Restaurant Leader Summit 2010 - Flagship Allegra Event



London, 14 June 2010 - Over 300 executives from across the restaurant sector congregated at Vinopolis in Southwark for Allegra’s Restaurant Leader Summit to discuss how best to harness opportunities in the post recession era.

One of the key messages to emerge from the day was that although the restaurant sector is robust and weathered the storm during the recent recession, operators’ future success hinges on delivering an outstanding value proposition.

“During this difficult last year, we learned restaurants that prosper open in the right place, have the right manager and the right value proposition” said John Derkach, CEO of Costa who stood in for Whitbread CEO Alan Parker.

Pizza Express, CEO Mark Angela also addressed the value issue. He said Pizza Express survived the recession by getting the right people in place, investing in their development and getting the value proposition right. The chain used promotional vouchers to get customers back into its restaurants and then aimed to deliver value and service that exceeded customers’ expectation.

Angela admitted that although the strategy worked, the group learned a lot as it went along. He anticipates tough trading over the next 9 to 12 months, but added that the group will continue investing in talent on the frontline and understanding its customers better so that it can target them carefully with more strategic marketing campaigns.

His expectations are in line with what Allegra Strategies’ analysts forecast. Although the trading environment has improved significantly in the last 12 months, it will continue to be challenging with competition intensifying beyond all expectations over the next few years. To win over consumers, operators under increasing pressure to offer good value. Brand identity will also be a key factor in determining operator success over the forthcoming 3 to 5 years.

To deliver profits and cater for increasingly demanding consumers Paul Campbell, CEO of Clapham House Group which owns Gourmet Burger Kitchen, observed: “Operators can expect to work very hard in future.”

Sarah Power, marketing director at Burger King, which targets a different customer base to GBK said the group has indeed had to work hard to evolve and avoid losing out to the rapidly growing fast casual restaurant sector and coffee shop sector. In January 2009 Burger King decided to review its promotion and voucher strategy because it was not building a loyal customer base. Instead, it took inspiration from supermarket operators and segmented its offering – with value, everyday and premium ranges. This strategy has so far paid off.

Success in today’s market is also dependent on effective use of online marketing campaigns. According to John Ray, Head of Restaurants at Google, 81% of internet users in the UK enter websites via a search engine and 45% of web traffic to the UK restaurant sector is driven by Google. Consequently inviting engagement should be a priority for operators. David Norris, Chief Operating Officer at Livebookings, UK said online reviews and customer feedback can also provide operators with a clearer understanding of what customers want and can be used to shape strategy.

Other issues flagged up at the Restaurant Leader Summit that are expected to have serious implications over the coming years include the price of property, value added tax and sustainability. Presentations on these topics are available to Allegra Food Strategy members via the website www.foodstrategyforum.com.

For further information on this event,, to become a member of the Food Strategy Forum or find out about any of Allegra’s other activities please contact Yvette Mackenzie on +44 (0)20 7691 8842 or email yvmackenzie@allegra.co.uk.