This month leading hospitality supplier Gilmours has launched a three month campaign to provide a stable pricing environment for Hospitality across four categories, alongside a $10,000 prize pool. Hospitality Business sat down with Gilmours General Manager Cindy Chaimowitz*, to explain how the campaign works!
Q. What are the primary goals of the “Gilmours Helping Hospo” campaign?
A. The Hospitality industry is hurting – and as partners to the industry, we feel a responsibility to play our part in helping alleviate the challenges that our Cafes, Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, and Fast Food customers are facing in this current economic environment.
The primary objective of the campaign is to show support for the community that we love so dearly – we see you and we hear you. Thanks to the support of suppliers who have locked in pricing, the campaign aims to provide even just a little bit of relief – whether it’s the comfort in knowing that your everyday essentials will not be volatile in price for the next three months, or whether it’s being able to plan ahead and shift these savings on your menu into another area of the business – we want our Hospitality partners to be able to navigate these challenging times with confidence and focus on what they do best: delivering exceptional experiences and memorable moments for their customers.
Q. Which categories of products have had their prices locked in, and why is this important for hospitality businesses?
A. The categories are Grocery, Chilled & Frozen, General Merchandise, and Liquor & Beverages, totalling 59 products across the board. We’ve identified the top products from these categories that our Hospitality customers purchase the most and have constructed the product mix around this. With this, we know these products are of value to their business and will ultimately help their bottom line.
Q. How does the “Spring Into Your Local” promotional campaign intend to boost the visibility of participating hospitality venues?
A. The Spring Into Your Local campaign is a competition run on social media where patrons post a photo of their favourite dish from a Hospo venue to their public Instagram or Facebook, tag the venue and use the hashtag #SpringIntoYourLocal. Hospitality venues can also share their own post with encouraging patrons to #SpringIntoYourLocal and all likes and comments will also go in the draw.
The use of social media in this context aims to:
Increase traffic to these venue’s social media pages, growing awareness of their business.
Drive organic reach with likes, comments and shares, which will ultimately increase engagement and draw attention from both existing and new patrons.
Curate a sense of community by encouraging patrons to engage with their local go-to venues.
Create ‘social proof’ for venues via User Generated Content (UGC) – essentially patrons telling their audience they’ve purchased from this business, have found value and had an enjoyable experience.
It’s a win-win – patrons are encouraged to spring into their local venues, and at the same time, these venues grow their loyal customers and business profile.
Q. What role do suppliers play in the $10,000 prize pool, and how does this incentive contribute to the campaign’s success?
A. The $10,000 prize pool incentive for Spring Into Your Local has given suppliers another opportunity to show their support for Hospo. We understand that for a multitude of reasons, not all suppliers are able to contribute to the three-month price lock in the Helping Hospo campaign.
With Spring Into Your Local, suppliers have been able to jump on board and help Hospo via a different avenue – because if we aren’t driving patrons into these Hospitality venues, then we’re only providing half a solution. We know that disposable income is tight for New Zealanders currently, so an incentive is a great way to encourage patrons to make the decision to go out and support local if they can.
The prize pool includes different products and experiences that would be of value to a wide range of people – including an adventure packed weekend in Queenstown, a relaxing getaway to the hot pools in Taupo, and monetary based items like a $500 Prezzy Card and $200 Restaurant Association vouchers.
*Cindy Chaimowitz is the General Manager of the largest supplier of wholesale food and beverage in the North Island. Prior to her role as GM of Wholesale and Customer Service at Foodstuffs North Island, Cindy worked as the Head of Operations and then the Merchandise Manager – equipping her with the extensive know-how and understanding of all things Foodservice. Cindy describes herself “as generally on the ends of any bell curves” – and is most known for her unwavering passion for her team, her family, the Hospitality industry and the causes she holds close to her heart.
