Event Review

More than 150 hospitality leaders visited the “home of cricket” for the sell-out event at Marylebone Cricket Club, known most commonly as Lord’s.

Hosted in Pelham’s next to the Grade II-listed Pavilion, the day started with an intro from Abi Evans, Project Manager of multi-service events operator Freemans Event Partners, which delivers hospitality experiences to 31,000 spectators on match days with a “fan first” approach.  Abi spoke of the partnership with FEP Pay, the Paris Olympics where the team installed and served coffee from seven Costa outlets, plus a brand-new partnership with Elior at Murrayfield.

The ‘fan first’ approach at Lord’s

Abi shared how Freemans aims to replicate the high street experience, catering to a diverse audience that has shifted from predominantly male to 29% women and 23% juniors. “Our focus is on creating seamless journeys for families and groups, while also addressing the unique needs of individuals.”

With an emphasis on creating “Insta-worthy” food moments throughout match-day she highlighted the importance of the food and beverage offer as a core part of the fan experience and introduced the new Food Village. Designed to elevate the experience, the newly built concept, that is seamlessly integrated into the grounds, serves street-food and thanks to interchangeable screens, an open back of house and fridges with self-serve drinks, it has a real high street feel.

The Transformational Leadership Survey

Following Abi’s introduction, Jeremy Blain, CEO of Performance Works International gave guests a fascinating insight into digital transformation in an interactive session that encouraged the audience to share their own experiences and challenges.

It was agreed that digital transformation means different things to different people, but its purpose is to “service customers better and create an unbeatable experience.”

Key observations and takeaways from the session included:

Digital transformation is an organisational journey.  You can do all the tech, but if your people aren’t with you, it will fail. It’s a whole business journey.
There’s a “lot of stuff that glitters”; working out what works and what doesn’t is a continued challenge.
Digital is not replacing the human touch; it is more important than it ever has been.  
Perfection doesn’t exist with digital; 70% is good enough. 
Digital “creates value” for customers by fuelling change. 

Discovering Lord’s Cricket Ground

Next up, guests were treated to a tour of the iconic ground, including a viewing of the ‘Ashes’ which never made it to Australia following “the death of English cricket” in 1882, when England lost to Australia on home soil.  Other highlights included a look inside the very traditional changing rooms, details of the iconic media centre built in the 1990s and the pitch itself which surprisingly is on a slope from left to right.

Lunch is served

Following the fascinating tour, guests enjoyed drinks and a street-food lunch in the food village which featured bao buns and tacos, and networking in the upstairs bar.  Whilst clearly it was in no way as busy as a match day, guests were able to see the operation in action and sample the diverse menu options.  

Panel Discussion

The afternoon continued with a lively debate back in the Pelham’s suite, with panel guests:

Tom Ford – VP, Marketing & Strategy, Aramark
Jason Mumby – Client Development & Strategy Director, Freemans Event Partners
Dawn Beeby – Commercial Director, FEP Pay
Shereen Ritchie – CEO, Buns from Home

The purpose & value of digital ambition

Tom shared that digital ambition at Aramark is there to “make lives better” and this rings true throughout the industry.

Despite being a self-confessed “technophobe”, Jason shared stories of digital transformation and how it’s enabled the integration of retail principles into the foodservice world. It started in 2015 with the Rugby World Cup and Mastercard managing every payment.  “This type of technology enables us to know the forecasted revenue of an 82,000 person event and enables us to have the right product in the right places.”

The challenge with stadia catering is getting people fed quickly in a short period of time, so they don’t miss any of the sporting action.  Live streams in food outlets have addressed this and heat maps give clarity on where fans are spending their time. 

Dawn from FEP Pay added that technology gives us the “power of data” and the ability to “personalise the customer experience”.  Payment technology means that the complete customer journey, ticket to seat can be mapped, as well as before.

Both Jason and Dawn shared that the data gives them unique insights.  For example, 54% of Ryder Cup guests were from the US and at least 35% at Silverstone F1 are international, so there’s an opportunity to curate the experience accordingly.  Pricing merch in US dollars and international currencies, for example, removes the hassle of conversion for the fan, makes them feel valued and encourages them to spend.  It’s about creating a really personal experience.

Shereen added that the personal touch comes back to the human touch, “This industry will always be people-focused; digital is there to enhance, not replace.” 

Culture building

On the topic of culture building Tom spoke of how “improving lives” starts with the team and at Aramark they are using technology to support their brand and drive change in an authentic way.

The panel echoed his view of the importance of explaining the “why” to take the team on the journey.  It needs to resonate throughout the business, not just at the top.

Dawn and Jason highlighted the need to keep the need to keep things simple and Dawn highlighted that all great leaders bring partners and specialists into their business.

Shereen concluded that every leader is chasing the “sweetgreen dream”.  The focus has to be on optimising operation and the economic model. Company culture plays a key role. 

Food for thought

The panel discussion concluded with a takeaway from each member:

Dawn: “Don’t bury your head in the sand. Know your customer before they walk in the door and they’ll come back.”

Tom: “Find a balance; nothing’s perfect. We learn the most from our failures, so it’s ok not to win sometimes.”

Shereen: “Be authentic, don’t sweat the small stuff, embrace change and be the best version of yourself.”

Jason: “The simplest ideas have always been there.  Be relative and genuine; the gimmick won’t last.”

The event finished with questions from the audience and more networking with drinks in the bar.

With huge thanks to:

Headline sponsors:  Freemans Event Partners for providing the food, Unity Wines and The Uncommon for providing a range of wines for the drinks reception, Nescafé for the coffee upon arrival and after lunch, Délifrance for the pastries upon arrival and Britvic Soft Drinks for their range of soft drinks served throughout the day.

Event sponsor: Twinings for their range of teas served to guests upon arrival and after lunch

Event supporters: Gather, Susa Comms