Thoughts

Is the ride over? How the pandemic changed the global bar industry

Edmund Weil reflects on the carousel of global travel events that used to characterise the industry – and wonders if it will ever return to its glory days.

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07 October, 2021

Thoughts

"We're at a critically important moment for the hospitality industry"

Revisiting his home town gave Jake O'Brien Murphy reason to question the way the cocktail scene is constructed and perceived – and left him longing for a more progressive, inclusive future.

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06 October, 2021

Thoughts

86 experience (the freshman invasion)

With experienced staff in short supply, Mike Baxter rethinks the way he trains rookies.

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06 October, 2021

Thoughts

Seated but not defeated: the future of table service

What seemed like a volume bar’s worst nightmare actually proved a valuable lesson in how adapting and evolving could lead to more efficient service and improved profitability. By Mike Baxter of Gonzo’s Tea Room.

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26 July, 2021

Thoughts

Power in numbers: why I joined a union

Jake O'Brien Murphy has had it with being treated disrespectfully and decided to join a union. He now at least feels backed up against those who are using the pandemic to their financial advantage.

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26 July, 2021

Thoughts

The hook: how we should be incentivising bartending

Edmund Weil says the industry needs to rethink how it rewards its staff if it is to survive the current challenges – and that goes beyond monetary compensation.

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20 July, 2021

Thoughts

Breaking down the server-guest barrier

There are certain smart moves that a bartender can make to break down server/guest barriers and build new connections, says Danny Murphy.

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26 May, 2021

Thoughts

The new brand-bar relationship

Edmund Weil looks at some ways in which brands and bars can work together to help each other make the most of their investments.

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24 May, 2021

Thoughts

Behind the stick but not the wheel

Jake O'Brien Murphy is facing his return to work with a mixture of trepidation and excitement

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19 May, 2021

Thoughts

The reopening and recovery of England's bar industry

It’s been six long months since we last saw bars open indoors in England. Hamish Smith looks back – and forward.

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17 May, 2021

Thoughts

If the goalposts move, create more goalposts

Diversifying your business away from your bar could be the thing that saves it, says Daniel Crowther of Hedonist in Leeds (and many other related businesses).

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25 March, 2021

Thoughts

Positives from the pandemic

James O'Hara, director of Public, Picture House Social, The Great Gatsby and Ambulo in Sheffield, is aghast as anyone to find positives have emerged from the pandemic.

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18 March, 2021

Thoughts

Navigating a night out

Customers are going to be out of practice when they take their first steps back into hospitality, says guest writer Bradley Gough, who offers some tips on how they might navigate their nights out.

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17 March, 2021

Thoughts

An expert for a day

Jake O'Brien Murphy muses over his latest role as an expert spirits taster.

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15 March, 2021

Thoughts

The return of the Christmas Drinker

Get ready, says Danny Murphy of Berry & Rye Group, the 2021 customer is excited, rusty and coming your way.

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05 March, 2021

Thoughts

Why music makes the bar experience

Photo: Jo Malik at Uno Mas / Credit Kat Whyte.

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04 March, 2021

Thoughts

How hospitality can save the high street

With retail moving online, the high street of the future can be a vibrant centre of hospitality and culture, says nightlife entrepreneur Bradley Gough.

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15 February, 2021

Thoughts

Monica Berg: Diary of a bartender turned shopkeeper

A year ago, it would have been unimaginable that Tayēr + Elementary would become an off-licence. Monica Berg diarises her temporary change of professions.

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15 February, 2021

Thoughts

I'm writing a CV - what the hell do I say?

Jake O'Brien Murphy is a professional bartender, but his skills don't easily translate to a CV. He writes a column for CLASS about it instead

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12 February, 2021

Thoughts

When lockdown ends and bars reopen, will you be ready?

It's time to re-focus and get prepared - lockdown won't last forever, says Danny Murphy of Berry & Rye Group in Liverpool.

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11 February, 2021

Thoughts

Why for one month of a Covid-19-hit 2020 things were different

If only for one month, Moncia Berg felt the joy of hospitality again. She's hoping for more Septembers in 2021

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09 December, 2020

Thoughts

End of service: losing my job to Covid-19

Redundancy has become the fate of far too many talented bartenders. Jake O’Brien Murphy opens up

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08 December, 2020

Thoughts

Will hospitality talent stay or go?

Under these conditions talent will leave hospitality – Brexit will make them even harder to replace, says Edmund Weil

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07 December, 2020

Thoughts

More pivots than a ballerina: how my bars are surviving Covid

Pivoting has been the only means of survival for many bar operators. Iain McPherson of Edinburgh’s Panda & Sons, Nauticus and Hoot the Redeemer has become a master contortionist

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06 December, 2020

Thoughts

How the Margarita saved my bar from going bust

Class’s cocktail of the year, the Mirror Margarita, has kept Hacha afloat in a Covid-hit 2020. Co-owner Emma Murphy tells us how she and Deano Moncrieffe unleashed its potential

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05 December, 2020

Thoughts

Inglorious isolation: why Covid-19 didn't pull us together, it pulled us apart

Pennyroyal's Alex Taylor tells the story of Wales’ pandemic – just in case anyone is listening

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04 December, 2020

Thoughts

First steps into the new normal

Jake O’Brien Murphy diarises his entry into a new world

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08 September, 2020

Thoughts

(No) show me the money

It’s time for customers to put down a deposit on their booking, argues Edmund Weil

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07 September, 2020

Thoughts

Hard times are had in closure - but also in reopening

Monica Berg is opening up – her bar and her views on the industry. After time to reflect, it’s time to make changes, she says

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06 September, 2020

Thoughts

Bar culture: the cost of free drinks

Working in bars is fast, exciting and at times toxic, but in lockdown the entire industry took a breath. It’s time for a new path, reflects Sly Augustin

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05 September, 2020