing the venue to call directly from an iPad and see statistics for food runners.

2. Gaming machine paging system – wireless four button push-for-service system allows the patron to call an attendant right from their gaming machine allowing ease of flow for staff and patrons. This system can double as a staff

POS – OP TECH paging system; where managers or staff can communicate with one another.

3. Table tracker system – this suits both large and small venues and allows staff to pinpoint precisely where the customers are located within the venue. The system uses app-based software to produce on the go statistics, analytics and reporting, manager escalations, multiple device syncing and page customers directly from the app.

As for software, Cashpoint’s Hanimyan says it’s important to choose the right software with the right modules to get the most out of your business: “myPOS has advanced and adaptable software modules that link in loyalty, promotions, multi-store/ site management, accurate stock control, realtime analytical reporting, even manage table reservations and accommodation modules.

Software that has the capability to integrate to your accounting software such as MYOB or Xero is even better.”

Whatever your current POS solution, explore your options, train staff appropriately, be clear about your aims and continue to track your progress against these.

Cross-device solutions from Bepoz

BEER NEWS

BEER NEWS AND VIEWS FROM BEER CONSUMPTION FALLING TO NEW BREWERIES OPENING, WE HIGHLIGHT THE KEY BEER NEWS YOU NEED TO BE ACROSS THIS MONTH. WORDS BY TAM ALLENBY, CHARLES WHITTING AND ANDY YOUNG.

AUSTRALIAN BEER CONSUMPTION CONTINUES DOWNWARD TREND The latest findings from Roy Morgan show a decline in the percentage of Australians who consume at least one type of alcoholic drink in an average four-week period.

In 2014, the ‘Alcohol Consumption Currency Report’ recorded 70.1% of the population as consuming alcohol in the four-week time period, with the most recent findings showing that number has declined to 67.5%.

All major categories of alcoholic drinks showed declines in incidence over this period, apart from cider which increased.

Cider is now consumed by 11.4% of the population – an increase from 11.1% five years ago – while beer showed a decline of 0.6% points, dropping from 38.8% to 38.2%.

Wine is still the most popular alcohol drink, consumed by 42.8% of the population – but dropped from 45.1% in 2014, the largest decline in any category.

Interestingly, while wine is still the most popular alcoholic drink in terms of the number of drinkers, beer is on top in terms of volume, accounting for 45% of the overall market (but is still down 2.8% from 2014).

Despite this decline in overall beer consumption, the Independent Brewers Association (IBA) has reported growth in independent beer’s overall beer market share – calling the industry “the shining light”.

With a 5.9% share of volume (compared to approximately 1% when the IBA/CBIA was established in 2011) and a 10% share of value, independent beer is growing while the overall beer market is declining.

This may indicate that although Australians are drinking less beer overall, more of that beer is independent.

“Alcohol has often been considered to have a central role in the social life of many Australians however the latest research from Roy Morgan shows that a declining proportion of Australians are now drinking alcohol,” said Michele Levine, Chief Executive Officer, Roy Morgan.

Levine also accounted for the gender split in Australian alcohol (and in particular beer) consumption.

“In large part the success of Australia’s alcohol retailers and brands rides on the drinking habits of Australian men who drink around two thirds (66.6%) of all alcohol drunk in Australia while women drink the remaining 33.4%.”

14 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

Sydney Beer Week owners, David Phillips shown far left

SYDNEY BEER WEEK CANCELLED INDEFINITELY The organisers have cited a decline in registrations and a “pull-back of sponsorship support” as reasons for cancelling the event.

“I believe Sydney should celebrate beer in a big way,” David Phillips, owner of Dave’s Brewery Tours and organiser of Sydney Beer Week, wrote in an email to event partners. “However, the dynamics and market Sydney Beer Week exists within and the community it serves has changed since the Festival was conceived with a growing number of conflicting interests that are simply not able to be addressed appropriately with such a marginal business model.

“So when registrations and sponsorships lag, the ability to run a festival that brings benefits to all is severely affected. It simply does not do anyone any good to conduct a mediocre festival.

“I hope that in time we are able to resurrect Sydney Beer Week and I welcome any input and support from the community to make that a reality.”

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The Australasian Gaming Expo truly connects you. This August come and experience the very latest in gaming technology and discover the best in hospitality equipment and supplies.

