Reading Country Club: Food & Beverage Operations Feasibility Site Survey

Keith M. TaylorChefsoul Culinary EnterprisesSeptember 2020

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Keith Taylor is a husband and father of four, and founded Chefsoul Culinary Enterprises, Inc. (CCP) in 1991 after attending Cornell and The Culinary Arts Institute and successfully establishing himself in major restaurants in Manhattan. CCP was created to accept engagements as a consultant for culinary operations and provide contract services in private dining, event-planning and freelance culinary assistance. As a proven motivational leader, Keith has re-tooled failing operations and successfully executed restaurant / food and beverage openings in both the private and corporate sectors. Training programs and teaching how to effectively manage and impact cost of goods sold is the core of successful food operations. Chef Taylor’s academic and professional background has made him known by many as an expert in culinary operations and is highly sought after for his professional talents. Making food and beverage operations profitable and consistently doing so is his mantra, second only to his creativity and sense of what the dining customer is looking for. Total operations management with a keen sense for the bottom line and acute review of daily operations is how he has achieved career success and smooth openings based on pro forma. These skills, combined with his impeccable dining standards and example-setting management style, have made his reputation as a total manager, as well as an award-winning chef.

Chef Keith's Introduction

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Why Reading Country Club?

”The great American Country Club has come to mean more than perfect greens and select membership. It has supported communities, casual dining, events, and commerce, from the neighborhood clubs to award winning properties across America. The “club house” experience at each of these properties represent. Soups, salads, sandwiches, side dishes, fresh pasta, desserts, local chef driven specialties, prepared foods and catering at the center of culture built by the events and dining that support our universal love of a well managed clubhouse. My love of the concept began with growing up and enjoying great fare at the many banquet halls I worked as a young chef on task force doing events at the Upper Montclair Country Club, as a garde manger chef Woodmere Club, and a managing Chef of Walt Disney World Resorts Division to name a few. Gracious Hospitality and great guest experiences is what elevates these places and makes them favorite destinations and consistently profitable revenue centers for every celebration.–Keith M. Taylor, Chefsoul Culinary Enterprise 2020

The Significance of Reading Country Club

The mission for the new operator in this historic property is to expand our community events, restaurant, bar, general store/gift shop, and catering concept that benefits the greater community by:

Supporting the needs of residents, visitors, professionals, and working peopleCreating a space accessible for meeting and hosting events in Exeter and the regional event marketGrow our range of products that are affordable to the entire marketOperating a successful, profitable business that employs young men and women from the local communityMemorable weddings are at the center of clubhouse event operations. This is part of RCC tradition that we will build as a foundational profit centerPride, tradition, and gracious hospitality will be the internal and external culture that the clubhouse will represent

Pride | Tradition | HospitalityPreservation & Profit

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Destination Dining is the anchor of commerce and a universal resource in any community

Normandy Farms (top), Shady Maple Smorgasbord (middle), and The Manor of West Orange (bottom) are all nationally recognized examples of destination dining in the North East region.

When asked the question “What is a destination wedding?” you can probably come up with an answer pretty quickly. Exotic tropical locale, toes-in-the-sand ceremony, far-off country—that’s a destination wedding, right? You might be surprised to learn that, according to a recent WeddingWire survey, that’s not necessarily what the typical destination wedding looks like in 2020. In fact, beach destination weddings are in the minority, and millennial couples very rarely choose to host their weddings abroad (despite the potential Insta-worthiness). Not what you expected, right? That is because clubs and venues with a reputation for consistent hospitality and services have become the new destination that represents perceived value in the current market and post COVID-19 future event internet searches.

Destination Location Trends

The Reading Country Club location meets all of the criteria for the new destination location while representing amenities that fit the metrics of well thought events and beautiful wedding receptions.

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RCC Epicenter

One hour from Philadelphia makes the RCC a favorable location at the center of demographics and preferred wedding travel time.Reciprocity and partnerships with guest rooms in the area are convenient for all occasions.

