Experimental Group: resisting in the hospitality industry in the face of the crisis
The Experimental Group brings together 500 people working for 15 establishments in seven cities around the world: Paris, London, New York, Ibiza, Menorca, Venice and Verbier.
In 2019, the group realized a turnover of 2019 and the same should have increased to 40 million euros in 2020. “We should end up at 40% of forecasts,” says Olivier Bon, co-founder of the Experimental Group.
A hospitality group, they compete in the bar, restaurant and lodging world. It all started with the Experimental Cocktail Club in Paris in 2007. Then they opened in London. They immediately started in the restaurant business thanks to their skills and qualities. Today, after the opening of the boutique hotel Grand Pigalle in 2014, the group has three hotels: in Verber, Menorca and Venice.
Coping with the covid-19 crisis
Olivier Bon, co-founder of Experimental Group explained in an interview with Business & Marchés how they coped with the covid-19 crisis. “To save our company we had to make concessions. We kept our hotels open as long as we could. A quality room service with quite honorable occupancy rate, especially during the second confinement in France. We have filming, workers… in Paris we always have a resident boss at the Hôtel des Grands Boulevards, our flagship.
In Venice we have the right to serve dinner to our clients in the restaurant if they have half board after curfew. In Verbier we were lucky to be open thanks to the ski resorts. For London there was a dichotomy between the second Parisian confinement and in December full streets despite a 10:00pm curfew. In Ibiza we had an exceptional summer season despite the restrictions. People needed a vacation, but it ended in September with the departure of the English. In New York the establishments have been closed for a year. The take-away sales allow us to survive. And in Menorca, although the clientele is less important, it worked well in spite of everything.
“In the face of the crisis, we are not giving up. We are also thinking about being even more demanding in our service to customers. Also, we want to have eco-labels for our hotels. We are already very committed to our food supplies.”
Don’t drink and drive. Enjoy responsibly.
News
Stay tuned and discover all the news in the Spirits World for professionals and amateurs, by our Spirits Hunters’ experts.
See all posts in this category.
Join the community on Reddit
Join the community on RedditSpirits Hunters is a community dedicated to spirits and the world of mixology. Feel free to talk about the world of mixology and bartending here!
Join