2019 celebrates AGE’s 30th year so you know it’s going to be bigger than ever.

Visitor registration is now open at www.austgamingexpo.com 13-15 August 2019 Tue-Wed 10am-5pm ,Thu 10am-3pm ICC Sydney Darling Harbour NSW

BEER NEWS

CIDER AUSTRALIA TRUST MARK HITS STORES The Cider Australia world-first craft cider trust mark is now appearing on bottles of Australian craft cider across Australia.

The trust mark forms part of Cider Australia’s campaign to build a sustainable cider industry in Australia and set-up local brands for the export market. The trust mark is backed by the Australian Government’s $50m Export and Regional Wine Support Package.

“The trust mark is going well and has really unified the cider community,” according to Sam Reid, president, Cider Australia.

“The trust mark gives producers and orchardists a way to unite behind and take to market Australian grown craft cider, and I’m really proud of the work the team and industry have done to get the trust mark off the ground.

“We have existing producers lining up to put the trust mark on their product, as well as new producers joining Cider Australia.

We’re also starting to see excitement with consumers, showing really strong, functional and emotional reasons to support Australian producers and orchardists.

“The trust mark appearing on cider bottles at this time of year is very timely from an export perspective. We’re seeing an increase in a consumer trend globally and in Australia with more and more interest [in] the style of cider from different markets, providing a different perspective of what traditional cider has been from the UK and France.”

So far 47 cider producers have signed up for the trust mark, allowing those producers to use the mark on their cans and bottles, helping consumers identify Australian products and make an informed decision when buying cider.

MONTHLY AUSSIE BEER CLUB LAUNCHES The Australian Heritage Hotel in June launched their on-premise 'Aussie Beer Club' in their Rocks location in Sydney., The beer club now takes place on the first Thursday of each month.

With a rotating roster of featured breweries, patrons can discover a brewery's backstory, how they work, have a sample of the beer range and tuck in to some food platters.

June’s line-up included Hills Cider, Mismatch Brewery and Adelaide Hills Distillery and the itinerary.

The new launch is expected to provide another fixture to galvanise additional visits, attract the growing craft beer patron and also broaden the repertoire of all beer drinkers.

The past few years have shown increased interest, particularly by millenials, in knowing more about whether the products they buy have come from.

Tickets are pitched at $35 each and take place between 6pm and 8pm. The remaining calendar for 2019 includes: August: Akasha Brewing Company September: Modus Operandi October: Brick Lane Brewing Co. November: Holgate Brewhouse December: Pirate Life Brewing

16 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

Cider Australia's trust mark

BREWDOG’S BRISBANE BREWERY CLOSE TO OPENING BrewDog co-founder Martin Dickie was in Brisbane on Monday 26 May to visit the site which will house the Scottish craft brewer’s new brewery and taproom.

Located on the riverfront, the brewery itself will be a 25hL automated brewhouse with eight 50hL fermenters, which Dickie expects will give the brewery the “flexibility to brew some incredible one-off beers, as well as being able to fulfill our volume for Punk IPA, Lost Lager and Dead Pony Club.”

Dickie has also stated that the brewery will have the capacity to scale up production should demand in Australia increase, even to the point of being able to provide beer for other nearby countries as well.

The taproom is about 450 sq m internally and significantly larger outside. Around 30 taps are expected to be installed, with two thirds of them pouring BrewDog beers and the remaining third dedicated to craft beers from local breweries.

As well as brewing for volume, the brewery is also keen to make beers specific to the Brisbane and wider Australian market. This will involve using Australian and New Zealand

BrewDog co-founder Martin Dickie on site in Brisbane hops in a way they’ve not done before, but also getting involved in the use of wine barrels.

“We work quite heavily with whisky casks in Scotland, and also some bourbon casks so we’d look to have our barrel ageing program set up here as well,” says Dickie. “For the first time we’ll be able to hopefully get hold of some fantastic wine barrels as well. We’re really excited to be able to have a few a collaborations hopefully with some great Australian wineries and see how our beers work in wine barrels.”

Dickie cites both Queensland’s location and craft beer credentials – such as Black Hops, Green Beacon and Balter, as reasons why Brisbane was chosen for the BrewDog site.

