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Do your guests come to an event that you’re catering to “eat” or “dine”? What’s the difference?  Potentially a lot of money in repeat and loyal customers. As people look for ways to balance [...]

UPDATE – Back by Popular Demand! A Timely Webinar — Should I Sell, Close or Carry On? Many caterers across the country are facing drastic changes due to COVID-19. You may be [...]

We have experienced a seismic shift in the way we live, work and play over the past few weeks. The coronavirus pandemic has created a truly unprecedented situation around the world. Our thoughts [...]

We all know the names: ezCater, Grubhub, Door Dash, UberEats, Postmates. Why are they referred to as “Third-Party Delivery Services?” Delivery is only part of the service. I prefer to call them [...]

The Certified Catering Consultants (CCC) team will again be offering 30-minute consulting sessions during Catersource/The Special Event at the Mandalay Bay Conference Center in Las Vegas.  These [...]

The 2009 movie Julie and Julia toggles between the life of chef and TV personality Julia Child, and writer turned chef blogger Julie Powell. In the film, Powell cooks her way through the [...]

As 2020 approaches, the events industry is preparing to usher in a fresh slate of culinary trends to make the new year an exciting (and delicious) one. Today’s clients want convenient yet [...]

Many caterers use the terms costing and pricing interchangeably – but while the two are related, there are different strategies to use for each. Link here to listen to the recent Candid [...]

In Part 1 of “Lessons Learned in 25 Years” in hospitality, I shared with you what my employees and coaches have taught me about leadership and management of teams. Here then is Part 2 – a look at [...]

As the kids are back at school, the last of the beach trips wrap up and football has once again taken over our weekends, there are a few steps that every company should keep their eye on. When a [...]

For those who have done a lot of time in our industry, economic downturns are as inevitable as the sun rising every morning. While these downturns may seem catastrophic at the time, rest assured [...]

The ESPN Series “30 for 30” happens to be one of my favorite shows. The documentaries that they have produced are wonderful to watch. I have my own version of this show…well, [...]

Certified Catering Consultants Adds to Team Roster Certified Catering Consultants welcomes the addition of four top experts in the catering and hospitality industry to the roster of prominent [...]

One of the most common questions I get from my clients is, “how do you hire excellent salespeople?” This, as you may know, can be easier said than done! Traditional recruitment and interview [...]

One interesting bit of collective memory among off-premise caterers: remembering the first truly big party that you ever catered. Often if this topic comes up over drinks at the end of a long [...]

OK, so depending upon where you live, it’s “the dead of summer” or you are nearing the fall season. Maybe summer is your slow time and you can’t wait for the post-labor-day business increase, or [...]

This morning I listened to the audio from my Spotlight Campfire Session at the New Orleans Catersource.  Kathleen Stoehr, who is taking over the Catersource Education role, asked me to listen to [...]

As I talk to business people here in Denver, I love to ask “What is the biggest challenge you are facing?”  Recently, the answer has overwhelmingly been: “finding great people”.  With [...]

It’s not just enough to network; crafting a winning proposal is also essential to booking the event. Your proposal should pop! Here’s the scenario. It’s Friday afternoon, and an event planner [...]

Virtually all large corporations use consultants for a variety of purposes – but many caterers are unsure of what consultants do, and the value they bring.  In essence, most caterers [...]

If you were asked to jump as far as you could from a certain point, you would probably start by swinging your arms backward before launching yourself forward or maybe you would take a few steps [...]

If you’re new to catering, you might think that all you need to succeed is a delicious menu, beautiful event design, and strong planning skills. If you’ve got those, the rest will take care of [...]

Over my years in the catering trade, my clients would often ask “What’s your secret to putting out great tasting cuisine?” So let me share some of my kitchen catering secrets with all [...]

First of all, what is employee engagement?  Second of all, why should we care?  And lastly, if we decide we care, then what? These are good questions that every caterer with employees [...]

The catering/banquet market is measured using a number of different yardsticks, but most arrive at approximately the same conclusion – the catering revenue pool represents approximately 6% to 8% [...]

Sales training is essential to building a cohesive team that knows how to turn a lead into a client. However, one-on-one training can be extremely taxing on resources — your time, [...]

Because of the complexity of full service catering, and the number of moving parts involved, catering has been a target of opportunity for many technology developers over the years. Back in the [...]

As practically every caterer knows, taking advantage of opportunities as they present themselves is crucial to catering success. But there is another side of this particular coin – that of [...]

H. Jackson Brown wrote a New York Times Bestseller called “Life’s Little Instruction Book”.  And in that book he’s got a great quote that says, “Don’t forget a person’s greatest emotional need is [...]

One of the most common questions we get from caterers around the country relates to labor cost. For most full service caterers, this is the single largest category of expense. Therefore, keeping [...]

I have to share this story with you all. It comes from my friend Richard Radbil – a veteran of the catering industry and one of Wisconsin’s most successful caterers. Here’s the story as told to [...]

What we do as consultants is getting caterers out of their comfort zones, and into their challenge zones. We all like to think that we’re very good at what we do. I know that I think so and I’ve [...]

Imagine if you went outside your home and your neighbor was packing up their car with suitcases, clearly heading for some sort of trip.  As a good neighbor you ask, “Where are you going?” to [...]

As fall approaches you have a small window to catch your breath for a few brief moments—and then jump right back in. That’s right—it’s time to promote your holiday sales! In order to stand out [...]