Group dynamics

Nothing, it seems, can stop the relentless growth of restaurant groups across the UK. Even in an economic downturn, the demand for good places to eat remains - and that means expansion and career opportunities.

But the rate of new openings has abated slightly. This has led to fewer people at the top changing jobs, although at entry level there remains a chronic skills shortage.

"The industry is top heavy, certainly in the chef world," explains Paul Lucas, general manager of the chefs division for recruitment consultancy Berkeley Scott. "There has been a demise in restaurant openings in the past four to five years and the opportunities to move at the top end have reduced," he says.

Those in more senior roles may be sitting tight until the market picks up, but Lucas cites many opportunities in high-quality restaurants, even Michelin-starred ones.

"You can't be worried about working 16 hours a day or helping out on your day off and you have to show 125% commitment. If you can do that, there are fantastic opportunities," Lucas says.

Restaurant owners are confident the market will pick up, and the fine-dining sector is no exception. London group A-Z Restaurants, which owns 13 restaurants including L'Oranger and Aubergine, added Italian restaurant Edera, in Holland Park, to its group in May. And this month entrepreneur Will Ricker, whose group includes the Great Eastern Dining Room, opened another trendy eaterie, pan-European restaurant Eight Over Eight in the King's Road.

Expansion is not limited to the capital. The hugely successful Wagamama group's latest opening is in Guildford, Surrey, this month, and it has plans to open four more restaurants this year. Seafood restaurant chain Loch Fyne is another group with no plans to slow down. Five openings are in the pipeline this year, including one in Harrogate.

Groups of branded and themed restaurants offer opportunities within a structured working environment and the chance to fast-track up the career ladder. About 30% of the 106,500 outlets in the UK are owned by groups such as City Centre Restaurants and Whitbread, and they offer management training schemes to graduates.

City Centre Restaurants plans to open 12-15 Frankie & Benny's restaurants this year in the UK. "The appeal is that management development and promotional prospects are significantly higher than in a one-off restaurant," says David Potts, human resources director for the group, which also owns high-street brands Caffe Uno and Est Est Est.

"We have a lot of young restaurant managers who are totally in charge of development and put their stamp on the restaurant they manage. Working for a group such as ours gives security and development but you don't lose your soul," Potts adds.

More restaurant companies have recognised the need to introduce formal training schemes for those with management potential. Groupe Chez G‚rard, which operates 24 restaurants, including the Chez G‚rard and Livebait brands, has developed a fast-track management scheme aimed at graduates.

"We find a lot of people work in our restaurants during their university years and then get a bite for the industry," says the group's human resources consultant, Debbie Jelffs. "We have given them the opportunity to develop a management career within a group, where they could be running a restaurant with a £2m-£5m turnover and managing 20-40 people."

Another group to recognise the importance of structured training is Conran Restaurants. It has a pilot scheme for graduate trainees for front-of-house management, covering finance, customer service and management training and resulting in a junior management position. It also has a chefs' apprenticeship course for 16- to 19-year-olds.

"The restaurant industry is taking a much more professional approach to training. Where most people used to think of working in the restaurant world as just a job, people now choose the industry for a career," says Conran HR director Ian Horrox.

However, he has found that there has been less movement in the jobs market over the past 18 months. "In tough times people tend to stay where they are and we have certainly seen the pressure ease off.

"In London, we have about 15 vacancies for chefs out of 360 positions," he says. "The focus, therefore, is to find very good-quality people."

How much can I earn?

Big money can still be made in a small percentage of London restaurants but parts of the South-east are now catching up, particularly in fine-dining restaurants, where a restaurant manager can earn up to £90,000. There is not a great deal of difference in starting salaries for kitchen staff inside and outside London and the high cost of living in the capital makes it difficult for people to start out in the business without the support of family or friends.

The salaries below exclude perks such as tips. The tipping system varies widely from restaurant to restaurant but can make a large impact on your take-home pay. Some restaurants operate a tronc system whereby all tips are shared between kitchen and waiting staff, while others allow waiting staff to keep their own tips.

Restaurant salaries

What the groups can offer

Conran Restaurants
This group of 27 has a diverse range of styles, such as French, Italian, British and Japanese, and includes acclaimed eateries Bibendum, Mezzo, Bluebird and Quaglino's. As well as growing its portfolio of individual restaurants, it continues to expand its Zinc Bar & Grill chain, the next one opening this month in Glasgow.