BEER NEWS

STOMPING GROUND TO OPEN SECOND MELBOURNE BREWPUB

Steve Jeffares, Adam Davidson (Managing Director of Up Property), Justin Joiner and Guy Greenstone. Photo credit: Guy Evans

The new brewhouse will be located in the Morris Moor development in Moorabbin, and will feature a beer hall, event space and large beer garden to accompany a 12 hectolitre brewery.

Stomping Ground has secured more than 1,000 sq m for the project.

“Melbourne’s South East already has excellent breweries like 2 Brothers, Bad Shepherd, Boatrocker, Dainton, Wolf of the Willows and Mr Banks,” says Guy Greenstone, Stomping Ground’s co-founder.

“We will be showcasing a wide variety of our beers, many brewed in the onsite brewery, along with great food in a unique, family-friendly beer hall atmosphere. We’re especially proud of what we’ve created in Collingwood and can’t wait to reveal all at Morris Moor in early 2020.”

The new brewery will be set within Moorabbin’s 60-year-old Philip Morris manufacturing site, which is itself undergoing a transformation.

BEER PROMOTION

PALES

ALES

HELP YOUR CUSTOMERS DEFY THE CHILL WITH THESE EASY-GOING CLASSICS OF THE FUTURE.

SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS BREWING

URBAN ALLEY BREWERY

BATCH BREWING CO

FIXATION BREWING

URBAN LAGER

WEST COAST IPA

AMERICAN PALE ALE

This German-style Helles is a malt-accented lager beer balancing a pleasant malt sweetness and body with floral Noble hops and restrained bitterness. The Helles is a masterclass in restraint, subtlety and drinkability, which makes it an enduring style for true beer lovers and an elusive style for craft brewers to recreate.

Bright in colour, dry on the palate and thirst-quenching, wheat and pale malts complement one another. Centennial and Chinook hops provide a generous base of juicy, chewy fruits, before Mosaic hops shine through with big hints of pineapple and tropical stone fruit.

Well-balanced, the bitterness in this IPA never overwhelms.

A classic West Coast IPA showcasing four new world hop varieties (Mosaic, Citra, Simcoe and Amarillo) to give big, juicy, fruity aromas, robust flavours and a firm bitterness. The pale malt bill includes a few specialty malts.

4.7% ABV.

5.8% ABV.

www.urbanalley.com.au

www.batchbrewingco.com.au

The beer presents with a tight white head and shows some haze from late kettle and dry hopping. The fruity aroma promises a hop punch then delivers a strong grapefruit bitterness upfront, followed by the citrus and medium malt flavours expected from this unfiltered ale.

4.5% ABV. www.southernhighlandsbrewing. com.au

18 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

IPA

6.4% ABV. www.fixationbrewing.com.au

BEER PROMOTION

PHOTOGRAPHED

BY SIMON TAYLOR AT PUBLIC HOUSE PETERSHAM, A SOLOTEL VENUE. TEKU GLASSWARE

BY RASTAL. STYLING BY KEA THORBURN.

BENTSPOKE BREWING CO

GAGE ROADS BREWING CO

COLONIAL BREWING CO

PRANCING PONY BREWERY

CRANKSHAFT

SINGLE FIN

KOLSCH ALE

THE PIPER

Similar to a West Coast IPA – a floral nose with notes of citrus and pine. Medium-bodied with a nice punch of hops and a solid malt finish. Crankshaft was the highest ranked IPA in the GABS Hottest 100 Aussie Craft Beers Poll 2018, for the second year in a row.

This refreshing Summer ale is light-bodied and chock full of aromatic Galaxy and Enigma hops.

Big tropical fruit bowl aroma is balanced by subtle bitterness and a clean finish.

A crisp and easy drinking European style ale, brewed with light barley and wheat malts for a slightly sweet, but light bodied beer. ‘Lagered’ for weeks to fully develop the flavour.

The all-German line up of hops offers a light herbal and grassy note and a refreshing bitter finish.

This West Coast IPA shows a deep golden colour and dense foam.

Full nose of pine, apricot, citrus, grapefruit and light plum with a slight dank hop grassiness. Light malty in flavour. Strong but very smooth bitterness from start to finish.

