The future of entertainment

Benjamin Mc Fadden, Tesco trading manager for Grocery, Household & Pet and Colin Ferguson, head of sales, White’s Oats. Pic by Philip Magowan, Press Eye

Way back, when I first started writing about the drinks industry, trained barstaff were as common as donkeys in Donegal.

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But the bar trade no longer formally trains its staff to the extent that it once did. Perhaps because of harsher economic times, the emphasis on staff training, certification and apprenticeship seem to have slipped off the barstool of knowledge for most vintners.

It’s a great shame as well-trained staff make passionate salesmen.

BWG’s Leo Crawford reminded us of this point at the recent LVA seminar on The Future of the Dublin Pub when he compared (unfavourably it must be said) pubs to retail outlets.

“Passionate retailers have great staff, who’re part of the community,” he explained, “They’ve a great product range and control their shelf-space. They’re innovatory….. The same should go for the publican.”

And most would readily agree that neither the suburban pub or the convenience store will ever get back to where it had been in the ‘good times’.

But the obstinate question remains: can today’s publican hold back any further decline in sales or even grow them slightly?

At the seminar Kay McCarthy of MCCP told us about how pub customers are changing. People are attracted to pubs that give them a feeling of identity, she said – and this needs to be explored further.

Today’s consumer can be attracted in to a pub for something special and they’ll pay more for quality product which itself throws up a number of questions.

Do today’s pubs need to make more use of ‘mystery shoppers’ to evaluate their service levels?

Through such tools can the pubs of Dublin offer better customer focus and higher standards?

Is it enough?

Perhaps most importantly, do today’s publicans need to present a more upbeat, positive image of themselves?

As Paul Nolan, the co-owner of an Irish bar and restaurant in Florida, told delegates, “You’re in the entertainment business so you have to embrace it“.

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