Where: Mostly London but is also in Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh and Glasgow. Overseas, it has restaurants in Paris, Stockholm and New York.

Working for Conran: The company provides a sound learning offer and solid possibilities for career progression and professional development. It also claims to offer some of the best remuneration packages in the industry.

In-house training: Conran Restaurants' training schemes includes a new course for front-of-house management for graduates. It covers finance, customer service and management training, resulting in a junior management position. For chefs, there is a chef apprentice programme aimed at school and college leavers, and there's a chef development programme for newly qualified apprentices to progress up to head chefs.

Contact: Ian Horrox, human resources director, Conran Restaurants, Clove Building, 4-6 Maguire Street, London E1 2NQ
Tel: 020 7716 0716
www.conran.com

City Centre Restaurants
This high-street group, which has an ethos for good food and value for money, includes chains Garfunkel's, Caffe Uno, Est Est Est and Chiquito. The group has 250 restaurants in the UK. Frankie & Benny's, its American diner-style chain, is the fastest-expanding brand.

Where: Across the UK, with restaurants located in high streets, retail parks and airports.

Working for City Centre: It's a lively, expanding company offering plenty of opportunities for development and promotion.

In-house training: The group offers training at all levels but with an emphasis on the development of trainee managers to general management and beyond.

Contact: David Potts, human resources director, 20 Irving Street, London WC2H 7AU
Tel: 020 7747 7750
www.ccruk.com

Gordon Ramsay (Holdings)
The Ramsay empire is a selection of fine-dining restaurants including its three-Michelin-starred Gordon Ramsay restaurant in London's Royal Hospital Road.

Within the Savoy Group's hotels, Ramsay also has restaurants at Claridge's, the Connaught and a café at the Berkeley hotel.

Marcus Wareing's Pétrus group is also part of the company. This includes Pétrus, to open at the Berkeley hotel in July, the Savoy's Grill Room and La Fleur. Ramsay also has Glasgow's only Michelin-starred eaterie, Amaryllis, and a restaurant in the Dubai Hilton.

Working for Ramsay: With a name recognised worldwide by the culinary profession, the Gordon Ramsay stamp on your CV will take you places. Staff are trained to the highest level in modern cookery and service standards with the benefit of an internal promotion system.

In-house training: Employees are assessed through an appraisal system regularly through their employment. Training courses are designed to complement the appraisal scheme and set objectives individually.

Contact: Clair Lynn, human resources manager, 1 Catherine Place, London SW1E 6DX
Tel: 020 7592 1360
www.gordonramsay.com

Groupe Chez Gérard
This well-established London-based company (recently acquired by Paramount) has 24 restaurants with three concepts: the Chez Gérard chain, based on a traditional Parisian brasserie, the Livebait chain of fish restaurants, and the Italian-style Bertorelli.

Where: Mostly London but also in Cambridge, Bristol and Leeds.

Working for Groupe Chez Gérard: The three distinct brands allow employees variety and good promotional prospects and there is a range of attractive benefits and rewarding bonus schemes.

In-house training: It operates both a management training scheme and a chef apprenticeship, both of which offer nationally recognised qualifications, hands-on experience and a job at the end of it.

Contact: Sophie Damas, recruitment manager, Groupe Chez Gérard, 8 Shelton Street, London WC2H 9JR
Tel: 0800 018 8240
e-mail: hr@groupechezgerard.co.uk
www.santeonline.co.uk

Wagamama
This trendy 19-strong noodle bar chain with big plans began in London in 1992 and has since branched out across the UK. It has plans to expand with openings in Glasgow, Birmingham and Leeds. The group also has franchise operations in Ireland, The Netherlands and Australia and has its sights set on the USA.

Where: Mostly London but there are also restaurants in Manchester, Nottingham, Bristol, St Albans and Guildford, with international franchises in Dublin, Amsterdam and Sydney.

Working for Wagamama: It's a dynamic, fun company offering good promotional prospects as it expands. Emphasis is put on staff welfare in the belief that if staff are happy they will ensure customers are happy.

In-house training: Programmes vary from three- to nine-week courses and include training for all positions from chefs to restaurant management.