4.8% ABV.

www.prancingponybrewery.com.au

5.8% ABV. www.bentspokebrewing.com.au

4.5% ABV. www.gageroads.com.au

7.2% ABV.

www.colonialbrewingco.com.au

AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER JULY 2019 | 19

The new Lounge Bar

DESIGN AND BUILD

AT THE SHORE-FRONT OF DESIGN HOBART’S SHORELINE HOTEL HAS UNDERGONE RENOVATIONS THAT GO BEYOND SKIN-DEEP. CRAIG HAWTIN-BUTCHER REVEALS HOW. Newly-enclosed outdoor seating area

Additional pizzetta offering New outdoor terrace area

20 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

Lounge dining space

DESIGN AND BUILD

G

M of The Shoreline Hotel in Hobart, Darren Brown, has been involved with the 1966 property for nearly 20 years. Having changed hands repeatedly throughout the 1980s and 1990s and been lifted by renovations in 2001, the Tasmanian hotel has just completed a major overhaul that reached beyond skin-deep.

“That’s something our directors were looking for from a refurbishment – ‘I don’t want to just change the décor, I want to change the attitude and culture’,” says Darren.

“Changing the expectation and culture of our staff that they are no longer just working in a pub, that there are career paths,” explains Darren.

“We’re now up to 84 staff and a lot are in training and apprenticeships.

We’re looking at a culture of learning, training and expectation.”

THE BRIEF Ambitions weren’t initially quite so lofty. What started as a simple brief to Andy Wilson, a director of ITN Architects and Iva Foschia, director of IF Architecture for “just curtains, paint, carpet and furniture” grew exponentially from 2014 as plans evolved.

“The brief talked about not making any structural change,” says Darren.

“By the final brief, we’d touched every surface of the hotel. We rebuilt every bar, ceilings, walls, kitchens, all got a makeover. The build was inside the shell of the hotel, cost $2.6m and another $1.4m on fitting that out – so about $4m, on top of the $4m that had been spent back in 2001.”

THE AMBITION “The whole reason behind the entire renovation, one was to be defensive,” says Darren. “The fact that we command a big chunk of the market in this space and it was about making sure we maintained what we had within our area, rather than a new entrant potentially coming along. “[Second,] we were looking to grow and maintain the value of the asset we had. The business had been eroded a little by the decision in 2009/10 to change the off-premise liquor laws here. We had a very large bottle shop offering and within three years we had five more shops around us. “[Third,] we were then looking for growth as we thought we could grow the customer base and not just be seen as a local pub. We also looked at removing any barriers we had internally for people coming to a pub – that was the piece around putting gaming somewhere it’s not so much in your face, and then get the business to a level where there was a reasonable return on investment for our owners.

“We’re sitting here in a very prime location and if we don’t maintain that position of dominance, someone else was going to come along,” says Darren.

LOOK AND FEEL Design and planning took a number of years due to the negotiated tender process for construction.

“The reason we went to Melbourne [to find an architect] was to ask ‘what does a contemporary hotel look like in the suburbs of Melbourne, rather than the suburbs of Hobart?’ says Darren.

“We immediately thought that the actual hotel location was amazing,” says Andy, “coming from inner Melbourne to a hotel with spectacular views and a suburban environment vs our inner city, urban environment here. We found it very inspiring and that combination worked well.”

“Originally one of the themes that Iva came up with was looking at these fossilised remains from ancient ferns that were native to that area,” says Andy. “That set a colour palette. The space was almost like a hospital in its colour scheme, so we wanted to bring in more of an earthy, natural feel to the place. The fossils became a great starting point.

Each space ended up with its own colour scheme that linked in with the broader one.”

“We used as much local materials as we could,” says Iva. “In Tasmania there’s an abundance of beautiful timbers and we were very keen to explore that. I think what we wanted to bring to it is a sort of tactile and textural quality. Bringing in lots of warmth and approachable materials. The essence of a good venue is that people feel welcomed and

“We’re sitting here in a very prime location and if we don’t maintain that position of dominance, someone else was going to come along” – GM, Darren Brown comfortable – not too trend-driven that it would alienate a bunch of existing or potentially new customers.

“Apart from anything that we did as an improvement, it was also a changing of the time. What was there previously was very trend-driven. We wanted to create something that would last and have a lovely classic patina.“

THE BUILD Construction completed at the end of 2018 after a year-long build.

“We did one half of the hotel at a time,” says Darren. “Initially we did the dining side, then moved the café into the dining space, started that space, then moved our sports bar into the café space and then back again, so we kept operating.

