As I reflect on Zest last week, I can’t help but feel not only proud of what was achieved, but more so of the incredible talent and skill sets that were put on display for all to see. Hospitality has suffered for years with this notion that it is low skill, something I couldn’t disagree with any more strongly.
It’s not just the superb talent and high levels of skill that I am awed by constantly in this job, but the passion. Its no secret that hospitality doesn’t offer the most socially friendly hours out of a lot of industries, but it does offer a lot more than that. Every day I meet people working on this island and in different venues who genuinely couldn’t do more for their guests, and it makes me realise that this isn’t an industry for everyone.
For those who do make a go at it, and do well, the one energy they all give off is a genuine love of their work, a passion for what they are achieving, and a desire to be the best they can at what they are doing. It’s something I feel makes us very lucky on this island. We have a quantity and quality of hospitality businesses that are only afforded to us through the large number of tourists we have coming to the island every year, allowing locals to benefit from that by having an offering that could be akin to a small city.
The other thing I wanted to shout about this week was some of the small independents out there that make up a sizeable amount of our industry. The small venues with owner lead teams who have opened their places to try and offer something they truly believe is special. It says a lot when you can walk into a place and taste the time, dedication and passion someone has put into not only the offering, but how it looks within the premises too.
I am very fortunate to be reminded of all of these things everyday working for the JHA, and consider myself very lucky for it.