Gardner Merchant takes over Inter-Continental staff feeding

Inter-Continental Hotels has signed a deal with Gardner Merchant that hands over staff feeding at the Britannia Inter-Continental London to the contractor.

The group becomes one of a growing number of hotels looking to outsource their staff catering to allow them to concentrate on their core business.

If the scheme at the Britannia hotel proves successful, Inter-Continental may bring in contractors to handle staff catering at more of its five UK hotels.

"We will look at how the scheme goes and if it proves successful and staff tell us they like it we may extend it elsewhere," Inter-Continental public relations director Dee Cayhill told Caterer.

The hotel first considered bringing in a contractor as a means of improving the quality of what was on offer to the 250 hotel staff. But the change-over has also proved cheaper, said Ms Cayhill.

The contract brings Gardner Merchant's portfolio of hotel staff catering contracts to 12, among them a contract to feed staff at Gleneagles.

Corporate communications director Bob Cotton told Caterer he believed the move was the start of a trend. "More chain hotels will outsource whatever they can to specialists in order to concentrate on their core business," said Mr Cotton.

"I don't think we'll see the top five-star hotels moving in this direction but we'll see a lot more three- and four-star hotels going this way. It makes perfect sense for a big hotel," he added.

• Gardner Merchant has won a contract with Nuclear Electric to cater for staff at Wylfa and Heysham power stations. Previously the Wylfa contract was held in-house, while that at Heysham was held by Compass.