Hospitality industry lunch raises £176,000 for Ukraine Appeal

Over 1,000 hospitality professionals participated in the Lunch4Ukraine fundraising event on 5 April, which has so far raised £176,000 for the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Ukraine Appeal.

The lunch, which was intended to raise £100,000 for those affected by the war in Ukraine, sold out within just three weeks, and took place in the blue and yellow-themed dining hall at JW Marriott Grosvenor House London.

Additional funds were raised by the launch of Hospitality Auction4Ukraine, which gives people the chance to bid for a variety of premium hospitality experiences while also donating to an important humanitarian cause.

Lots include a weekend stay for two in the historic Chateau Trubetskoi in the Kherson region of Ukraine and an overnight stay at Claridge's in London. The auction, which is still open to bidders, is due to close at 9pm on 14 April.

Chef Nigel Boschetti of JW Marriott Grosvenor House London and Richard Corrigan of Corrigan's Mayfair oversaw the three-course Ukrainian-inspired menu, which featured a 'Chicken Kyiv'.

The food selection was particularly meaningful as it was cooked in collaboration with Yurii Kovryzhenko, a chef and ambassador of Ukrainian cuisine, who had fled from Ukraine five days before the Russian invasion.

Stuart Bowery, multi property general manager at JW Marriott Grosvenor House, said: "The support of the hospitality industry coming together in raising funds for the DEC Ukraine Appeal has been staggering.

"In just three weeks we have turned Lunch4Ukraine from an idea into a successful fundraising event, far surpassing our original goal of raising £100,000."

Kate Nicholls OBE, CEO of UKHospitality, added: "This event underlines once again the importance of hospitality as a force for good in our society: bringing our communities together, looking after and caring for the most vulnerable, and providing the help and assistance that is needed at this critical time."

Lunch4Ukraine was supported by over 25 hospitality suppliers, including Gold Key Media, the Master Inholders, Custard Communications, Hospitality Action, the Institute of Hospitality and The Caterer.

To bid on auction items visit superstars-auctions.com/lunch4ukraine or donate to the DEC Ukraine Appeal at donation.dec.org.uk/ukraine-humanitarian-appeal.