The future of hospitality? Flexibility, adaptability, and the facilitation of experience.

Two months into 2022, and the hospitality industry certainly appears more buoyant. According to a recent report, total sales across the hospitality sector, excluding accommodation, are expected to reach around £95bn this year.

This is lower than pre-2019, which is perhaps unsurprising considering our collective experiences over the past two years have reshaped our attitudes to leisure and travel. In response, hotels, restaurants, bars and other venues are increasingly looking to develop bespoke offerings and make use of innovative technology to entice their customers back.

Mindful of the privilege of travel and with a new awareness of environmental issues, customers are keen to act responsibly and with purpose; to take part in experiences that offer transformative personal development rather than simply entertainment. Potentially taking fewer but longer trips than before, customers will view travelling to their destination as part of the adventure and will look for their arrival to fit seamlessly with their ‘slow travel’ approach. With the rise of flexible working, an increasing number of ‘bleisure’ customers will take advantage of the opportunity to combine travel with remote working.

Venues that create an authentic localised yet standardised experience that is grounded in the history and culture of the locality will be able to offer reassurance of quality but also a unique local flavour, giving them an advantage in this increasingly competitive market.

With this in mind, Karndean Designflooring has given MacGochans restaurant and bar on the Isle of Mull a new lease of life, amply demonstrating that a crisis can, in fact, present an opportunity.

Fleur Carson, commercial sales director at Karndean Designflooring, explained: “Following a devastating fire the owners of MacGochans took the opportunity to restore and update the building so that it could rise phoenix-like from the ashes. The venue has not only regained its place as the vibrant hub of Tobermory but has also expanded its offering to meet the changing expectations of visitors. With promising signs that the end of the pandemic is in sight, the hospitality industry can similarly be optimistic for the future.”

After the experience of a pandemic, a new wave of customers is taking a more mindful approach to the privilege of travel and eating out and are keen to act responsibly and with purpose; to take part in experiences that offer transformative personal development rather than simply entertainment. Having spent so much time living, working and socialising at home, customers are looking for personalised and convenient service, a comfortable home from home feel and emotional security. Interiors that combine the practicality of modern materials with a relatable feel and individual character will be able to offer both a unique experience and a reassuring sense of stability.

Combining a sense of history with the exciting possibilities of the future, venues are designing unexpected and intriguing interiors that are sure to appeal to this new sense of adventure. Bespoke flooring designs are being used to create a localised yet standardised experience that is grounded in the culture and landscape of the locality.

Fleur said: “Venues that can offer a reassurance of comfort and reliability but also an authentic local flavour will give themselves them an advantage in this increasingly competitive market.

MacGochans restaurant and bar is an ideal example of this, combining the story of its origin as a Scottish fisherman’s cottage with the unapologetically industrial style of its new atrium dining area. “The new interior design creates a clear visual separation between the traditional bar area and the more contemporary restaurant space yet retains a sense of continuity with organic materials and a neutral yet interesting colour palette. The two-storey restaurant makes the most of its large windows that flood the space with natural light and features an airy colour scheme in off-white, duck egg blue and ochre and a random pattern herringbone floor in warm wood tones", continues Fleur.

Neil Morrison, owner of MacGochans, said: “We wanted to make a feature out of the different areas with a separate look for each space so we used two designs of Karndean flooring between the restaurant and the bar. The new Macgochans is much lighter than the previous rough wood style and the practical surfaces mean that we can easily comply with cleaning requirements. It can get very busy here at times and surfaces take a bit of abuse so the loose lay format option appealed to us as small sections can be replaced if required.”

To find out how Karndean’s customisable collections can support your upcoming hospitality project, try out the Interactive Journey, allowing you to visualise products in virtual real-world environments.