Erik Carnemalm’s Post

Prepping a #pizza is like putting on a musical. Serving up a plate with a grin is straight-up performance art. Stretching #noodles by hand? That's theater, my friend. Slicing up raw salmon? Pure artistry. Meticulously cleaning a hotel room like it’s the Louvre? It's a stage show, plain and simple. Everything we do in this business is live entertainment. All of it. Every single one of the countless hospitality jobs we slog through. From scrubbing pots the size of bathtubs to waxing poetic about wine pairings. Hospitality is show business, folks. We set up the stage and then perform our act, strut our stuff, good or bad, willing or not. It's a show, regardless. Why does this matter? Because the first step to not falling flat on your face is knowing what the hell game you’re playing. You gotta know the business you’re in. Ignorance is a death sentence. Playing a different game? That’s jumping off a bridge. So, it's crucial to understand that the show we put on ties directly to our happiness and success. The beauty of it is, we can always make our show better. By putting in the work, by knowing what we want people to feel. So, get out there and put on a damn good show, a show worth remembering. #hospitalityentrepreneurs #hospitalityoperators #hospitality #restaurateur #restaurant

Yep, we went to The #DoobieBrothers concert! Awesome!   This concert brought me so much #joy! * The staff inside Choctaw Casinos & Resorts the concert venue were gracious and hospitable (food service not so much. I’ll save that for another post) * It was awesome singing out loud and dancing. I didn’t realize how many hits The Doobie Brothers had… and that I knew!!!! * I loved watching the crowd get lost in the joy of the music The moments and memories are priceless, and it was worth it! WHY THIS MATTERS: A quick reflection first - In March 2020, I asked consumers why certain activities (that had been taken away) brought them joy. This is one quote that has always stuck with me.   “Music is organic - people naturally respond to, resonating in us like our own hearts beating. When it is shared with others it becomes a connector of the human experience. It helps my soul” Fast forward to today: Consumers are making choices about where and how to spend their money. Our data shows that consumers continue to go out less, but splurge more when they do. Whether you are in QSR to fine dining to a movie theater or concert venue, what will you do to create fabulous first impressions and memorable lasting impressions? #bringmorejoy #momentsandmemories #concerts #guestexperience

Imagine clocking in for your shift, only to be greeted by the same playlist... again. Day after day, the same songs on repeat. It starts to grate on you, making those long hours feel even longer. The energy level drops, and your smile starts to feel forced. At Raina, we like to optimize for both the guest and staff experience. Many businesses overlook the impact of repetitive playlists on employee morale. Just like guests, your staff deserve a sonic experience that's engaging and fresh. Upbeat, well-curated music can boost energy and keep spirits high. Remember, happy staff = happy guests. At Raina, we help you craft a soundscape that keeps your team as energized as your customers. Let's ditch those stale playlists and give your staff something to dance about! #music #employeemorale #hospitality #restaurants #hotels #bars #guestsatisfaction

Top Tips on organising a corporate dinner event Negotiate. Especially if your event is not happening on a peak date, such as a Thursday. Proactive venues will offer you a discount for a Monday & Tuesday, others will not. Put your table plan in alphabetical order, surname first! Ideally table plans will be in alphabetical order. We strongly suggest avoiding name place cards on the table. Scanning for your table in a sea of 400 names can be very time consuming. Think about tables! Round tables of 5ft or 5ft 6in are the best for social talking. Any larger than this and it is difficult to engage with everyone at the table. Don’t block heads with the wrong shape table centres. These should not act as a block across the table. Again this makes it easy for guests to chat with those around the table. Most good florists or light installers will appreciate this. Keep your guests entertained. Having some form of entertainment during dinner can lift the room and give it a shot of energy. Dance acts,opera singers, west end performers etc all work; it really depends on your audience. #Corporateevents #christmasparties

"Two Hearts One Mic" with MC Day is a highly engaging karaoke comedy show that plays a significant role in fostering a vibrant and interconnected community within the hospitality industry. By providing a platform for individuals from the hospitality sector to come together, participate, and interact, the event contributes to creating a stronger sense of community within the industry. This sense of community would have a positive impact on the sales of hospitality firms. When people are attracted to participate in the show, it not only increases the attendance and visibility of the event but also provides an opportunity for businesses in the hospitality industry to showcase their offerings and engage with the participants. As attendees enjoy the karaoke and comedy performances, they are likely to develop a deeper connection with the event and the hospitality industry as a whole. This heightened engagement would translate into increased interest, loyalty, and ultimately, sales for hospitality firms. Participants would be more inclined to explore the offerings of the businesses involved in the event and potentially become repeat customers or recommend the establishments to others. Furthermore, the event's engaging nature, combining karaoke and comedy, creates a memorable experience for attendees. This positive experience can lead to word-of-mouth promotion, generating further interest and attracting more people to participate in the show, thereby increasing the potential customer base for hospitality firms. In summary, "Two Hearts One Mic" with MC Day, being a highly engaging karaoke comedy show, plays a crucial role in building a stronger community within the hospitality industry. This, in turn, would contribute to increased sales for hospitality firms by attracting participants, fostering deeper connections, and promoting positive word-of-mouth recommendations. Great shout out to our amazing partner Eko Hotel & Suites #2024 #dayworldwide #hospitality #content #globalsales #influencer

