Club Doncaster searching for new stadium catering partner

[keyser_soze]

Wow this really is root and branch. In Copps we trust!

[silent majority]

The contracts up at the end of next season and won't be renewed.

The club are taking the time to work out what's best for it and supporters.

[Filo]

A tin of dog food would be an upgrade on what Sodexo serve up

[wing commander]

  That's absolutely fantastic news, they have taken the proverbial out of the fans on the concourse for years with there attitude. Hopefully whoever the club gets this time will have something in the contract that keeps them on task so the club actually has some power to address issues.

Interesting to know if the have informed Rovers they wont be bidding or whether we are taking this opportunity to out them.

[Metalmicky]

It's been said previously, but a look at the catering side at the Knights would be a start.... They have folk queueing every time I go there and the food/service is great...

[silent majority]

  That's absolutely fantastic news, they have taken the proverbial out of the fans on the concourse for years with there attitude. Hopefully whoever the club gets this time will have something in the contract that keeps them on task so the club actually has some power to address issues.

Interesting to know if the have informed Rovers they wont be bidding or whether we are taking this opportunity to out them.

Sodexo are moving away from stadiums.

[roversdude]

After going to The Legends game last week I thought they already had - the service was appalling. The amount of times I heard people saying they wouldn’t put up with that week in week out

[normal rules]

Can we employ dope burgers ( I know!) from Hull to set up a franchise here. They were on look north last night and look very nice.

[5minstogo]

Another 12 months of Sodexho, they could hit real lows in that time, knowing they don't have a continuing contract.

This will come at the right time as there is a real appetite for better food at football stadiums. Footy Scran on Twitter shows that, hopefully a company or a few companies can come up with a sound business plan to out forward.

[Filo]

  That's absolutely fantastic news, they have taken the proverbial out of the fans on the concourse for years with there attitude. Hopefully whoever the club gets this time will have something in the contract that keeps them on task so the club actually has some power to address issues.

Interesting to know if the have informed Rovers they wont be bidding or whether we are taking this opportunity to out them.

Sodexo are moving away from stadiums.

They should move away from hospitals as well, the food at DRI is appalling 

[Jersey Rover]

Definitely see what the knights are doing. Food and service top notch

[Chris Black come back]

I’d imagine the Knights get not much more than a quarter of our gates. It’s a much bigger and more complex operation for us. It sounds simple but it really isn’t. Their turnover of staff will be huge as these are casual part time roles, not full time jobs. So training and retention are massive issues. The queues and food are admittedly not enticing but it is a hard job to make absolutely everything work perfectly for a two hour period every two weeks or so. Don’t envy whoever wins this!

[roversdude]

CBCB but they knew this before signing the contract so I have little sympathy for them, that said post covid the service is shocking

[Metalmicky]

I think there is scope to have a mix of food outlets.  I recall going to a game in Denmark in November.  It was pretty chilly, but they still had a range of excellent food outlets from BBQ's providing bratwurst sausage and burgers to a breaded fish and chip outlet and even a place selling hot apple strudel or danish pastries.  They also had outlets selling uncooked goods -crisps/sweets/pop etc and beer outlets......they were quick and set their prices to make it easy to take money. 
You are not going to please everyone, but if you can provide quick fresh food you are more likely to sell it.  I'm not sure how the Sodexo operation works and how much goes to the club and how much is retained by the company, but if you were able to charge independent retailers to hire a space (retaining their individual profits) then I am sure you would get a few interested.  Those that were good would succeed and make a profit and those that weren't would soon move on.   

[roversdude]

I thought the catering was totally outsourced-the club get money and then Sodexo get what they make each game. Sure that was what was said before I may be wrong though

[Chris Black come back]

We probably have to reset expectations. Best we can hope for is doing fewer things, better and more simply. That way you manage expectations and deliver a better outcome as people get a product delivered capably. It probably didn’t help the last guys with expectations about such a wide range of food options. Keep it simple and they can get through customers quicker and with more consistent product and service. Touch point for most people is can I get served relatively quickly 2.30-2.59pm and then 3.40-4.00pm. Within reason, what it tastes like is not the overriding factor.

[nightporter]

Within reason, what it tastes like is not the overriding factor.

Call me old fashioned, but thats everything.  'Tastes like shit but at 99p I'll go every week'  no-ones ever said that.

[silent majority]

CBCB but they knew this before signing the contract so I have little sympathy for them, that said post covid the service is shocking

They didn't sign it though.

I've lost count of how many times that company has changed hands during the length of this contract. We've had numerous takeovers, and even a management buy out to contend with, some have embraced the contract better than others.

