n What business is it in?
Restaurant, caf‚, food and wine businesses.
n What brands does it operate?
As part of the group, the company operates the Cayenne Restaurant and Roscoff Brasserie in Belfast. It has seven Caf‚ Paul Rankins throughout Northern Ireland, as well as a bakery and two bistros called Rain City. It also has wine and soup businesses.
n What's its form?
Turnover has grown from £1.2m to £9m in three years. Funding comes from private equity and banking.
n Where is its head office and area of operation?
The company's headquarters are in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It operates throughout Northern Ireland and Eire.
n What sort of employer is it?
The company is looking for a broad range of high-calibre individuals from all types of chef to managers and supervisors, as well as full- and part-time staff. Please send your CV to: HR Department, The Rankin Group, 2 Beechill Industrial Park, 96 Beechill Road, Belfast. BT8 7QN. The company provides coffee and wine training and a management trainee programme, as well as staff discounts. There is also first aid, hazard analysis and health and safety training available. For those with the talent, there is a quick route up the career ladder, and the company describes itself as having the feel and providing the individual support of a family business.
n How does the future look?
The company is expanding its caf‚ concept and has openings scheduled in Dublin on 3 March and Belfast on 17 March. There will be two more openings in Eire before the end of the year and one in Leeds during 2006.
n Did you know?
The original Roscoff restaurant, which opened in Belfast in 1989, was the first in Northern Ireland to win a Michelin star.
CAPTION: Staff at the Cayenne Restaurant in Belfast