A Letter To My Younger F&B Self Titled ‘Time To Think Differently’

You’re reading this after holding a couple of senior leadership positions in five-star hotels. You’ve spent your career climbing the ladder, admiring the world’s best hotels, all while staying laser-focused on your dream: opening a hotel in London. You’ll get there. You’ll open a truly unique property and accumulate wisdom through ultra-luxury operations.

But right now, you’re focusing on the wrong things. You’re benchmarking yourself against other hotels and hotel groups, which, while important, shouldn’t distract you from those guys on the high street.

At the moment, competition feels minimal, but that won’t last. Get ahead of the game now—focus on the Indies just as much as you do other hotels. This might sound crazy, but those independent places are going to compete for your guests, lure away your coffee drinkers, and steal your deskless workers.

Yes, you read that right. Soon, people will be working on laptops in coffee shops, communal workspaces, and more. If you don’t pay attention, you’ll lose out on the “cream of the crop” you’re enjoying right now.

Later in life, you’ll leave hotels and venture into independent restaurants around the world. You’ll discover that they do things differently, and because of that, they’re not only winning over your guests but also making a lot more revenue than you.

They’ve become the places to be. Spend time now understanding their world—figure out how to embrace it. Your 42-year-old self regrets not exploring the indies earlier, as it would have made for far better hotel F&B operations.

Don’t make the same mistake. Follow them, not the hotels stuck doing the same as you.

And don’t underestimate that iPhone. You’ve just gotten your first one, and right now you can’t imagine the seismic impact it’ll have on your operations.

But take it seriously. Storytelling will soon become one of the most valuable skills in your toolkit. It’ll shape how your guests behave.

It’ll bring convenience, speed, and choice to decision-making, and you’ll have to adapt.

If you’ve locked yourself into a long-term contract for a clunky POS system, reconsider. Don’t tie yourself down for too long—you’ll need far more flexibility in the future.

In 2020, a global pandemic will change everything. You’ll be deprived of connection for a while, and that isolation will give rise to a sense of community like you’ve never seen before.

Think about all those times you’ve followed Leeds United away and been part of that brotherhood. It’ll be like that—a collective resilience.

Start thinking about community now.

Create local hubs. Foster connection. Cultivate fans.

Because if your operation revolves around community, you’ll be in a strong position to weather the craziest three years of your career. Right now, you’re probably wondering how to balance locals with in-house guests.

In the future, your in-house guests will want to mingle with the locals. In fact, they’ll even book hotel rooms because of it.

Who would’ve thought? F&B driving room sales—crazy, right? But trust the process; it’ll be your future success.

Lastly, challenge everything. “The way it’s always been done” will no longer be the mantra of the future. You’ll need to question the “why” to foster a culture of innovation.

Why hasn’t the breakfast buffet evolved in 25 years?

Why are conference rooms still filled with trestle tables, chairs, and draped boxed tables?

Why is room service still served on trays with cloches covering the food?

Why aren’t our lounges catering to the deskless worker?

Why are we still serving terrible ‘complimentary’ biscuits with bad coffee for twice the price of Starbucks in our lounges?

These are the questions that will set you apart from everyone else.

These are the questions that will spark a new mindset and help you think differently.

You’ve got this. Go and rewrite the rules of hotel F&B;

Because we need this mindset now more than ever.