[German Rover]

  That's absolutely fantastic news, they have taken the proverbial out of the fans on the concourse for years with there attitude. Hopefully whoever the club gets this time will have something in the contract that keeps them on task so the club actually has some power to address issues.

Interesting to know if the have informed Rovers they wont be bidding or whether we are taking this opportunity to out them.

Sodexo are moving away from stadiums.

They should move away from hospitals as well, the food at DRI is appalling 

and the military. the food and accomodation we get fobbed off with by them is appalling.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

We probably have to reset expectations. Best we can hope for is doing fewer things, better and more simply. That way you manage expectations and deliver a better outcome as people get a product delivered capably. It probably didn’t help the last guys with expectations about such a wide range of food options. Keep it simple and they can get through customers quicker and with more consistent product and service. Touch point for most people is can I get served relatively quickly 2.30-2.59pm and then 3.40-4.00pm. Within reason, what it tastes like is not the overriding factor.

Very sensible. Before we start thinking about different types of lovely street food, it's the basics that matter most. As you said week in week out (well, match days)

As said, the industry is such that it's minimum wage therefore resourcing events is not easy. It's just as problematic for large catering companies as it is for smaller independent caterers.

Then there's the supply chain issues, consistency of delivery and price etc.

As we all know, prices have rocketed so we have to take that into consideration too.

Tend to agree about keeping it simple but worthwhile looking at the pros and cons with other caterers at other venues.

[swintonrover]

We should start talking to the wool market about how they set up. Each catering booth could be run independently, and local independent contractors would staff it, so no untrained agency 18 year olds.

Failing that, @footyscran on twitter flag up Barnsley fairly often for their creative, decent looking fare. Not that far for a chat.

Let's just get out of this cycle of cold burgers, rollover hotdogs and pints of piss that most of the country do.

[DonnyNoel]

As a light hearted aside, I started following FootyScran on twitter. There's the odd horror on there (usually at a prem ground) but some food you can buy at lower league grounds (or in the vicinity of) looks fabulous!

[rich1471]

  That's absolutely fantastic news, they have taken the proverbial out of the fans on the concourse for years with there attitude. Hopefully whoever the club gets this time will have something in the contract that keeps them on task so the club actually has some power to address issues.

Interesting to know if the have informed Rovers they wont be bidding or whether we are taking this opportunity to out them.

Sodexo are moving away from stadiums.

They should move away from hospitals as well, the food at DRI is appalling 

I would agree with that , the food they served me was horrible ,my wife kept bring me food when i was in there

[Chris Black come back]

We should start talking to the wool market about how they set up. Each catering booth could be run independently, and local independent contractors would staff it, so no untrained agency 18 year olds.

Failing that, @footyscran on twitter flag up Barnsley fairly often for their creative, decent looking fare. Not that far for a chat.

Let's just get out of this cycle of cold burgers, rollover hotdogs and pints of piss that most of the country do.

This sounds good in principle I agree, but the reality is this is a huge amount of hassle for independent operators for what amounts to at the very most around 1.5 hours of sales every 2 weeks or so. Being in the Wool Market for example is a full day or full multiple days of sales. We can’t offer that. It’s an hour before game and then maybe 30 mins within the game. It’s a lot of hassle for not a lot of sales. 

[Daniel_Smith]

I heard current catering partner really struggled keeping afloat during lockdown. They've struggled to retain staff and been working with agency staff in recent weeks.

Contract with club means it's totally outsourced. They pay the club a set amount for the pitch and make what they can each matchday.

I'd be worried they might fold mid way through next season and then we have nothing on a matchday.

[roversdude]

Thanks SM for clarification

[aidanstu]

I’d love to see the club go local and employ local companies to provide the catering; local clubs for local people and all that

[NickDRFC]

As a light hearted aside, I started following FootyScran on twitter. There's the odd horror on there (usually at a prem ground) but some food you can buy at lower league grounds (or in the vicinity of) looks fabulous!

Other clubs at our level and below can do it, why should we have minimal expectations? Mind you after the shambles we’ve had for years, literally anything will be a step up.

[roversdude]

Wonder if it’s feasible to have a number of different (local) companies hiring/leasing the outlets. Gives a wider choice and competition to give decent service

[rich1471]

The problem is the people employed to work at these types of venues only do 3-4 hours a fortnight working in that environment , most or all with no catering back ground at all , each week you are training someone new so unless they are employed by the club or you pay descent money you will only ever get the same caliber of people doing it week in week out and nothing will change, there are loads of catering jobs out their so people can be picky were they work.