“With hindsight, you wonder whether it would have been simpler and quicker if we hadn’t, but the idea from the owners was we would keep our key staff employed and hang on to our loyal customer base, which was obviously important to us. Training and upskilling our staff during that time as we had a few spare hours where otherwise they’d have been unemployed. Which is now paying off,” says Darren.

A number of significant changes were made to the building, some were immediately obvious to the architects: “The way the whole thing flows now has been a huge improvement,” says Andy. “They had a public bar with very little natural light where there is an amazing view out across to Mount Wellington but that was totally blocked in by a TAB cinema.

“We just couldn’t believe it was such a wasted opportunity. Changing that around and giving the public bar a real sense of identity. Locals have got a lovely wood fireplace, a darts board, it’s female-friendly, whereas it wasn’t previously, has been a huge improvement.”

Elsewhere, the under-utilised exterior terrace area, once a little breezy and frosty in winter, was partly-enclosed to add to the venue’s bar and lounge area. The space now captures those fantastic mountain and river views.

They moved the TAB area, opened up the view to the city in the sports bar and put more of a pub offer back into the sports bar. The gaming area was completely made-over and reconfigured and now accommodates 30 machines, the state maximum.

“This design was happening during the gaming debate pre-election,” says Darren. “We were very mindful that we were doing that at that time, to make gaming a bit more private. We’ve got the ability now that you can walk into the hotel and gaming is very much a part of our business, but unless you wish to go in there, you can’t necessarily see or hear gaming.”

FOOD AND BEVERAGE A new lounge bar was created from what was formerly a waiting area or overflow space and under-utilised. It is now “more of an adult space,” says Darren “cocktails, good wines, good spirits and we serve in there a tapas or small-plates menu – a little bit more sophisticated. We’ve created its own bar, its own identity. Even though the whole place is heated electrically, we’ve added a gas heater into that space. We’ve made it a little more cosy and sophisticated.”

The former saloon bar has been turned into a café bar space to evolve into a pub bistro serving more classic meals. The old bistro space is now a dining area.

“We’ve created what to me is more of a classic hotel dining room,” says Darren. “We haven’t gone into ‘fine dining’, but it’s certainly a full a la carte,

AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER JULY 2019 | 21

DESIGN AND BUILD

The Café/Bistro Upmarket Dining Room offering Shoreline Hotel GM Darren Brown and partner

Main course of pork three ways full table service restaurant within the hotel. A more elegant space. What was essentially a big room with almost 200 seats in it, we’ve divided up into a 100-seat restaurant in three discrete areas and a 70-seat function space to the side, rather than one big open cafeteria-style bistro.”

“The whole dining experience was one enormous space and it wasn’t broken up into zones,” says Andy. “That was one of the major things we did – to break up that space into separate zones, each with its own personality within the broader space. That introduced a level from formal to informal, and intimacy as you went in.”

“That area was doing around 1,700–1,800 meals a week and we’ll probably cut those number in half to do the dining,” says Darren.

“But we’ve moved about half of those into the café bistro. Part of the strategy was to give people the opportunity to decide where they dine. We looked at a very rough principle of ‘feed, snack and dine’. Those are the three distinct spaces we’ve created.”

BACK OF HOUSE “The original dining area had a help-yourself salad bar, which was one of the first things we got rid of,” says Andy. “It was very much along the lines of that buffet / all-you-can-eat feel.

That was totally transformed and the staff, all the uniforms, menus, a lot went into setting that up. They didn’t even have wait-stations

22 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

“By the final brief, we’d touched every surface of the hotel.” – Andy Wilson before and we installed numerous ones – even a reception counter to meet people in the dining room, which they didn’t have.”

The hotel engaged hospitality consultant Geoff Chamberlain of Seventh Sense Consulting for operational aspects, including layout and technology solutions.

They also introduced a satellite kitchen for the dining room producing wood-fired pizzettas, very much part of the dining experience, though the main kitchen was only tinkered with.

NEW CHEF, NEW MENU The entire process has just completed with the launch in May of new menus from recentlyhired Executive Chef Ruben Koopman, formerly of a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Holland who cut his teeth alongside Gordon Ramsay under Marco Pierre White in London. “[He’d] spent about six years in Tasmania where he’d opened Frogmore Creek vineyard restaurant. He’d done some really good things.

