Working with key industry figures, including Tom Kerridge and James Martin, the campaign targets a vast audience of young workers considering their next role or future careers. It has reached over 40,000 people on Tik Tok and Instagram to date, with Caterer.com also seeing over 4m applications to jobs on its website during the last quarter of 2022.
The series of videos are focused on the ‘day in the life’ of a hospitality worker, demonstrating the versatility of the sector and its benefits, whilst breaking down negative perceptions surrounding the likes of flexibility and pay.
Kathy Dyball, director at Caterer.com: “The success of the hospitality sector continues to be hampered by significant talent gaps, and whilst there is no silver bullet to solving this, every employer and organisation in the industry can act to make a difference – and Caterer.com are pleased to play a significant part. Future talent for hospitality will take many forms, and young people are one key cohort.
“Engaging them in a long term, sustainable way is crucial, and through our partnerships with Choose Hospitality and Youth Employment UK, we’ve created genuinely engaging and useful video and resources that reach young people where they are at. The impact of the campaign so far is clear, with 40,000 people reached across Tik Tok and Instagram and 4 million applications to jobs on Caterer.com in the last quarter of 2022 alone.”
Research from the hospitality hiring partner found that 200,000 EU workers have left the sector since the pandemic began and whilst 61% of hospitality employers have been registered to hire internationally, immigration policies are discouraging 89% from doing this.
Caterer.com has also created a ‘Hospitality Heroes’ content series currently being shown in classrooms across the UK. The videos have already been shared via Youth Employment UK and have been downloaded by over 100 schools to support as a teaching resource.
Claire Bosi, editor of Chef and Restaurant Magazine and co-founder of Choose Hospitality, added: “Over the past few months, we have received comments like ’this is what our industry needs’ or ‘we think you really can make a difference’ from business owners and operators across many disciplines within the hospitality sector.
“We know that Choose Hospitality together with Caterer.com will, in time, create an environment in which young people and job seekers are opting for a role in hospitality as their first and preferred choice.”
To watch Caterer.com’s Hospitality Hiring videos and find current vacancies visit: www.caterer.com/advice/what-types-of-jobs-are-there-in-hospitality.