Christopher Rodrigues CBE heads up brand new development programme in Manchester.

Christopher Rodrigues CBE will be heading an outstanding line up of speakers and tutors at the first Strategic Leadership Programme for Hospitality in Manchester this July. Mr Rodrigues who has led Visit Britain since 2007 will be using his 30 years of experience including his substantial experience in banking and the travel industry to explore the challenges of the next 5 years. Other speakers from the Manchester Business School, industry and research organisations will provide vital insights, strategic tools and techniques and personal development advice to an elite group of just 25 hospitality business leaders and business owners.

The residential programme will be based at the five star Radisson Edwardian hotel in central Manchester and includes visits, receptions and dinners.

To reserve your place contact Howard Raynor at World Class Service on 0161 456 6007 or by email

The Odeon and Harvey Nichols team up for girls' night.

We've spotted a couple of slightly out of the ordinary events coming up in Manchester over the next couple of months and thought it might be a good idea to tell you about them now as they are likely to sell out.

The Second Floor Restuarant at Harvey Nichols are celebrating the opening of the Sex and the City 2 film with special menus for the perfect girls' night out on May 28th.

Sex and the City 2
Cinema packages at the Harvey Nichols Second Floor in association with The Odeon Printworks
and Skyy Vodka.
Friday 28 May

What will become of Carrie and Mr Big? What will the girls be wearing?
All will be revealed on Friday 28 May when Sex and the City 2 is released in UK cinemas.
Why not make a night of it with the girls and choose from one of two packages available at Harvey Nichols Manchester on the launch night?

The Girls’ Afternoon Tea Package - £25 per person
4pm

A Skyy Vodka SATC cocktail
A special ‘Cupcake Afternoon Tea’ in the Harvey Nichols Second Floor Restaurant
A ticket for the 6pm Gallery* Showing of the SATC2 Film at the Odeon Printworks

The Mr Big Package - £35 per person
6pm

A Skyy Vodka SATC cocktail
A two course New York themed dinner in the Harvey Nichols Second Floor Brasserie
A ticket for the 8pm Gallery* Showing of the SATC2 Film at the Odeon Printworks
Call our reservations team on 0161 828 8898 or email
secondfloor.reservations@harveynichols.com to reserve your place.

If you prefer something a little more arty, the Odeon has not forgotten about you...

OPUS ARTE AT THE ODEON PRINTWORKS
Royal Opera House & The Royal Ballet - Tsarina's Slippers
25th May 19.00
The Royal Opera and the Royal Ballet come together in a special journey from a snowy Ukrainian picture-book village to the Imperial splendour of the court of Catherine the Great. Vakula, the son of the witch Solokha, attempts to woo and win the beautiful but fickle Oxana. It seems hopeless, but when the Devil, a witch, forest sprites and a host of colourful characters are involved, he could be lucky after all! Tchaikovsky's music is packed with showpiece solos, dances and choruses: from grand polonaise to haunting chorus of water sprites to rustic revels - and there's a true Russian flavour with Alexander Polianichko as conductor and several star Russian singers. Tickets £12.50 adults, Students, Senior, £10.00 Children

www.odeon.co.uk 0871 2244 007
For group bookings of 10 or more please contact the conference department
eventcoordinator@odeonuk.com 0161 836 2404

Shakespeare's Globe - As You Like It
14th June 19.00
'As You Like It' recorded at The Globe theatre in 2009 and on the big screen in high definition and digital surround sound. Rosalind, the daughter of a banished duke, falls in love with Orlando at a wrestling match. Her usurping uncle, jealous of her popularity banishes her from court. Disguised as a boy she leaves with her cousin Celia and the jester Touchstone, to seek out her father in the Forest of Arden. Here she meets Orlando again and, under the guise of a young man, counsels him in the art of love and wooing. A firm favourite among Shakespeare’s comedies, and including some of his best-loved characters, 'As You Like It' runs the glorious gamut of pastoral romance: cross-dressing and love-notes; poetry and brilliant conversation; gentle satire, slapstick and passion. **** 'Thea Sharrock's production is almost continuously enchanting. On a summer's night by the Thames, it is irresistible... There's a constant feeling of wit, mischief and strong sexual attraction... Every role comes to life in a production that combines great gales of audience laughter with magical moments of emotional depth' - Daily Telegraph. All tickets from £10.00

www.odeon.co.uk 0871 2244 007
For group bookings of 10 or more please contact the conference department
eventcoordinator@odeonuk.com 0161 836 2404

We are What We Eat and Drink - Eat North West

We are delighted to see the return of the North West Food Lovers Guide. The office copy of the original edition has become dog eared and frankly its a vital publication.

This marvelous little book published by the lovely people at Food Northwest is now back in stock and it provides all the details on local producers, where they are, what they make, what they grow, where you can get it from and the on-line links to get you closer.

Brilliant idea well executed. How can you live without it.

Get your copy by clicking here

We are here to help.....

Please let me know if anyone needs assistance getting in or out of Europe due to the Volcano ash. We are very fortunate to have available aircraft.

Thank you.


