Food & beverage
together to deliver a new hospitality strategy: a three-year plan, published in July, with measures to help the sector recover.”
Planning ahead
The hospitality plan includes measures to improve jobs and skills, reduce carbon emissions and build business resilience. It also seeks to strengthen the links between hospitality and tourism by raising the international profile of the UK’s food and drink, among other strategies. Historically speaking, a sizeable chunk of F&B demand came from tourists (5.5% in 2018, according to Visit Britain), suggesting that boosting international tourism will be key to getting the sector back on track.
Above: Empty chairs at empty tables – restaurants had no choice but to remain deserted for months on end.
Below: The hospitality industry is attempting to bounce back from the pandemic, while having to adhere to a new normal.
been for the personal involvement of the chancellor in getting cash to those businesses,” she says. Despite the support measures, some have argued that the government has not done enough for this beleaguered sector. The fact that the UK lacks a hospitality minister has become something of a lightning rod for these frustrations, with a petition calling for a dedicated minister amassing more than 200,000 signatures. But Nicholls counters that there has been a de facto hospitality minister throughout the pandemic, with ministers fulfilling that function in all but name. Responsibility is split across two departments – Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, alongside Digital, Culture, Media & Support (DCMS) – with the two working together to support the industry. “With all due respect, we do have a dedicated unit within the business department and a dedicated minister within the business department, in addition to the tourism minister in DCMS and the food minister in DEFRA who predated the pandemic,” says Nicholls. “All have been galvanised to work
As part of the UK Hospitality Sector Council, Nicholls has been instrumental in driving the hospitality strategy. The council, which is chaired by Small Business Minister Paul Scully and entrepreneur Karen Jones, is a group of industry leaders who look at ways to put the measures into practice. Nicholls is one of the council members, tasked with identifying and overseeing actions related to the commitments in the strategy. “The council met for the first time in September and again just yesterday, and in the intervening period there have been groups working at pace to deal with the issues that have been identified as part of Omicron,” says Nicholls.
So, as the threat of Omicron dies down and the UK attempts to learn to live with the virus, what will it take for the hospitality industry to chart a path towards normality? Nicholls believes that the lifting of the UK’s remaining Covid-19 restrictions, along with the eventual return of international travel and tourism, will put the industry in a good position. That said, there is a fly in the ointment – namely the ongoing cost of living crisis, which may well suppress consumer demand as households tighten their purse strings. On top of that, the industry faces a crunch at the end of March, when VAT rates climb from 12.5% to 20% and the 66% relief on business rates comes to an end. For that reason, industry bodies like UKHospitality are pressing the chancellor to intervene. “We’re keeping pressure on the government to retain that lower rate of VAT, so that we can keep prices as low as possible to consumers and avoid an inflationary spiral,” says Nicholls. “Inflation is challenging hospitality and will cause some headwinds for the sector to grow into. That said, the steps we are taking to live with Omicron mean that we can be cautiously optimistic that the recovery starts here.” Although the past two years have been the most challenging on record for hospitality, as the world moves into a new season of the pandemic, we can clearly see green shoots ahead. ●
68 Hotel Management International /
www.hmi-online.com
giggsy25; FOTOFILIA Maciej Pazera/
Shutterstock.com
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