Hospitality Rising, the brainchild of marketing guru Mark McCulloch, launched this month and adverts are already hitting social media feeds and screens of young people across the UK.
However, support from one of the key parts of the hospitality sector, pubs, has been disappointing, said McCulloch, with a few notable exceptions.
“We’ve had really low engagement from the pub industry, Brewdog were one of the first investors and Punch Pubs came in early, but we don’t have a big group - we just need one brewer as well.
“But we need a big table group, and I know it’s the hardest time to ask for money, I’ve total respect for that, but where I’m struggling is people saying we’ll continue to do the same and expect a different result, that’s the definition of insanity.”
He said on the cost front with the larger groups, they have created a sliding scale and they have now got it down to £3 per head. “I know that £10 per head was scaring the bigger groups, but we gave them a sliding scale and we can work with them. Surely investing in this is worth £3 a head.”
The campaign was officially launched this week at Brewdog Waterloo where a host of prominent speakers from the hospitality industry discussed how the campaign could help tackle the sector’s crippling jobs crisis which stands at around 400,000 vacancies.
The bold new recruitment campaign, ‘Rise Fast, Work Young’, is backed by over 300 businesses including global brands and some of the world’s most successful hospitality leaders.
Mark McCulloch, founder of Hospitality Rising and campaign director, added: “Our Hospitality Rising launch event was a huge success and it was a delight to meet with so many like minded individuals who have seen the potential of this movement and supported us every step of the way.
“The enthusiasm from those attending our event was phenomenal, and we are optimistic that the momentum behind this campaign will now only become greater.
“I’d like to say a huge thank you to all of those involved in this major campaign which will be put to vital use in helping to secure the future of the hospitality industry.”
#RiseFastWorkYoung aims to attract the next generation of new recruits by showcasing the opportunities and promises that come with a career in hospitality. A dedicated site has just gone live at www.hospitalityrising.com highlighting the current vacancies across the entire industry.
Backed by Michelin-starred chefs Tom Kerridge, Angela Hartnett OBE and Raymond Blanc OBE, the recruitment drive will highlight how quickly workers can climb the hospitality ladder with the powerful message ‘you can’t go further faster.’