Event Review

At the latest sell-out Arena event, guests visited White Hart Lane, home of Tottenham Hotspur, for an exclusive behind-the-scenes experience at the club’s state-of-the-art, multi-purpose stadium.

Keynote speaker, Jon Davies, CEO of Levy UK, spoke on the importance of purpose and partnership and how it fuels the exceptional customer experiences that Levy delivers to its fans. Kateline Porritt from Egg Soldiers shared insights into the growing “treat culture,” exploring how food and beverage experiences are elevating to meet increasingly sophisticated expectations.  Next up, guests enjoyed a networking drinks reception followed by an exquisite, seated, three-course lunch, words from Exec Head Chef Mark Reynolds and a stadium tour.

The day’s events began with coffee and networking in the East Atrium, followed by Jon’s speech which opened the day.

“People still want to come out.  Our job is to provide the best guest experience.”

He began by giving guests an insight into the story of Levy.  Starting out in 1978 as a fledgling deli, its breakthrough came with a dessert trolley in the White Sox Stadium.  This first step laid the foundation for the company’s phenomenal growth in stadium catering.   Today, Levy UK & Ireland, provides catering and hospitality for the nation’s most prolific venues, including of course, Tottenham Hotspur.

Part of the Compass Group, Levy operates under four pillars – performance, people, planet and partnership.  Its growth strategy, as Jonathan shared is delivering genuine authentic experiences, with a real emphasis on strategic partnerships.  And, of course, sustainability sits at the heart.

He explained; “I’m willing to engage with anyone in the supply chain who puts sustainability front and centre.  There’s no escaping that it’s getting hotter every year and the food industry has a huge role to play.  The way we eat - ‘on demand’ – creates a huge footprint.”

Many of Levy’s partnerships stem, in part, from Covid, at a time when Levy’s business was non-existent. In fact, its only business was test centres, giving Jonathan a lot of time at home and some valuable “thinking time”.  This period resulted in several acquisitions and partnerships including the likes of events business, Peppermint.  This was also the start of Constellation, Compass’s own staffing agency, which now has over 25,000 people on its books.

On the subject of People, Jon shared his views on what ‘people-centred’ actually  means and admitted to not always getting it right.

“We’re not perfect.  We sometimes make bad decisions and get things wrong”

But, as the third biggest employer in the UK – a point which is often overlooked by the Government - he believes that Levy and the sector has a really important role to play.

Having joined the industry as a graduate trainee with Gardner Merchant in 1999, he appreciates first-hand the importance of training and feeling valued.

“We need to sell ourselves better.  In Europe, people are proud to work in hospitality.  Our job is to make students see it’s an industry to come and work in.”

At Tottenham, they have a 10% fixed term team, with a 90% variable workforce.  Apprentices are prevalent across the Levy business ranging from level 2 all the way through to masters level 7.

When it came to the hot topic – AI – Jon admitted he finds it 50% interesting and 50% terrifying.  But, in terms of building customer experience, he shared the significant role it has the potential to play in helping operators to meet customer demand and its many variables, and how it can reduce food waste, thanks to more accurate forecasting.

“We’re asking our teams on a daily basis to predict volumes when there are so many variables at play.  From the weather to the type of match, the time of day, the demographic, whether spirits are high or low, what the score expectations are; all these factors will impact how the consumer will spend money. AI can help us with this.  We’re not there yet, but it’s coming.”

He also spoke of E15, Levy’s own insights agency, payment tech and frictionless, which is “great, but expensive”.

Moving back to sustainability, he shared how they’ve made some bad decisions in the past in relation to plant-based alternatives. Learning from their mistakes, they’re now very focused on how they can reduce beef and lamb whilst maintaining support for the farmers. He spoke of prioritising wild venison; lean, high protein and reared on a 100% wild diet. With a surplus of 1.5m roaming the Scottish Highlands, the ‘ecological pests’ present a solution that benefits both people and the planet.

Back to customer experience, he explained that fans are now looking for informality in hospitality.

“It used to be white tablecloth or carvery.  That was it, the only options.  Now, consumers want a variety of premium informal experiences.” 

He reinforced this by explaining that guests don’t turn up to an event at the same time.  They want experiences that fit in with them, not the other way around.  

Consequently, we’re seeing a huge range of styles and the new stadium has been built with the customer-first ethos.  The Linley stadium had the bar on the East Stand, no cellars and no lounge with a pitch view and was “challenging to operate”.

Today, the stadium is one of the best in the world and Jonathan shared how extremely proud he is of the hospitality.  It houses its own fried chicken shop, brews its own beer in its on-site brewery and has, as you’d expect, many circular stories. The waste from the brewery, for example, is used to feed the pigs that are farmed to create the stadium’s sausages.

It all comes back to delivering the best premium experience. And, being the best in class.

Jon’s speech was followed by questions from the guests, which focused on the importance of apprenticeships, where he touched on Levy’s graduate scheme, the Marcus Wareing programme and its FOH and BOH awards, plus more on the topic of sustainability and the need to move quicker.

