14 May 2013

Social responsibility

by Kate Cracknell

Why do health clubs – operations that pivot around the idea of doing people good – have to work so hard, and spend so much money, to engage customers? That was the question posed by Ray Algar, MD of Oxygen Consulting, who spotted a discrepancy between the way in which gyms perceive themselves – as socially-minded operations that help people live healthier, happier lives – and the way the public sees them: as contract-wielding enterprises that take your money and then leave you to fend for yourself, not caring if you attend or not. [more...]

30 Apr 2013

A united effort is needed to ensure government listens to what the hospitality industry needs

by Ufi Ibrahim

The UK hospitality and tourism industry comprises internationally renowned businesses and a fantastic variety of small enterprises. Together we contribute some 8% to the total GDP – that's around £115 billion per annum. [more...]

23 Apr 2013

Nimble thinking

by Liz Terry

Designing, funding, building and running facilities is an expensive undertaking, but because the majority of people's out-of-home leisure-time activity has traditionally taken place in and around some kind of facility, operators have always had to bear the costs associated with this infrastructure. [more...]

16 Apr 2013

2012 - a curate's egg

by Kurt Janson

The figures for UK domestic tourism in 2012 have been released by VisitEngland. They show that total number of visits for the year was down by 1 per cent to 126m while expenditure on domestic tourism was up £1.3bn to a record £24bn. Impressive figures, considering the impact of the weather, combined with the double-dip recession and the want of many people to sit in front of the TV during the Olympics. [more...]

16 Apr 2013

Visa reforms are crucial for continued growth

by Ufi Ibrahim

Theresa May announced that she'd be restructuring the UK Border Authority (UKBA) – this should be applauded. The need to reform the UK's visa procedures so that they are less expensive and more straightforward is absolutely critical to continued growth. [more...]

15 Apr 2013

People Power

by Eva McDiarmid

A recent survey of overseas visitors landing at US airports found that bureaucratic and inefficient entry procedures at customs was putting people off travelling there. Moreover, the survey found that 43 per cent of respondents said they would tell others to avoid a trip to the US because of the entry process and 44 per cent of business travellers said they would not visit in the next 5 years for the same reason. [more...]

10 Apr 2013

Strength in numbers

by Kate Cracknell

What might the gym of the future look like? Are we reaching a point where group exercise – far from being a mere complementary offering sitting alongside the gym in a full-service club – has actually become a strong proposition in its own right? And if so, what models might operators consider to ensure they tap into this? [more...]

19 Mar 2013

Tourism shows its value

by Kurt Janson

The Tourism Alliance held its Annual Parliamentary Reception two days before this year's budget on 20 March. While the timing of this is coincidental, there is a significant linkage between the two events. [more...]

19 Mar 2013

Passion to succeed

by Peter Ducker

On 11 March the Institute of Hospitality hosted its third annual Passion 4 Hospitality student debating competition. As eight universities competed, it was a privilege to witness the quick-witted energy, intelligence – and passion – on display. [more...]

12 Mar 2013

Some facts to consider

by Eva McDiarmid

The World Economic Forum (WEF) published its fifth Competitiveness Report ‘Reducing Barriers to Economic and Job Creation' last week. Published biennially, it ranks 140 countries according to their attractiveness and ability to develop their travel and tourism industries. For the fifth time, Switzerland leads the rest of the world. The UK jumped one place to number five overall (and from 11thin 2009). Europe maintains the top five rankings making it (for now) the leading region globally for competitiveness. [more...]

08 Mar 2013

Let's be clear

by Kate Cracknell

The fitness sector has, as yet, failed to cement a clear idea in people’s minds of how much and how often they should be exercising, and what sort of activity they should do. [more...]

05 Mar 2013

The Big Conversation

by Sam Coulstock

The Big Hospitality Conversation is a joint initiative between Springboard, The Prince of Wales’s Charity Business in the Community and the British Hospitality Association (BHA). It brings together influential industry leaders from the top hospitality businesses with young people to stimulate an important dialogue on employability skills, work experience and apprenticeships. [more...]

05 Mar 2013

Join us for The Big Conversation

by Ufi Ibrahim

Youth employment is one of the BHA’s central campaign areas and our research shows that the industry has the potential to create over 200,000 jobs in the UK by 2015. [more...]

21 Feb 2013

Competition is everywhere

by Liz Terry

Spas are expensive to build, and in creating them, owners, developers and operators either tie-up capital or have large debts to service. So spa operations have to generate enough operating profit to clear a number of big hurdles: covering their direct operating expenses; in some cases contributing to overheads; then servicing debt; then maybe paying back some of that debt; and then, finally, creating an actual return. [more...]

19 Feb 2013

Food – a missed opportunity

by Eva McDiarmid

Another week, another food controversy which, like others in the past, will run and run. Major food scares have been hitting the headlines with increasing regularity for almost 20 years. First it was BSE (also known as Mad Cow Disease) in the 1990s. Then five years later it was Food and Mouth disease (FMD) and in 2007 there was a major outbreak of avian flu at a Bernard Matthews' 'farm'. [more...]

19 Feb 2013

Are you well?

by Peter Ducker

How are you? No, really! Feeling good, I hope, but just because you work in the sport and leisure sector we can’t assume you’re a picture of health. [more...]