Service Environment

A term coined by Walt Disney, “the show” refers to everyone and everything that interfaces with guests. It reflects his belief that we should make guests feel like they are immersed in a living motion picture, where everything the guest sees, feels, and senses is part of the story being told. Although employees and other customers are also part of any guest service organization’s “show” or service environment, the physical aspects of the service setting are equally important. Many companies use a theme to create a feeling that guests are somehow immersed in another place and time to provide guests with extraordinary experiences. The lesson that Disney has taught everyone is that by paying attention to the details of creating a themed show, they can add quality and value to the guest experience. Successful hospitality organizations have learned that a great show is well worth spending considerable time and effort. The show at the clubhouse will always be centered upon gracious hospitality

Creating the Show

Desirable Location

People want the fresh unique attention to make an event reflect the theme or message paired with tradition that it is easily recognized. No private event space is the same, so taking the time to let our customers know what Reading Country Club can offer them that others can’t is important. If you can, include both empty venue photos and event photos filled with people on your website and social channels so customers can envision their party at your venue. This ability has allowed the best Clubhouses and halls in America to serve as a venue for all types of events, a benefit that a lot of venues don’t have. The Clubhouse concept offers a broader, fresh experience than abbreviated club concept management - Links Magazine 2016 “Statistics show the dollar sales growth of fresh prepared foods in the event/restaurant/bar category surpass the growth of other full clubhouse revenue centers” - Women’s Golf Journal

Demand

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Product

Restaurant Bar/Wine, Spirits & Craft Beer Catering Events Conferences General Store Direct to Consumer Online Shopping & Merchandise Regional Buffet & Brunch Weddings

Expanded RCC Marketing Plan

Event planning will be a RCC profit center. To maximize options, RCC needs to meet planners at the playing field: online. Weddings will be a primary source of income. Today, the majority of couples are not only thinking about their wedding prior to getting engaged, but two out of three are taking action and actually starting the planning process. From gathering inspiration to researching vendors and estimating cost, couples are laying the foundation so they can hit the ground running when the time comes. - ISES Quarterly 2020

Online! Online! Online!

Revenue Centers

of event planning is done online. (Wedding Wire, 2020)

88%While the average couple is engaged for 15 months, over 85% of couples start discussing their wedding preferences—like guest count (63%) and type of venue (57%)—prior to getting engaged. Despite being so proactive, couples still say one of their biggest challenges during planning is “knowing where to start” in addition to “planning within budget.” Fortunately today’s tech-savvy couples are able to take advantage of online and mobile planning tools to guide them through the planning process. The clubhouse is required to be experts in these areas to be a regional leader in the market

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Catering Packages

Weddings are a significant portion of event sales and weekend revenue is supported by weekly corporate, social, fundraisers, golf packages, conference/meetings business, private celebrations, and so much more.

Weddings & Beyond

Aside from common expenses such as venue, catering and photography, the endless options for upgrades and special add-ons can cause wedding costs to add up. In fact, nearly 60% of couples increase their initial budget, primarily due to finding things along the way that they felt they “needed to have” and realizing they may have underestimated at first pass. At the end of the day, couples on average spend roughly $28,000 on their ceremony/reception of 130 guests, which equals about $215 per guest

Wedding packages will range from culinary classics to exotic imported ingredients. Local farms and regional sources are at the center of menu offerings prepared by a team of culinary professionals and complemented by ambassadors of gracious hospitality for every level of guest expectations at the Reading Country Club Clubhouse event services.

