Why “Craft” Beverages Need to Be an Integral Part of Your B&C Line-Up By Jeff Josenhans { } SPRinG 2016 California Hotel & Lodging Association 21 iT’S no SeCReT THAT CRAfT BEER And CRAfT CoCKTAiLS have been driving trends in the hotel beverage industry for quite some time. Furthermore, guests have learned to seek out regional and sustainable wines, locally produced spirits and beer, and have in them a consistent desire to experience a new beverage they have never tried when travelling. up until recently, the vast majority of this trend has manifested itself in the form of menu changes in hotel lobby bars and restaurants. However, in a real-time, social-media driven food and beverage industry, guests are becoming much more aware of what a truly “cutting-edge” food and beverage (F&B) program looks like. Hotels should be aware of what local restaurants and bars are offering, and are also aware of their buying power. The market for large client F&B business is constantly becoming more and more competitive. For many clients with food and beverage savvy attendees who might want to experience something “better and different” than their previous meeting or event, most hotel banquets and catering (B&C) menus do not offer much of an alternative. “Craft” beverage is a term that is a little loose, but generally refers to smaller producers offering experiences and products that are not found across the nation or in your local grocery store. The beauty of this ever-growing segment of the beverage industry is that it is still relatively easy to procure, and holds just as well in inventory as other products. Any hotel operator can implement a new beverage program quickly and effectively in less than a month. The time is now to take a look at your B&C menus, starting with the beverage side. With little risk involved, revising the B&C beverage offering to mirror what the market wants is an easy and necessary change. B&C will always be a margindriver for hotel operations, but sacrificing quality or not emphasizing enough product innovation on the B&C side will open up your hotel F&B operation for potential revenue loss as the market continues to trend towards local and genuine food and beverage experiences. Besides leading F&B Operations at the US Grant, A Luxury Collection Hotel in San Diego, Jeff Josenhans is a regular contributor for the San Diego Union Tribune, the San Diego Downtown News, sits on the board for the Berry Good Food Foundation, and has recently lead seminars at both SommCon San Diego in November 2015 and at NCB Las Vegas in March 2016. Tetm snwt aealo tyu &C mns, trigwt h ee aesd. ih ltl ikivleƒ, eiigteB&Cbvrg o†frn omr o ˆhttemre ˆat s a ayadncsa ycag.
CH_LA Lodging News Spring 2016
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