Benjamin Head
Managing Director

ADVANCED jets
One South Ocean Boulevard, Suite 308
Boca Raton, Florida 33432
(561) 962-0118 direct office
(954) 205-4655 24/7 cell
(877) 303-5387 (JETS) toll free
(561) 962-0111 fax
Ben@advancedjets.com
www.Advancedjets.com

Aled Williams comes to Manchester's Harvey Nichols

Harvey Nichols Second Floor Restaurant is pleased to announce an intimate and exclusive dining event with Aled Williams on May 10. Aled is the Head Chef of Plas Bodegroes, Wales’ first five star restaurant with accommodation.

Aled is currently filming the new series of ‘The Great British Menu’, a program in which the nation’s top chefs compete to produce a four course banquet for a high profile figure. The main course and dessert on the night will be revised versions of dishes which are featured in ‘The Great British Menu’.

Aled Williams’ food is made using fresh local ingredients and Aled prides himself on his ability to add modern twists to traditional dishes. The menu on May 10 will comprise of five courses including; pea and parmesan foam; Pan fried sea trout with fennel puree; loin and slow cooked shoulder of mountain lamb; and Champagne poached rhubarb with lemongrass baked custard. The full menu is available to view on the Harvey Nichols Second Floor Restaurant website www.harveynichols.com.

The times for dinner will be staggered with the first table at 7.15, second at 7.45pm, the third at 8.15pm, with the last seating at 8.45pm.

Aled developed his culinary skills at Plas Bodegroes, in 2003. Aled then won the prestigious Gordon Ramsey scholarship in November 2006, and has worked not only in Ramsey’s 3 Michelin Star restaurants in Chelsea and New York, but in several highly esteemed restaurants in Australia and South East Asia. He became Head Chef at Pas Bodegroes in 2008.

Tickets are priced at £60 with only 45 places available, so prompt booking is advised. To book your tickets or for any more information regarding the event, please contact the Second Floor Reservations team on 0161 828 8898 or email secondfloor.reservations@harveynichols.com

Top Ten Things to do in Manchester this week

It's a big week for the Rooneyless Reds and the museums and galleries of Manchester are all providing great content for the Easter holidays.

1. Man Utd attempt to reverse their 1-2 loss to Bayern Munich in the second leg on Wednesday.

2. Da Vinci - The Genius at MOSI brings his famous inventions to life and there's a whole host of activities for families for the Easter break with Heroes of Energy

3. The Evolutionist: A Darwin Extravaganza is a fun and educative day out for the whole family

4. The Gruffalo (Tuesday - Thursday) and Sean Lock (Sunday) are at the Lowry this week.

5. The People's History Museum is back in an impressive new building after a £12.5m redevelopment

6. William Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors ois at the Royal Exchange theatre

7. Witney Houston (now in doubt due to illness) and the WWE Wrestling come to the MEN Arena this week

8. Ron Mueck's art of hyper-real human figures explores humanity's intimate moments at Manchester Art Gallery

9. Ultravox (Thursday) and N-Dubz (Friday) are at the Apollo this week.

10. The IWMN hosts the largest ever collection of highly acclaimed photographer Don McCullin's work

Business Model for the Summer City

There are nine factors we have to get right to successfully transform summer business for Manchester.

We have to be clear about:

1. The Key Partners in the Project; hoteliers, cultural institutions, attractions, event organisers, Visit Manchester and CityCo. We don't need everyone in the field we just need the people who see the opportunity and want to share the market opportunity.

2. Understand the customer need; the UK economy remains in fragile recovery and so are most households; the customers need great new ideas that are imaginative, value for money and exceed expectations. Further, with a Euro worth 90p and a US dollar at 66p Manchester never looked like such great value.

3. Build the value proposition. This project is not about diluting the marketing or just discounting prices we need to build a solid value proposition for the customers; great activities, great hotels and great itineraries that are really easy to book. We have to be able to assemble the packages in to a simple attractive booking format.

4. Understand the customer segment. The priority for the Summer 2010 project is family audiences.

5. Select the Channels to Market. At the moment Visit Manchester, CityCo and Late Rooms offer the easiest channels to market alongside all of the partners own on line and PR activity.

6. Establish the Key Resources. How much will it cost to tackle this project in 2010 bearing in mind the market opportunity going in to 2011, 12 and 13? If we get it right we could grow a significant new element to our businesses every year. Awareness Reliability and Responsiveness are key drivers.

7. What are the key Customer Relationships. What type of relationship does each of our customers expect us to establish and maintain with them? Is this really in the hands of the hotels or can we get in to a resort mindset where we offer a family friendly service at every outlet?

8. Revenue Streams. There are multiple revenue streams coming out of this Summer City business model. Hotel stays, retail purchases, food and drink revenue, car parking, public transport income, institutional visits, venue merchandising.

9. Cost Structure. If we really can figure out a way of working smarter and harder this summer then we will have a small increase in costs arising from marketing activities and staffing, however this is a value based business argument, we are creating value in the city in the summer. If we pull together we get economy of scale and scope.

So there it is, a business model framework and so prototype thinking.

If we do nothing then we face another 6 weeks of revenue drought this summer and pin all our hopes on a cost focused solution, can we stay shut more tightly?

If just a small band of us can deliver something in then we get the chance to build knowledge and capability to grow in 2011.

What are World Class Service doing to contribute? We are building a 5 day residential Strategic Leadership Summer Programme to help hospitality service leaders prepare for their future by hearing from Business School heavyweights and industry luminaries. Why are we doing this? Because we see that if Cornell can do it so could Manchester.

Howard Raynor with thanks to Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur.