Travel Broadens the Customer Base
Apart from the big boys, such as Whitbread and what used to be Bass, few of our great British companies have ventured out on the ocean of overseas F&B trade.
Those who tested the waters in the 1980s took a battering from EC bureaucracy, especially where wages and employment law were concerned. Many found that when their French waitress or blonde fraulein got pregnant, they had to employ her for life - plus her grandmother and three generations back of relatives.
Adapting to local culture also proved problematic, and what seemed to be just the right product in the UK, usually influenced by the USA, turned out to be not quite as popular as good old local spag bol, snails or sauerkraut.
Accordingly, in the late 1980s and early '90s, most of our boys limped home nursing their wounds - Euro-statutorily speaking. But the UK's F&B culture, if nothing else, is pioneering, and once again our flotillas have hit the high seas. This time, however, there are friendly developers waiting to greet them, and more worldly and sophisticated customers, not only in Europe but as far afield as Australia, Hong Kong, the USA and the Middle East.
We have been dealing with Elements, a lifestyle centre at the heart of Union Square in Kowloon, Hong Kong, which is a phenomenal mixed-use scheme and probably the largest regeneration project in the world today. This new breed of lifestyle centres is growing in popularity around the world, satisfying the ever-growing demand for unique, innovative and truly world-class fashion and lifestyle supported by like-minded F&B and leisure offers.
Our development team is dealing with further big developments in the USA and Australia, as well as other European destinations that are now evolving, and we will be putting UK and indeed other international groups in place.
We are seeing a crucial shift in the mindset of the new wave of landlord-developer. Over recent years, it has become more widely accepted that providing a place where shoppers can have a cup of tea and a sandwich to recharge their batteries is not enough. The provision of the right restaurants and bars not only helps in driving the letting of retail in schemes, but is part of the destination itself and can add tremendous value in attracting shoppers and increasing dwell time.
The USA has proved a challenge for the early efforts of groups such as Conran Restaurants and, more recently, Pret A Manger. We have lately seen the small but important expansion of La Tasca in Washington, with two restaurants and more to come - a British concept well received. Other groups are also sticking their toes in the pond.
Wagamama, born in Britain of an Oriental mind, has reached out again internationally to the Netherlands, Australia, Dubai and the Far East. Harry Ramsden's and PizzaExpress have made it to Saudi Arabia, and who knows what else will happen as the Middle East becomes more stable.
About 10 years ago, places such as Japan, the Middle East and most European countries had only accepted McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut and the usual suspects by way of franchise. Now, with their cultural gates open, the sky is the limit for UK and international operators. All markets have different rules, local customs, property structures and tax systems, but that's all part of the game and everything can be resolved.
Some of these new territories include the fastest growing economies in the world, and have consumer populations eager to explore global culture through every available medium, including food and drink. With local franchise receivers, banks and indeed landlords and developers giving support and finance this time, I doubt these markets will fail for operators who have the ambition and courage to boldly go where no-one has gone before.
David Coffer, Chairman, Davis Coffer Lyons
www.daviscofferlyons.co.uk
