Innovative support for F&B operators

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RECOGNISING the importance of F&B operators in its business, Guinness Anchor Berhad (GAB) launched its own GAB Academy.

The academy serves as a trade engagement programme for its partners in the hospitality, food and beverage sector, as a way of building loyalty and adding value to the F&B operators’ business.

GAB marketing director Mark Jenner said the academy’s role was about developing and offering creative business solutions, profiling opportunities, as well as product and customer skills training to help trade partners enhance and grow their businesses.

The academy consisted of two main components – the VIP (Very Important Partner) Trade Programme and the Hero (The Hotel Entertainment Refreshment Outlets Training Series) Academy – Jenner said during his speech at the launch of the academy in the grand ballroom of JW Marriott Kuala Lumpur.

Trade engagement programme: Jenner (left) and Ireland launching the GAB Academy.

“The VIP Trade Programme is meant for business owners, while the Hero Academy is for service staff, namely the front-line people who are the main touch-point of customers.

“The staff is an owner’s best investment as the knowledge and expertise they gain will help deliver that great drinking experience for their patrons,” he said.

Jenner said when the employees were well trained, they would know how to pour the perfect pint for brands like Guinness Draft and Kilkenny, which required skills.

“The concept behind the GAB Academy is how we can build a happy and perfect drinking environment together,” he added.

One of the initiatives under the VIP Programme, he said, was the Pubs & Restaurants E Guide that provided businesses with local and regional profiling opportunities they could leverage on.

“The E Guide will be updated regularly according to GAB’s extensive consumer database and profiled on the Asian Food Channel (AFC) website which has an extensive reach across eight countries.”

It is learnt that the academy was launched last year, but, according to Jenner, GAB wanted to pilot and test the project before it was officially launched.

Jenner said so far the academy had trained 864 participants, and that response had been positive.

GAB managing director Charles Ireland said last year was GAB’s most successful in its 45-year history, crediting an incredible team, great brands and great partners for the feat.

He said the academy would help trade partners do better so that GAB in turn could do better, noting that over 70% of new outlets and renewal outlets turned to GAB as their preferred supplier last year.

He added that the idea for the academy came about as outlets wanted to train their employees but did not have the resources.

“In fact, the Guinness business in Britain has had something like this for several years now,” he said.

Among the pilot programmes implemented over the last 10 months, ahead of the academy’s official launch, are the Guinness Gastronomic Workshop by Emmanuel Stroobant and An Evening with Fergal Murray Guinness Master Brewer.

Following the launch, several speakers, leaders in their respective fields, gave insights into various subjects.