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Marketing Avenues

The Wedding Wire/The KnotThe Social Giants: Facebook, Instagram, TwitterGoogleCommission Based Sales Team (base salary and commission)Certified Meeting ProfessionalsInternational Special Events SocietyPennsylvania Restaurant & Lodging Association

As basic as it may seem, it is absolutely critical that RCC is on par with the top clubs, venues, and destinations. As discussed earlier, more than 88% of planning occurs online, so the RCC online presence needs to include a robust, and consistent planned schedule of content, collaborations, and engagement. Use of Tech During Planning is critical to success and meeting sales goals in the first 24 months. Couples are quick to take advantage of the newest technology to help streamline the planning process (think: video calls, online 360 virtual tours, etc.). As we see more and more couples opting out of local or hometown weddings (roughly one in four), it’s no surprise couples are turning to tech to bridge the gap of that is missing from 1:1 vendor interaction.

New Web Development & Management (1% Gross Revenue)

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Conclusion

The clubhouse / banquet Industry is indeed a large and vibrant industry not only in the United States of America and in most countries of the world. Statistics have it that the clubhouse / banquet industry in the United States of America, is worth $5 billion, with an estimated growth rate of 2.3 percent. There are about 9,645 registered and licensed party rental / banquet hall rental businesses in the United States and they are responsible for employing about 50,470 people. Only a few large scale event spaces can boast of having a lion’s market share in the industry. Despite that, the industry is still very much open for competition from experienced operators. In the United States, the regions that have the greatest concentration of banquet hall rental / party supply rental companies are the Mid-Atlantic, the West, the Southeast, and the Great Lakes. The distribution of companies is based mainly on the number of households and median income levels by region. Clubhouse / banquet venues tend to locate near major metropolitan areas, which generate a steady stream of demand for corporate and social events. The Mid-Atlantic region has the greatest concentration of industry establishments, estimated at 31.9% of the total in 2019. The Mid-Atlantic region is the most populated region of the United States; therefore, given the high proportion of households, there is a greater demand for rental hall inventory for social events and corporate events. Eastern Pennsylvania / Greater Philadelphia represents the second largest market in this segment No doubt the clubhouse / banquet industry is indeed a profitable venture despite the fact that the entry bar for starting a banquet hall rental business is on the high side. The truth is that, if a banquet hall is well positioned and equipped, they will surely attract regular clients and the hall can be well booked all through the year. Some of the factors that encourage operators to pursue their own clubhouse / banquet business could be that the business is easy to set up despite the fact that the start – up capital is not affordable and the running cost can be put at the minimum level.

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The Right Stuff Is Required The re-boot of the Reading Country Club Clubhouse will be a first class and licensed banquet hall rental and event planning company in Exeter, Pennsylvania. Aside from running the clubhouse / banquet hall rental business, the new operators will also handle all aspects of event planning such as wedding planning, children’s parties, sports tournaments / competitions, annual general meetings (AGM), to corporate events, trade fairs and exhibitions, end of year party, party rental services, event planning training and event planning consulting and advisory services et al. We are aware that to run a banquet hall rental business and an all around event planning outfit can be demanding, which is why Chefsoul Culinary Enterprises is prepared to assist with candidate search, recommend operators and/or a management team that is well trained and equipped to perform at optimum levels. Reading Country Club needs to be a client-focused and result driven banquet hall rentals and event planning outfit that provides broad-based experience at an affordable fee that won’t in any way put a hole in the pocket of our clients. At Reading Country Club, our client’s best interest would always come first, and everything we do is guided by our core values and professional ethics. We will ensure that we hire professionals who are well experienced in a wide variety of rental services and event planning et al. Reading Country Club will at all times demonstrate her commitment to sustainability, both individually and as a firm, by actively participating in our communities and integrating sustainable business practices wherever possible. Our plan is to position the business to become the leading brand in the clubhouse banquet hall rental and event planning line of business in the whole of Eastern Pennsylvania, and also to be amongst the top 20 banquet hall rental outfits in the region within the first 10 years of re-tooling operations. This might look too tall a dream but we are optimistic that this will surely come to pass because we have done our research and feasibility studies and we are enthusiastic and confident that Exeter Township is the right place to re-launch this historic clubhouse / banquet hall rental and event planning business.

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