Batten down for winter, DB warns hoteliers

Wednesday 28th April 2010

Bar and restaurant owners looking forward to a boost from next year's Rugby World Cup need to manage their businesses carefully through a tough few winter months to come, DB Hospitality general manager Andrew Campbell says.

"Green shoots maybe sprouting on the economic front but now is not the time to become complacent," he told BusinessWire.

"There's still a lot of uncertainty in the market and it would be wise to prepare for a tight winter.

"Most receiverships occur at the end of a recession rather than the beginning or middle, so every spare dollar that comes their way should be put aside."

Operators should also be "extra careful" with costs, and constantly try to add value to the customers' experience.

Campbell said DB was positive about the outlook for the current financial year, and the company was now investing to assist bar owners by offering performance benchmarking tools and guidance on profitable menus.

"It can be quite a lonely existence if you own one bar and you can't easily feel how the rest of the trade is doing."

Attention to menus that offer value for money and sit somewhere between "a cheap pie with chips, and fine dining" was proving effective, especially for suburban operators, where couples were still wanting an evening out.

"Our customers are still very cautious and most people realise we aren't out of the woods yet," Campbell said.

"Those who have low debt will continue to survive. Those who thought the boom times would continue and have used their summer takings with a tougher winter coming, they will be struggling."

Businesswire.co.nz

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