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Rising standards: Anna Smarzak from Forbes Group claims universities offering conference facilities have had to up their game within the past few years, in line with higher expectations from customers.
e nce
be specialist university suppliers out there,” he tells University Caterer, “but as it turns out what we do for universities is part of a very broad business mod- el. We provide products for universities – yes – but at the same time those same products may also be provided for application in hotels, restaurants and bars. As a result, a lot of people are impressed by the extent and the variety of products that we offer.” According to Anna Smarzak, Marketing Co-or-
dinator at the Forbes Group (a leading British man- ufacturer and supplier of table skirting, chair covers, conference cloths, catering trolleys, cocktail tables
and banquet tables) customers are rapidly waking up to the realisation that hiring a conference room at a university for an event no longer means being landed with a draughty boardroom with the spars- est of furnishings. “Over the past few years, uni- versities have extended their product portfolio and can now offer an extensive range of meeting and corporate events spaces,” she says. “In order to meet their customer requirements and be able to com- pete with large conference venues, they have had to make the facilities they offer both attractive and versatile. Through investments and improvement of
their facilities, universities are now able to provide a fully professional service, which includes catering for corporate as well as private events.” Companies like the Forbes Group have proven invaluable in helping universities step up to spruce up their act in this department. Like other high-end companies that cater to the
same market, the Forbes Group’s products empha- sise an upmarket, luxury aesthetic combined with pleasing practicality, which allows for flexible usage (eg stackable chairs or folding leg tables). So far the company has provided its product ex- ➔
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