Hospitality Industry Analysis

Introduction

The hospitality industry is one of the largest sectors in the world. It also gives 8% of the people in the world jobs. Hospitality includes hotels and restaurants. Hospitality has a wide range of types of outlets serving food and beverages. Hospitality is nearly 10% of the world’s GDP.

In this industry you must be ready to work long hours and weekend. There are also two types of employment, you can work full time or part time. You can work in these next fields:

• Catering

• Restaurant

• Accommodation

• Hotels

• Transport

• Visitor attractions

• Consumer

• Government

• Miscellaneous Service

• Recreational facilities

• Intermediaries

If you want to work in the hospitality industry must have these following characteristics:

1. Commitment

This industry started to take form in the early 1950s and 60s, leading to growth into a dynamic industry as we know it today. Hospitality’s development over the years are significant and it also faced World Wars, Depressions and social changes. Hospitality is from the French word “hospice” and it means taking care of those who travel. The Greek/Roman traveled for social and religious reasons 40 years BC. The Romans was also the first to travel for pleasure. In the 16th century (Renaissance Period) they built the 1ste hotel with 60 beds and was named Hotel de Henry IV 1788.

Characteristics of the hospitality industry

1. Intangibility : the tourism products are service and are largely intangible though with tangible. Tourism products can’t be displayed, transmitted or be tested in advance.

2. Limited life – span : a tourism product can’t be stored. It affects the hotel industry and they must choose if they want to sell at the market place or through an agent.

3. Aggregability : the way a tourism product is formed is through various products and it makes the commercialization and quality control difficult.

4. Heterogeneity : aggregability makes it difficult to control phases and one single mistake will affect the final product. It’s not just the product being customized but any given trip.

5. Simultaneity of production and consumption : unlike any other product a tourism product are purchased first and then produced and consumed. The

Food and Beverage : it is the largest element in this industry, it takes form in high – end restaurants, fast – food, catering, etc. When your restaurant is part of a hotel it influence the guests overall experience by offering excellent food and service. These are the different types of food and beverage:

Café : offers tea, coffee, soft drinks, snacks, other light meals. (e.g. starbucks)

Cafeterias : usually at a institution such as museums and they offer light refreshments.

Food courts : in shopping malls and they offer light and heavy meals such as noodles, rice, drinks.

Public House : they offer a informal restaurant three course meal and simple bar snacks.

Casual dining restaurant : usually they have table service and casual dining.

Ethnic restaurant : they offer a culture experience as well as culture food.

Functions : the food are influenced by the amount of people attending the function and the style of the functions and is extremely flexible.

Fine dining restaurant : staff at fine dining restaurant must be highly skilled, offers fine