Kateline Porritt, Director of Insights from Egg Soldiers took to the stage to share insights on how spending is becoming a “treat” and food and beverage experiences are raising their game to deliver.

She explained, “Yes, the industry and consumers are having a bad time.  But, they’re still spending.”

That spending is more about premium escapism; the type of experience that you simply can’t replicate in the home.  As a result, there’s a rise in traditional high end French / New York-style decadent dining; think champagne, caviar and white tablecloths.

When consumers spend now, they want bang for their buck.

Echoing John’s views about hospitality fitting in with what the customer needs and wants, Kate shared how important it is to be in the right place at the right time.  This comes down to removing barriers and finding people in “their space”.

She explained: “People are looking for those little moments that put a smile on their faces.  So, it’s a case of being in the right place at the right time, with a one-off purchase.  Fans may choose to stay at their seats at half time, so how do you take those experiences to them? From kiosk to kick off, how can we reach them?”

Kate also spoke of wellness as a currency and how it means different things to different people.  She believes that while the Ozempic effect is sensationalist that something to come is more nutrient-dense dishes in smaller portions.

With global custom playing a huge role in our tourism industry Kate revisited the theme of high-end luxury, the traditional silver service that overseas visitors would expect, the opulence and the quality.

She also shared how prominent décor is becoming.  People are looking for extreme escapism – “what distracts me from my life for a few hours”.  As such, secret spaces and immersive experiences like La Forêt Secrète at Disneyland Paris are becoming increasingly popular. 

Following these two hugely insightful talks, guests enjoyed a drinks reception, courtesy of Unity Wines and Spirits and Carlsberg Britvic and a selection of canapés served on Délifrance focaccia before taking their seats for the three-course seated lunch.

The exquisite starter of seared scallops was served with a selection of Délifrance Héritage mini handcrafted rolls, followed by a free range chicken ballotine and a Mango and Kalamansi Delice Dessert with Yuzu ice-cream courtesy of La Compagnie des Desserts.  Post-dinner coffee, was courtesy of Néscafe.

Following lunch, Mark Reynolds, Executive Head Chef at Tottenham Hotspur spoke about passion meeting precision following an introduction to his illustrious 35 year career which has included cooking for HRH The Queen, Liam Neeson, Uma Thurman and Ewan McGregor.  And, of course, he now also wears a second chef hat as Chair of the Craft Guild of Chefs.

With culinary playing such a key role in the stadium’s revenue, the focus always remains on the fan experience, delivering £1m-£2.5m per game, aiming for a £9 spend per head. Match days are demanding, needing 265 chefs; 60 or 70 come from the agency, the rest are his regular chefs.

He explained that the baseline has shifted and it’s now about staying ahead of the game, going from good to exemplary. Doing the right thing is non-negotiable; sustainability sits at the core of the operation

Passionate about the next generation, Mark shared a few words about the Craft Guild and its mission;

“We must ensure we’re fit for the future to protect our craft. If we don’t support and invest, we’ll lose the talent of great cuisine. Every service I’ve done has shaped my career.”

That said, the future is looking bright and he’s seen young people shifting from civil engineering to hospitality, with most colleges currently oversubscribed. He concluded, “the industry’s coming back”.

Guests were then invited on an exclusive behind the scenes tour with Mark and his Chef Brigade taking different groups on the tour. Ben Crocker, Head Pastry Chef of the central production unit led one of the tours who stated that all bread is made in-house along with 95% of the venue’s desserts.

With 65,000 people to feed on match day, he shared how crucial every member of staff is in delivering excellence every time from food delivery to back of house, the cellars and cleaners.  It’s an operation of precision and timing, with that last hour before kick-off, the biggest revenue driver.

The venue also supports the wider Compass business, recently providing 45,000 desserts for Gather + Gather, in addition to its own events.

Guests were then lucky enough to go pitch-side before a tour of the marketplace to see the stadium’s own chicken shop, micro-brewery and pizza operation that delivers 2,500 pizzas in two hours and of course, the famous Goal Line Bar.

Always remaining true to its heritage, Ben also shared that the club has no red fire extinguishers – they’re all silver.  And, during the build the cranes were painted blue!

Guests returned to the bar before for a final drink and chat with colleagues before heading home.

Huge thanks go to the headline partners for their support, in making the event possible. 

Nestlé Professional, for the Nescafé coffee

Délifrance for the pastries, focaccia which was used to create the canapés, plus the bread rolls served alongside the starters

Unity Wines & Spirits for the wine and prosecco

Carlsberg Britvic for the soft drinks and mineral water 

La Compagnie des Desserts for the dessert

HRC, for its support and fundraising initiative for the charity fundraising initiative

Thanks also go to the event sponsor: Tritan Renew, who supplied drinkware, made from 50% certified recycled content.

As always, Susa Comms is thanked for its social media support and Gather for the use of its feedback platform.

An impressive £2390 was raised for industry charity Springboard and Hospitality Action in the charity raffle and interactive draw run by HRC, thanks to guests’ generosity.