Review: Bar & Nightlife Forum 2014

The Caterer Middle East Bar & Nightlife Forum brought together bar managers and F&B directors to address the most pressing issues in the industry

More than 100 bar managers and F&B directors attended the Caterer Middle East Bar & Nightlife Forum on October 7 at Grosvenor House Dubai.

The event brought to light some of the key issues concerning the industry, including recruitment challenges, increasing competition, and diversity. Kicking off the event, Gates Hospitality CEO Naim Maddad revealed that more than 200 new bars and club concepts were due to come online in the region in the next 18 months, including several home-grown brands.

The growing number of outlets also means the industry needs to recruit the right people, as Whissle’s group bars manager Thomas Gillgren pointed out: “The nightlife industry is growing so quickly. With people coming over, you’ve got to make sure they stay in Dubai because quality is important.

Dubai needs to show that the hospitality industry here is terrific, it’s not just a playground, it’s a serious business. You need the right experience because Dubai has been seen as a playground — with all the restaurants, bars and hotels opening here.”

Employee Issues

Staff retention and recruitment remains one of the key challenges the industry continues to struggle with; Frioul Bistro de Luxe beverage manager Angus McGregor commented: “Dubai has always struggled getting a good workforce out here. What I feel is that they are failing badly in terms of how current staff in the market are being treated.

We find ourselves more and more looking outside of Dubai to source staff. As Dubai expands, we need a larger pool of people, but at the same time we are neglecting the people we have right here, right now.”

It was a sentiment echoed by other panellists speaking during the session, including GQ Bar assistant manager Sam Bailey, who commented on how the recruitment contracts are drawn up.

“What we forget is that 90% of the western bartenders we are trying to recruit are coming from part-time or full-time casual contracts, hourly paid. For them to come here on a fixed, two-year contract that they’re going to pay their way out of, if they choose to leave, is a scary concept for people,” he explained.

McGregor also pointed to racial discrimination when it comes to recruiting staff for the industry, with more bars preferring to hire “white faces”, which doesn’t necessarily guarantee better skills.

“There’s plenty of good talent here. We’re getting into, dare I say it, a bit of a racist outlook. We’re now seeing a lot of people looking for white faces. They’re willing to pay three times more; and I say this from first-hand experience, many of these people coming from Europe have certainly no better skills.”

He further reiterated his point when discussing career progression in the industry, explaining the attitude when it came to promoting some of these staff.

To counter this problem, Bailey suggested a “standard minimum wage across the board for hotel bars and private venues”, along with plans for career development to tackle the problem of staff moving to different bars when offered a minimal pay raise.

“If employers are promoting the right people and they see the chance to grow in a company, that would aid in stopping the bounce around in staff,” he said.

Media One Hotel Dubai’s director of F&B Felix Hartmann also commented on how the city was losing its appeal for those looking to enter the bar and nightlife industry: “In 2006 everyone wanted to come to Dubai. In the last years, the reality has reached out to the world about what the salaries, the packages and the accommodation are.”

Omnia by Silvena operations manager Motorga Heathcliff agreed, adding: “Some of them lose patience very fast.”
Adding to this, the panellists also lamented the lack of recognition for bartenders, and how it added to the challenge of recruiting in the nightlife industry.

“Twenty years ago, being a chef was not a glamorous career. With the rise of the Gordon Ramsays and Jamie Olivers, a lot of people can legitimately say it is a profession. If you are a chef and specialise in Asian cuisine, that’s perfectly acceptable. It seems like you cannot have a niche in the bar trade. One thing that is difficult is that it follows trends too much,” McGregor stated.

“There are people who spend hours at home creating, and pushing their way forward to try and do something for the industry, and they don’t really get any better recognition than those just working in a pub,” he added.

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Growing Pains

According to Gillgren, the growing competition means existing outlets need to invest more in training and maintaining standards in order to compete efficiently.

Maddad added: “I call it growing pains — where the city was and where the city is, it’s evolved in its own way. It’s our responsibility to enforce certain things like consistency — having brands come in from abroad and setting up shop in Dubai. I have a certain expectation from a brand promise… I welcome brands coming into the market but we have our own culture here.”

Toko general manager Ghazi Azzabi emphasised the importance of local and home-grown brands, claiming that it’s important to adapt to the local culture and the structure of the Dubai market, citing the success of Reform Social & Grill and Tom & Serg as examples.

“We may bring certain things from abroad, but 25% of those have had to adapt to local culture, customer preferences and the structure of how Dubai works. The future is promising but for Dubai, from a strategic perspective, to become a city on the map, it needs to have its home-grown brands,” he asserted.

Gillgren countered Azzabi’s opinion on the need to adapt to local cultures explaining that “the dilution of the brands franchised here can be very tough sometimes. It can be tough to do that adjustment. The more international you become, the more you have to think about the concept and stick to it”.

Similarly, with more international brands setting up shop in key cities in the region, panellists agreed it was time that international certification bodies and competitions took notice of Dubai, a move that would also motivate bartenders to enhance their skills.

InterContinental Dubai Marina F&B manager Julien Coron said: “Now that I think we are at an international level, I think we need to have an international guide to measure our performance.”

Mint Leaf of London assistant manager — beverage Paul Bradley added: “The problem is the international competitions have monopolised the market whereas the smaller competitions are more easier to get into. We then have more competitions not necessarily as intense, but it gives experience to the bartenders.”

Behind the scenes, training was just as important a factor. Azzabi also spoke at length about the need to develop soft skills among bar staff and not just their beverage skills, explaining: “Soft skills are extremely important for the business which is customising the relationship management to an individual level for each customer that walks through the door. And this will vary depending on where the customer is from. It is important to have a team that is capable of handling that. You only have one chance to make a good impression, and that’s the first one.”