Contact: Lisa King, operations manager, 23-25 Eastcastle Street, London W1W 8DF
Tel: 020 7631 3140
www.wagamama.com

Whitbread Restaurants
Whitbread is the UK's biggest restaurant operator, managing more than1,500 sites and nine brands. These include Brewsters, Pizza Hut, TGI Friday's and coffee store brand Costa. Pub-restaurant brands include Beefeater and Brewers Fayre. Whitbread also operates Marriott and Travel Inn Hotels and David Lloyd leisure clubs.

Where: Across the UK.

Working for Whitbread: The company tries to ensure its people are mobile within its businesses. For example, a restaurant manager might become a general manager of a David Lloyd leisure club.

In-house training: The group has a chef apprenticeship scheme that enables anyone aged under 24 to join a three-year programme resulting in a nationally recognised qualification.

Contact: Human resources department, Whitbread Restaurants, City Point, One Ropemaker Street, London EC2Y 9HX
Tel: 020 7606 4455
www.whitbread.co.uk

Ask Central
At the good-quality end of the pizza and pasta market, the group operates more than 145 restaurants under brand names Ask and Zizzi. It continues to expand a fairly even split across the brands with about 30 openings planned for the next 12 months. Long-term, the company believes it could have 350 restaurants across the UK.

Working for Ask: It's a young, growing company with lots of promotional opportunities. It advocates a lively atmosphere, seeking extroverts to grow with it.

In-house training: Management training programmes include a six-month programme covering kitchen, floor and financial training or a six-week fast-track scheme for graduates and those with experience. The company also offers one-day courses covering disciplines such as time management and leadership, and courses for those wanting to become trainers.

Contact: Massimo Di Glangia Como, personnel and training manager, Ask Central, 216 Haverstock Hill, London NW3 2AE
Tel: 01727 735800
www.askcentral.com

Marco Pierre White Restaurants
Having built a legendary reputation in the kitchen, Marco Pierre White went on to build eight classic restaurants, including the Mirabelle in Mayfair, the Criterion Grill in Piccadilly and Quo Vadis in Soho.

Where: Central London.

Working for Marco Pierre White Restaurants: The restaurants are known for their high standards and White retains personal involvement throughout the group. There are two "floating" executive chefs who visit restaurants to train and maintain consistency.

In-house training: White is a great believer in traditional apprenticeships, with the emphasis on technique, knowledge and practice.

Contact: Manny Pinto, operations director, 26-29 Dean Street, London W1D 3LL
Tel: 020 7287 7337
www.whitestarline.org.uk

G1 Group
G1 is Scotland's largest privately owned restaurant group. So far there are 21 outlets with another four due to open by the end of the year. A portfolio of stylish but value-for-money restaurants includes Glasgow's Corinthian, the flamboyant Ara tapas bar and the chic Gong eatery, also in Glasgow.

Where: Head office is Glasgow, where the company started, and there are outlets across Scotland.

Working for G1: This fast-growing firm employs at least 1,000 people. Every function is in-house, including an award-winning graphics department. Students are offered flexible working.

In-house training: There is a range of training programmes offered according to the position.

Contact: Susan Wood, human resources, G1 Group, Virginia House, 62 Virginia Street, Glasgow G1 1TX
Tel: 0141-552 4494
www.g1group.co.uk

PizzaExpress
Since its beginnings in London's Soho in 1965, PizzaExpress (recently acquired by GondolaExpress) has grown to a chain of 311 pizza restaurants and 29 Caf‚ Pasta restaurants and employs 6,000 people. Although the group is in the throes of a takeover, a refurbishment programme is under way and it continues to expand. There are plans for 19 Pizza Express openings in 2003.

Where: As well as its UK chain, the group has 45 restaurants outside the UK in 14 countries.

Working for Pizza Express: As one of the UK's longest-established groups, it continues to expand and offers plenty of opportunities to move up.

In-house training: The group has in-house courses for all levels from waiters to chefs, including food safety and customer care skills. For managers there is a fast-track 14-week training programme.

Contact: Nick Taylor, human resources director, Pizza Express, 1 Union Business Park, Florence Way, Uxbridge, Middlesex UB8 2LS
Tel: 01895 618618
www.pizzaexpress.co.uk