He’s classically trained with runs on the board,” says Darren.

“There’s still a lot of people asking ‘why is this guy at the Shoreline Hotel?’ We’ve got 50,000

people within a 10k radius of the hotel and another 80,000 just a bit further out. Most of us travel across the bridge to the city to dine. Noone has established – apart from the vineyards – something at the level we’re trying to get to [on this side of the bridge]. That’s the differentiation.

“For a hotel to go out and hire a guy of that capability, and what it takes to pay a guy of that capability, was a big step for us,” says Darren.

But as Darren points out, they’ve had successes across the board.

“The sports bar has pretty much doubled its trade. It’s quite a vibrant sports bar now, it’s not as blokey. There’s more food in that space. The café bistro space, we’ve pretty much doubled our trade in that space too across food and beverage, which has been a real win.”

“We’re really pleased,” says Darren. “Some of the fixtures and finishes this place has got now are pretty spectacular. A lot of thought went into the design. It was a real journey professionally for me too, with project management and trying to keep the pub open.

They’ve taken what was very much a 1960s red brick building and given it a contemporary feel, made it much warmer.”

P

I 5o SH ES 7 76 R TI 1 85 .au SO NI s 043 a.com ON RTU illiam rmedi W e SP PO ne T s@int OP ct Sha illiam a nt stw Co

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CO-HOSTED BY

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CALENDAR

SPORTS FIXTURES PACK IN THE PATRONS WITH THE SPORT ON LIVE AND LOUD. HERE ARE YOUR JULY HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE MONTH AHEAD, INCLUDING THE ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP AND WIMBLEDON.

CRICKET

RUGBY UNION

Will Australia be holding the ICC Cricket World Cup trophy aloft for the fifth time in six tournaments this month? July features both Semi-Finals and the Final following the last round-robin matches.

When: All 7:30pm. Semi-Final 1, Tue 9 July; Semi-Final 2, Thu 11 July; and Final, 14 July Channels: Fox Cricket and Channel 9

The 2019 Mitsubishi Estate Rugby Championship starts Sun 21 July and continues into August, featuring the Qantas Wallabies, the Pumas, Springboks and the All Blacks.

When: Sun 21 Jul Springboks v Wallabies 1:05am and Pumas v All Blacks 8:30am; Sat 27 Jul All Blacks v Springboks 5:35pm and Wallabies v Pumas 8pm Channel: Fox Sports

AFL

TENNIS

The Toyota AFL Premiership keeps delivering the action thick and fast in July, we’ve highlighted the picks of the bunch.

When: Fri 12 July, West Coast v Collingwood 8:10pm.

Fri 26 July Collingwood v Richmond 7:50pm Channels: Fox Footy, Channel 7 and 7mate

July serves up 2019 Wimbledon action as the world’s best tennis players converge on the revered grass courts. Coverage starts 8pm Mon 1 July and continues until the finals.

When: Mon 1 July from 8pm. Women’s singles final Sat 13 July, Men’s singles final Sun 14 July Channels: Fox Sports and Channel 7

NEXT MONTH Ahead of the Rugby World Cup in September, there’s some thumping Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship action in August.

When: Sat 10 Aug Wallabies v All Blacks 8pm; Sun 11 Aug Pumas v Springboks 5:40am; Sat 17 Aug All Blacks v Wallabies 5:35pm; and Sun 18 Aug Springboks v Pumas 1:05am Channel: Fox Sports *All times are AEST

24 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

Discover the full range of food and beverage products

from Food & Beverage Media.

AUSTRALIAN

NO.754 JUNE 2019

AUSTRALIA’S NATIONAL HOTEL INDUSTRY MAGAZINE

VOL. 36 no. 5 – JUNE 2019

AUSTRALIA’S LEADING LIQUOR INDUSTRY MAGAZINE

vol. 38 no. 5 - JUNE 2019

DUMPLINGS • MARK BEST ON NETFLIX’S THE FINAL TABLE • WINE TRAINING

IN THIS ISSUE: NEW SPIN ON GAMING | SCREENS & SOUNDS | HEATING & EATING

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TIPS OF THE TRADE REVEALED — HOW THE EXPERTS JUDGE BEER (see page 64) >>> INCLUDING

ISSUE 49 WINTER 2019 PRICE $9.95 (NZ $11.95)

BEERS & CIDERS

TASTED

Taphouse ON TOP

THE DARK SIDE WHY PORTERS AND STOUTS DESERVE TIME IN THE LIGHT

JAMES THORPE’S DARLO TAPHOUSE IS AUSTRALIA’S BEST BEER VENUE. WHO ELSE MADE THE LIST?