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Supplier Issues

Panellists at the event also debated whether the industry needed more beverage suppliers, with the speakers unanimously concurring that a third or even fourth player would make the existing suppliers more competitive in their pricing as well as choice of brands on offer.

Gillgren said: “Hospitality has grown so much [here]; maybe we could look at a third or fourth player to get the full variety in all our bars, restaurants and nightclubs. It’s like a monopoly — you can get one brand from one supplier.”

Paul Bradley, assistant manager — beverage, Mint Leaf of London agreed with Gillgren and said it’s a dual concern, where if there were more suppliers, would venues still be in a position to get more brands? He also added that there was an issue with external controls on what bars can and cannot stock.

Maadad asked whether the market was ready for a variety of beverages, and Azzabi said it was. He stated: “Some of the brands which are well marketed around the world are also known here and ready to enter the market. It’s also about giving the product a lifestyle spin. Dubai is very much a lifestyle city. We are continually looking at the brands behind our bars to ensure they are offering the best brands but also in response to our guests and customer base.”

Diversity in nightlife

It’s not all gloom and doom for the industry though, and according to several speakers at the event, the industry is clearly finding its own way to compete while simultaneously growing the offering through new concepts.

Despite lack of support from suppliers, the nightlife industry has to strive to offer the market a variety of options to choose from, and with strict alcohol licensing laws based on locations, most licensed outlets have little option than to be located in close proximity.

Jumeirah group director of beverage Ian McEvoy said: “We always want to give customers as much choice as possible. How you go about offering that choice is the difficult thing. Licensing laws are difficult and very restrictive.

Most licensed premises are based in or around hotels. So how do you operate a neighbourhood bar if you are located in a hotel or part of a property? How do you offer something different, when to pay for all the fees, you have to charge a higher price?”

Some venues have tried to use their space in various ways over the course of the day. Case in point is Zero Gravity, which offers a breakfast on weekends, followed by an afternoon brunch, before turning into a nightclub after sunset.

Zero Gravity general manager Peter Skudutis explained the concept, saying: “We are linked to Jumeirah Group and we have to operate as a standalone while still offering the Jumeirah service. We’ve had to take our business in a very different direction based on the target market, the offering.

“We have had to strategically separate ourselves from the normal ways of hotels to make sure that we can give people a different offering; we have to be able to offer something to the masses.”

With increasing diversity in the market, clubs are also turning to promoters to fill their venues and market their bars or nightlife concepts to a selective audience.

During a workshop on the effectiveness of promoters versus in-house marketing, Think ME managing director Gred Dufton revealed how the company was working with Zero Gravity to promote the space.

“They didn’t want to go down the promoter route but use a promotions company that has expertise and then we work exclusively with them on that.”

“The venue is important, it’s very difficult to get people to a rubbish venue. If the venue is quality like Mahiki then you stand a pretty good chance of pulling people into it.

“Dubai is really a tourist hub and that’s what we fight for. We have to be vigilant and hunting people. Tourism is a big help but they also need to be informed about us. Word spreads very quickly so if you have a bad reputation, you are doomed,” he added.

Story Rooftop Lounge general manager Tomas Vindasius also believes the industry is more willing to try new things, saying: “The underground movement has been a very high risk movement in the past. This is the first year I’ve seen in Dubai, where the underground scene is now attracting the masses.

And what was niche in the past is now very common. That shows the development of Dubai, shows the development of the industry. We are becoming more like other cities in the world that have such a strong nightlife industry.”

How the nightlife industry addresses the key challenges going forward will determine its performance in the international markets.

There are still gaps that certainly need to be filled, but as Naim Maddad pointed out during his session: “What is happening in the market is amazing on a lot of fronts. There have been a lot of market corrections, from an economy perspective, which has supported the industry. With 2020 coming online as well there is a lot of interest in the region.”

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United Arab Emirates Beverage Society (UAEBS)

The United Arab Emirates Beverage Society was set up with the aim to unite nightlife professionals to share industry best practices and offer support. At the forum, UAEBS co-founders Felix Hartmann from Media One Hotel Dubai, and Sasha Milovanovic from Fresh Express spoke at length about the project.

The UAEBS website will offer product information, newsletters, industry updates, a comprehensive listing of all bars and venues as well as suppliers and distributors for the industry, and a careers section for job seekers. It will also connect beverage managers, GMs, F&B directors, suppliers, and sponsors.

The UAEBS website will also offer access to a global network of clubs and bartenders to keep up-to-date with global events and news.

The UAEBS membership will offer discounts to various venues in the UAE, which will offer industry peers a chance to visit outlets they may not have been able to earlier.

While the team is still awaiting approvals, the non-profit organisation will be registered as a social club and will host bi-annual meetings at different venues.

For now, the team is looking for financial support to help with expenses such as website programming, and Hartmann and Milovanovic also appealed to the audience to offer their venues to host regular UAEBS meetings and networking events.

Investing in soft skills

One of the workshops at the forum focused on investing in soft skills, led by Biz-ability general manager Bev Mileham, who offered advice on categorising employees and service and tips for improvment:
- There are four service levels: awful, acceptable, appreciative, and amazing. Customers who experience awful service can lose not just the customers that are unhappy, but more, if word spreads through social media. .
- There are three types of staff: the dragger, the plodder, and the winner. Draggers usually make up 20% of the team and tends to offer awful service, the plodder accounts for 60% of the team and offers acceptable, or sometimes appreciative, while the winner, who makes up the remaining 20% is the one who offers amazing service.
- There are five principles (or 5 Ps) of service winners: a positive attitude, passionate service, personal communication, product confidence, and proactive energy.
- Bartenders and service staff should use the GAME model when approaching a customer: Greet the customer, Affirm needs, Meet or exceed needs, and Ensure satisfaction.