Ever had a dining experience ruined by excessive noise levels? Acoustics are essential for enhancing guest experiences of conversations in venues. While on holiday with my family, we walked out of a restaurant that refused to turn the excessively loud music down because of “ policy”.  Within ten minutes we found another restaurant where the staff were so accommodating that we ended up enjoying the food and good conversations. This was such a contrast which shows that it does pay to listen to customers.  Noise levels matter for many reasons other than the loss of customers. It is not safe playing at such loud volumes for staff and their customers who stay for any length of time. Visual description in full is in the alt text. Here is the text on the yellow canva-" Acoustics in Venues, Music Volumes." DM me for support on how to make your venues more accessible for everyone. It is not only deaf people who benefit from better acoustics. #AcousticsMatter #DeafAwareness #EqualityAct #HearingSafety

A bottle of water can be: 10 rupees at a grocery store, 50 rupees at a restaurant 100 rupees at a movie theatre And 300 rupees at a concert Though the product is the exact same, the location it's sold in changes its value completely. Now imagine yourself to be the bottle of water. If your leads aren't willing to pay your prices or are not valuing you remember that you might be looking in the wrong place. Change your environment, platform and niche and see the difference. Be the water of bottle that they give at concerts.

In Setting the Table by Danny Meyer, he writes, “I believe that the success of any business is 49 percent the product and 51 percent the culture.” This quote reminds me of a vivid memory from a few years ago. I walked into Rose Bar at Gramercy Park Hotel before a DJ gig, and the team was ecstatic to see me. They were so tired of hearing the same background music day after day, but their entire mood shifted when I took over the decks. As the hospitality industry evolves and becomes more competitive, I find that the importance of a great staff experience is often still ignored. There’s a huge opportunity to consider the role that music plays in the staff experience — especially since it’s one of the least costly line items. At the end of the day, music is a key part of the hospitality experience — and even if it’s a small key part, it’s in the little details where we find the greatest gains and most joyful delights. At the time, I didn’t think much of it. When I look back, I realize now that it’s a core memory of my founding experience at Raina. Moments like this one have inspired me to elevate background music to mirror the experience of a live DJ. Hospitality professionals — how do you consider the staff experience, as compared to the guest experience? In cultivating a great staff experience, what's important to you?

What would you say if a slick salesperson interrupted your morning coffee and said your hotel would become a studio for live TV every Friday night for five weeks? If you're a competent security leader, of course, you say yes! February was a typically slow month in Oslo in 1990. Getting hundreds of extra room nights and hours of prime-time publicity was a no-brainer for sales and finance. It was a lot of extra work for us in security, but what an experience! Each week was filled with prep work to ensure we understood who was coming and how that would impact the threat picture at the hotel to ensure our plans were updated and adapted to each specific situation. We collaborated with local law enforcement, the fire department, the broadcaster's security and operations teams, and the security and management for visiting artists and programme guests. Everything went off without a hitch, and our only regret was that we had to work the after-party when the final episode concluded. Security is often viewed as the people who say no and block innovation and development opportunities. If it's done right, security is a powerful enabler of opportunity and innovation. Yes, there are always hard questions to ask and answer, but the results are what makes working at the intersection of security and hospitality the best career choice a person can make! All it takes is a mindset that says, I will #communicate, #collaborate and #contribute to the success of the business by helping it achieve its goals in a safe, secure, and sustainable manner. #hospitality #security #itsthepeople Picture (screenshot from NRK): Turid Øversveen and Øystein Bache were the hosts of the show that was like a mix of Saturday Night Live and Meet the Press. The hotel nightclub was a stage for big-name bands, politicians were interviewed in the top-floor bar, the lobby became an intimate stage for folk music, and a comedian used everything from elevators to elsewhere to perform crazy skits and stunts. You can view the old shows on the Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK) website. (Link in the comments)

Are you a Swiftie? Did you attend one of Taylor Swift's Eras Tour concerts? If so, you helped boost local restaurants. Analyzing Circana's CREST® Performance Alerts DMA data, we found that restaurants in the 10 cities with three shows received a 2% boost in transactions vs. the national average that week. Miami, New Orleans, and Indy: get ready for a strong week for restaurants when Taylor comes to town in 2024! Want to learn more about how we can measure the impact of local events? https://lnkd.in/ehVbhRHf