HOMEBREWING EQUIPMENT KIT TIPS FOR BEGINNERS AND VETERANS

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PLUS! ALTERNATIVE INGREDIENTS | BREWING IN WINE COUNTRY | GABS BEERS AT HOME

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THE SHOUT

PUB LEADERS SUMMIT

AUSTRALIAN LIQUOR INDUSTRY AWARDS

HOSPITALITY LEADERS SUMMIT

Food & Beverage Media is a division of The Intermedia Group.

For the best coverage of the food and drink sectors in Australia, subscribe to our titles at www.intermedia.com.au

TALES FROM THE TOP

HOW TO SOURCE AND KEEP STAFF DIRECTOR OF A LEADING HOSPITALITY RECRUITMENT FIRM, AMBER KING TELLS CRAIG HAWTIN-BUTCHER HOW THE PUB SECTOR CAN RECRUIT, RETAIN AND CULTIVATE THEIR STAFF.

A

mber King is director of BrightSide Executive Search, the only drinks specialist recruitment agency in Australia. In her own words, Amber explains the challenges and opportunities available to the industry: We predominantly work within sales and marketing to general management across beer, wine, spirits suppliers, all liquor distributors, pub groups and liquor retailers.

We find at the venue level the main issue is the transient nature of the employees. At the head office level or the supplier level, candidates tend to look at it more as a long term career path.

Publicans should accept some level of unavoidable, cyclical staff loss. Unfortunately, it’s the nature of the industry, just as venues need to gear up for peak periods.

In terms of building a culture and keeping staff, we believe the same rules apply to venues as they do to any employer. Underpinning staff contribution to the business as valued, giving them a voice, ensuring they feel as though they are part of the team and not just a number.

However, the most common feedback we receive now from candidates is not monetary based, it’s around flexibility, which can mean different things to many people. However, generally it means balance and fairness with time, e.g. if employees need to work longer hours through a busy period then the employer gives a day in lieu.

From what we see and hear, groups need to invest in HR, testing, training and development. Also if they invest in their recruitment partner or process it will ensure they are bringing the right people in to the business on a more consistent basis.

Three elements are key to retaining staff: 1. Flexibility: People need time in lieu or time off to do other life things. We understand rosters are time consuming but if people feel they can have some flexibility when needed, they are more likely to stay.

26 | JULY 2019 AUSTRALIAN HOTELIER

2. Training & Development: People need to feel supported and confident to do their job well.

Once they are doing it well they enjoy it more, once they enjoy it they value it, once they value it they are more likely to stay.

3. Culture: It allows everyone to feel they are a part of a team and a broader family. Culture comes from the top and should always come first.

Technology solutions are available to ease the burden.

KAN-Do seems like a viable option to get staff trained, however on-the-job training is also very well regarded (not shadowing).

There are regional differences in staff attitudes and the approaches that need to be taken. Because regional staffing is seasonal, you need to have a good backup of casuals or access to a good recruitment partner that can have that talent pool available for you. Also being creative can go a long way to attracting talent, e.g. free meals, subsidised or free accommodation, etc.

For the ‘staff’ themselves they are more about ‘what’s in it for me?’ They not only want to feel valued, they want to feel secure if they are making the move for an entire season.

The actual recruitment process, inductions and the contractual agreements are a lot more formal in supplier land vs on-premise. Everyone has a contract, defined KPIs, a bonus scheme is outlined or very clear incentives, which are all hugely important in setting people up to succeed, by ensuring everyone knows where they stand and what is expected of them.

Robust recruitment processes will help with hiring the right staff, but we firmly believe culture plays a huge part when it comes to retention. It is no lie that culture comes from the top, management and owners need to remember this on a daily basis. Also businesses need to hold people accountable – one toxic hire can bring down a team if they are not managed correctly.

Amber King, director of BrightSide Executive Search

“The most common feedback we receive now from candidates is not monetary based, it’s around flexibility”