Letters

The other side of the one-stop shopping spree

JERRY Brand seems to be continuing his one-man campaign to bring our industry into disrepute ("Brand's overcharge claim causes fury").

Making allegations that cannot be proved, and marketing promises that will be difficult to fulfil, should not be given credence by your magazine.

Let me put the other side of the story.

All contract catering companies believe they purchase the same as, or lower than, all their competitors. But they cannot know it, as terms are obviously confidential.

We have been aware of several suppliers recently considering the concept of "one-stop shopping". But none have been suggesting the delivery of ten product ranges as implied by Jerry Brand.

At Caterskill we have firmly rejected this concept, as presumably it will include the following all being delivered on one vehicle: dry goods, frozen foods, fresh meat, fresh fruit/vegetables, fresh bread, fresh fish, confectionery, cleaning materials and chemicals, wrapping materials, milk and dairy goods.

Apart from the obvious food safety implications of mixing all these products together, the logistics of ensuring the delivery of the fresh items, at an acceptable time for production and service to all customers, would prove more challenging than solving the Bosnian crisis.

Different regional tastes mean flexibility is required in purchasing, and any attempt to impose a standard product must be a retrograde step.

Contract catering is based on the principle of buying specialisation - surely we should select our suppliers on the same basis.

Buying 10 product ranges from one supplier would be rather like asking Russell & Brand to provide catering services, cleaning services, temporary staff, legal services, accountancy services and so on - or is that the next Jerry Brand public relations stunt?

MICHAEL PEARSON

Chief Executive,

Caterskill Management, Bedworth, Nuneaton, Warwickshire.

What must we all look like?

What must the rest of the industry think of us? More importantly, what do our clients think of us?

As I run a catering consultancy these ritual blood-lettings from people like Jerry Brand do my business no harm at all.

If it wasn't for the fact that I am proud to work in the cost sector of the catering industry I would actively encourage the likes of Mr Brand to carry on carrying on.

What is Mr Brand's secret? Is he the only honest contract caterer? I find it very hard to believe that his corporate integrity is that much better than his competitors. His verbal outpourings certainly confirm that his loyalty factor to the industry in which he works falls way below my perception of industry norm.

I have spoken to a number of clients who say: "Contract caterers - they're the ones with hidden discounts". But no-one has ever added "with the exception of Russell & Brand, of course". Mr Brand would do well to remember that when washing is done in public, never throw the dirty water out into the wind.

Purchasing is only a small part of a contract caterer's function. If they can't buy properly, there seems little chance of cooking or managing properly.

A continuous bleating about how well they purchase must lead to the conclusion that they are either slightly imbalanced or can't do anything else sufficiently well to mention.

At tender meetings, I am continually reminded (mostly by the incumbent caterer) that cost isn't everything.

Possibly we have it all wrong and the centre of the contract catering universe revolves round the price of a dozen eggs. But even then we would probably all fall out arguing over whether they were brown, white, free-range or battery eggs.

One view might be that a client received better value for money if the eggs were packed in a traditional egg box, whereas undoubtedly another eminent source would favour expanded polystyrene packaging!

The whole rotten mess is caused by this country's unique offspring, the cost-plus contract. What a fantastic invention and how eloquently it is sold by the highly professional sales force of companies such as Russell & Brand.

Is it any wonder that high street caterers sneer at us? It doesn't really take much skill to earn a handsome living from charging a client a guaranteed fee plus all the costs incurred along the way.

I have far more respect for contract caterers who put their money where their mouths are and operate in the commercial world as well as the cost sector. If they can manage a commercial business, the chances are they should be able to manage a cost sector operation.

Mr Brand can certainly buy eggs well. But what else can he do?

DAVID MOSS

MT Consultancy Services,

Grantham, Lincolnshire.

Booking agents are here to stay

I read with concern your article Undercover Agents (9 February) .

Let me begin with a basic marketing concept - any form of marketing carries a cost and it is up to individual hoteliers how they spend their marketing budgets in a bid to increase occupancy.

The very fact that Expotel has become so well established illustrates that the hotel booking agent is a proven effective marketing tool, and that the payment of commission for bookings placed is a practice accepted by the majority of hotels.

While I can only speak for Expotel, it is a fact that hotel booking agents are as diverse as the hotels into which they place clients. It is a growing business with approximately 10% of all hotel bookings now being made through a third party.

Expotel has a long-established reputation within the hotel industry - a reputation which it has built up through its commitment to providing its clients with a service which saves them money (and therefore making them more profitable). It also takes great care to provide the most suitable accommodation available for that client. If that means reverting to hard bargaining on that client's behalf, then good.

The reality of the matter is that the corporate market today demands value for money. Company budgets remain tight and companies cannot, and will not, spend money on a product when they believe that product can be purchased cheaper elsewhere. It is not entirely in the agents' interest to drive rates down!

Furthermore, where there is choice, there is competition. The way forward is for hotels and agents to work together. By doing so, we can effectively expand our business.

It is in all our interests, hotels and agents alike, that the UK hotel industry flourishes. While I welcome competition, it does not make marketing sense for our suppliers to become our competitors.

Of the 17,000 UK hotels on our databases, 50% are independently owned.

All our reservations consultants regularly attend familiarisation trips to hotels throughout the UK, constantly updating their knowledge of the hotels. This knowledge, supported by their own hotel experience, is then passed on to the client.

We always welcome discussion on this issue. Perhaps it is time the industry created a forum through which these issues can be discussed face to face.

MARK HARRIS

Marketing Director,

Expotel Hotel Reservations, Stockport, Cheshire.

Vegetarians are everywhere

I beg to differ with your interpretation of the Marketpower/FDS survey which found just 4% of respondents claiming to be vegetarian .

This result is not surprising. Regular surveys conducted since 1989 have reported consistently similar results, though with significant growth during this period.

To equate this percentage with the size of the market for vegetarian/meat-free menu options, however, would be like equating the size of the market for Mexican food with the number of respondents claiming to be Mexican.

The motivation for choosing a vegetarian option can depend on many diverse factors, including culinary appeal, health, environmental and ethical issues.

More comprehensive surveys have indicated that a much larger proportion of the population is experimenting with meat-free options, merely including vegetarian food as a significant part of an omnivorous diet.

The 4% under discussion comprises only the genuine or aspiring minority who have taken this journey of exploration to its ultimate conclusion.

If the entire survey sample was asked how often they ate meat-free or vegetarian meals we would get a more accurate assessment of the size of this market. My experience as a distributor of vegetarian foods to the catering industry suggests the results would be significantly greater than 4%.

DAVID JONAS,

Proprietor, Vegetarian Express,

Watford, Hertfordshire.