Expert's view on Russian catering services market
Issue:
June 2012, Vol.7, No.6
Tags:
ChanteCler
Our expert in this report, Alexander Burian, the managing partner of catering company ChanteCler, one of the Russian catering market leaders, speaks about the current industry trends, his company and its services.
How would briefly describe the level of catering services development in Russia today?
The Russian catering services market is growing rapidly both in Moscow and other regions. Representatives of regional companies often come to the capital and even seek advice in large catering companies. Characteristically, in the past catering was seen as a secondary kind of business, but today some industry leaders are specializing exclusively on catering and developing it in different directions. Also, companies are trying to segment the market among themselves, highlighting their differences from one another, by positioning themselves as specialists in handling large-scale events or as elite VIP-services providing firms, and consequently, the rates are also high, etc.
What is your growth forecast for this market in 2012 and in the near future?
According to our calculations, the market’s average growth rate in the last two years has been about 20% per annum. Going forward, I don’t expect this rate to change soon, if the economic and political situation remains stable.
Today, your company is one of the market leaders, a great feat, considering the general conditions under which businesses function in Russia. What is the secret of this success?
First of all, our success is the result of our everyday’s work. Of course, it consists of different factors, but I would particularly like to note our work team. We understand that every employee is very important, and this is why we always strive to work so as improve each employee’s skills and team spirit. This is because we are working in services industry, where the human factor plays the greatest role, and we are proud that many employees have been working in our company for over 4-5 years. They are the basis of our experience and the key to the success of our business.
Is there a special catering event organized by your company that you are particularly proud of?
Of course, there is, and this is not just a single event. Often, we measure the significance of events and achievements of new heights in catering by their scales. Today, we are specialists in organizing banquets and buffets designed for thousands of people. So, we are proud of every event, which is attended by 3,000-4,000 guests. Examples include the corporate events we organized for the mobile services operator MTS, Nanotechnology International Forum, organized by Rusnano Corp., and, of course, the Sberbank celebrations held in 2007 that were attended by over 10,000 people.
“Our success on this market is the result of our everyday’s work. Of course, it consists of different factors, but I would particularly like to note our work team for this success.”
The clientele of catering is varied, from organizers of private parties to large corporation’s anniversaries. In this regard, how would characterize your category of clients?
Most of our clients are event management agencies and large Russian and international corporations. Last year some permanent private clients also came on board and this means growth in this segment. Therefore, I can say that we work with all categories of clients because our offer meets the needs of both private and corporate customers. For example, we have no restrictions on the number of guests, meaning that if a client wishes, we can organize a banquet even for two guests. It is noteworthy that our menu is so varied that even the most demanding gourmets will found something new for themselves.
Today, competition is very high, as catering services are provided by a wide range of different players. In this regard, what would describe as your main competitive advantages?
As I had noted above, our vast resources and experienced employees are our main competitive advantages. In addition, we are not standing still, as we are constantly developing our business in different directions, both in terms of services, development of new dishes, as well as management decisions, marketing and promotion of the company.
What are your plans for further expansion of your business in this industry?
I see our main growth points in further development of services and finding different “narrow niches,” where we can take leading positions by using our existing resources 100%. This is how the brand “Coffee.com” was developed. It is operating in the corporate segment in a lobby bar format inside large companies` offices. This is the same way that we are successfully developing catering consulting.
Briefly put, how would you, based on your personal experience and taking into account the unique business conditions in Russia, describe as an ideal business model in this industry?
In fact, the barriers for entering our market are quite low, but the hardest thing is to survive and become a leader. This is why to ensure success, one needs to have experience in restaurant business management, able to proactively monitor international trends that always take time to reach Russia. Of course, one needs to build own resources, minimize rental, other expenses and constantly improve the quality of services, which is one of the main components for building the image and reputation of a catering company.
This text was translated from Russian to English by Anastasia Korotenko and edited by Chrisbon Business Services Agency (www.chrisbon.ru)
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