|
In 1998 Eldred Hospitality was approached by a small group of businessmen who put forward an idea to
establish a hospitality business on a small freehold site on the East side of Sydney's
very busy and very high profile Circular Quay, between the ferry terminal and the Sydney
Opera House. Because the group only had limited hospitality experience between them we had
initial concerns about the wisdom of them proceeding with what seemed to be a difficult
and somewhat risky project.
We have to say now that those concerns later proved completely unfounded and the project
has proved to be one of the more interesting and rewarding business relationships we have
had. This has been largely due to the focus and professionalism of our clients: Mr Paul
Cheika, Mr George Gavalas and Mr John Maxwell, who originally met when they were all
playing rugby together for the Sydney team Randwick.
Initially asked to perform a feasibility study, we proceeded to carefully assess the
viability of operating a restaurant or cafe on what was an extremely expensive piece of
prime real estate. Our investigations soon revealed the fact that three million
pedestrians per year walked past the proposed site and that there were two large theatres
as well as the ferry terminal within 200 metres. The site was feasible, provided that
strict targets for customer numbers and customer average sales were met.
We were then asked to provide a detailed business plan for realising the project, which
the owners followed with minor variations. Despite initial difficulties caused by the
redevelopment of the whole walkway outside the restaurant, which was by then named
Eastbank, the project has been stunningly successful - so successful in fact, that the
group leased another site in 1999, further along the walk towards the Opera House, and in
conjunction with Mr Steve Anastasiou, opened a second restaurant which they called
Quayside.
Check them out if you're in Sydney . . . and check out their web site, it's a great example of Internet
marketing.
Summary of services to Eastbank and Quayside:
• feasibility
study • business development plan •
• management and supervisory training • ongoing consulting services •
• customer perception surveys •