Sydney Workshop >>> go here for information & dates

GO HERE >> for the 2011 Starting a Cafe or Restaurant Workshop - March 12, 2011.

Melbourne Workshop: Saturday 13 March 2010

Presented as a part of Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.

The facts you need, so your dream is based on reality. Invest in your future success - this is information you can take to the bank.

This one day event features a panel of successful Victorian restaurant and cafe operators who've made it, and are still in the business. The event is hosted by industry expert Ken Burgin.

Special Melbourne Workshop topics include:

• Latest trends and concepts - keeping ahead of the competition. The hospitality industry changes quickly - don't be caught in a dead-end.

• Understanding and researching your target customers. Finding demographic information on local areas.

• Licensing, legal issues, regulations and partnerships. Essential preparation and sources of information.

• To buy or pioneer? Tricks and traps for new players, and preparation for due diligence if purchasing a business. Plus the essential elements for a business plan.

• Success with staff - your biggest expense and greatest challenge. Key issues in recruitment and productivity. Plus essential information on workplace laws and pay rates.

• Equipment, Layout and Design of your business premises - looking good without breaking the bank.

• Marketing tips for a new cafe or restaurant - making a big impact on a low budget will separate your operation from the rest.

• Putting it together and making a profit - expected profit margins, set up costs and the breakeven point. Plus Key Performance Indicators for weekly profit and performance checks.

• Using the workshop's Online Resource Guide for followup research and support.

Special Workshop Guests

Our experienced panel, still in the business after many years, will share with you the highs AND the lows of their road to success. On the day, you'll hear from:

Pam Lamaro from Lamaro's in South Melbourne. Pam Lamaro is an inspiration - a true example of someone who lives their dream, and follows the work she loves. Starting in her youth at the Windsor Hotel before heading north -- think Lindeman Island, cruise boats and party time! -- the serious work began at the Highway Hotel in Claremont, Perth where she worked and held the hotel licence. Back to Melbourne to run the Commercial Hotel in Werribee she leased this out in 1989, before moving around the corner to the Werribee Plaza Tavern as part owner. Having sold the Plaza Tavern in 2000 after 11 years hands-on-management, her next purchase was the old Bayview Hotel in Cecil Street, South Melbourne in 2004 - better known today as the Award winning Lamaro's.

Jason McLean of Bluestone Restaurant & Bar in Melbourne's CBD. Our host today, and director of Bluestone Restaurant Jason McLean, took his first steps to culinary fame in London, before the Regent Hotel in Melbourne beckoned. A sea change to the iconic Vue Grand in Queenscliff was his next move, before a tree change to the Royal Botanical Gardens where Jason set up and managed the Terrace Receptions. With years of experience managing successful venues Jason started his own catering company in 1997, including the catering contract for Sandringham Yacht Club, before establishing this great restaurant that we are enjoying today, ten years ago.

Paul DiMattina you may also know as an AFL footballer - a tenacious 131-game Bulldogs midfielder between 1995 and 2003. What you might not know is that he has flat feet, he's partially deaf, and that by the age of 18 he was managing a restaurant with 60 staff. His family has grown from humble migrant origins 90 years ago to a thriving dynasty of fruit and veg, coffee, restaurants and sport. Paul is now Operations Manager of the DiMattina Group, which boasts a number of very well known restaurants - the Blue Train Cafe in Southgate, DiMattina's and Il Gambero in Lygon Street, Society in Bourke Street, as well as Mario's and Alto on the Gold Coast. Paul will have a lot to share.

Todd Blake is the CEO of Restaurant & Catering Victoria, the peak industry body for Victorian restaurants, cafés, caterers and function centres. Todd is also a man who you need to know well if you are seriously thinking about starting a hospitality business.

In his role as Restaurant & Catering Victoria CEO, Todd is in regular contact with foodservice businesses across the state on a diverse range of issue including education, liquor licensing, workplace relations, food safety and business sustainability. He works on a regular basis with federal, state and local governments on issues of importance to the hospitality industry. What this man doesn't know is probably not worth knowing -- or if it is, he'll find the answers and solutions!

Ken Burgin, presenter and host for the day, has been actively involved in restaurants and cafes for more than 25 years. First as owner of Caffe Troppo and Paganini Restaurants in Sydney, and for the past 12 years, working with restaurants, hotels and cafes in an advisory role. Ken has presented workshops to tens of thousands of aspiring restaurant owners and hospitality professionals over the past eight years. During the 2010 Melbourne Food & Wine Festival, Ken brings this special workshop to Melbourne for the second time.

Before you take the plunge it's essential to be well prepared. A small investment in this valuable workshop
will give you a head start in this very competitive industry.

Book Now >>> full details at the bottom of the page...

Workshop Programme:

9.00am - 9.30am: Registration and Coffee

9.30am - 11.00am:

• Trends and Concepts

• Researching and understanding target customers

  Lucky Prizes on the Day Everyone attending will be in the draw to win a Profitable Recipe Manager program or 12 months 1st Class Membership of Profitable Hospitality.

• Legal and licensing issues to consider

• Buying or pioneering a new restaurant or cafe

11.00 - 11.15am: Coffee Break

11.15am - 1.00pm: Workshop Panel Guests will outline the background to their business success and answer questions from workshop participants.

1.00pm - 1.45pm: Lunch (provided)

1.45 pm - 2.45pm: Todd Blake, CEO Restaurant & Catering Vic