What losses does the focus count because of the measures

His George Lampiris

A new cycle of burden, both in terms of the psychology of the customers who visit the stores, and in terms of revenue, they estimate that they will bring well-known catering entrepreneurs, the latest measures that come into force today and in essence will prohibit the presence unvaccinated citizens indoors, while only those who have been vaccinated, become ill in the last six months or have undergone a PCR or rapid test will be allowed to attend outdoors.

Speaking to Capital.gr, the chef and owner of the restaurant, Varoulko, Lefteris Lazarou, Spyros Liakos, owner of the restaurants, Base Grill, Travolta, Cookoovaya, Gastone, Hoocut as well as Jason Tsarouchas, owner of the Steakhouses “, , each describe from their own point of view the image but also the effects of the new measures on the one hand, but also the refusal of several of our fellow citizens on the other hand to be vaccinated.

Lefteris Lazarou: It is sad to ask for identity from customers who come to my store for 30 years

The chef and owner of the restaurant Varoulko, Lefteris Lazarou, estimates that the new measures will mainly affect the shops that have outdoor spaces, as the traffic will be limited at this level, as for many companies it was a way out for pre-existing restrictions on gathering customers indoors. “On the other hand, people are starting to realize that in order to get back into their daily habits and participate in social events, they need to be vaccinated. However, the first days of the new measures will definitely create a rift.”

According to Mr. Lazarou, in restaurants of high gastronomy such as his own, the problems with the possible attendance of customers who are not vaccinated, are more limited compared to other companies in the industry. “However, it’s sad that I have to stand at the door too often to greet my 25- and 30-year-old customers so that they do not feel uncomfortable when asked for their identity. I will be honest, if I were to visit a restaurant. for the last 30 years I would have been surprised to be suddenly asked for my ID, however, in order to be able to effectively run the vaccination certificate control procedures, I had to hire two girls at the reception, which has increased operating costs by about 1,800 a month, something which practically means around € 20,000 a year.The staff in question will often be confronted with an awkward customer or someone who wanted to trick them with a third party certificate or other identity card, something that has happened recently. phenomena are fortunately limited “.

Spyros Liakos: People need socialization and entertainment, not just go out to eat

For Spyros Liakos, owner of several well-known restaurants such as Base Grill, Travolta, Cookoovaya, Gastone, Hoccut, indoor dining “is something that has come to an end anyway. We have faced so many changes, that each time they “On the other hand, our stores have created a stable customer base, as a result of which they continue to trust us even under these special conditions.”

“People want to be charmed and not disappointed by their exit”

“The difficult thing is not how many or who will come to the stores. What we need to realize is that eating in a restaurant is not a form of necessity, but above all the desire to socialize and entertain people who want to be fascinated by going out. and not to be disappointed as has been the case lately.Therefore it is not enough to go out just to eat.Other parameters are required which are vital for the whole industry.And in my opinion the main factor in our work is called psychology.I think that at the end of the day all these measures come to burden the psychology of the world “.

As he points out, the stores he maintains rely heavily on existing interiors, which means that people who call on the phone to book a table know in advance that they need to be vaccinated. “However, there is a lot of frustration from some people when we ask for a rapid or vaccination certificate, and many times they curse us because they think we are ruining their night.”

“It is paradoxical that one refuses to be vaccinated”

“Initially the audience we lost was much larger. Now most people know about the measures in force and therefore there are significantly fewer who we will have to tell them we can not accommodate. In any case I find it paradoxical that someone refuses to be vaccinated. “In the end, I think it is pointless to go through all this process with bans and restrictions. Because it is different to have 10% of people who do not follow the rules and different not to follow 50%.”

Anxiety in the event of a new lockdown

“My view is that this situation needs to end and we have to make some decisions. It is pointless for the teacher to have to punish us for spelling correctly. I was in the UK twice during November and it works like a country that “The shops are not full of coronavirus. The shops are full inside and outside, there are no certificate checks, while the use of a mask is not mandatory in the metro either.

However, he is more worried about the possibility of a new lockdown during Christmas, than whether or not vaccinated and unvaccinated people will be allowed to enter the stores. “It is now clear that we do not have the strength to face a new lockdown as an economy.”

Iason Tsarouchas: “We have already lost 30% of our turnover – Better to work only with delivery”

For losses amounting to -30% in all the stores owned by the steakhouse chain, “The President”, the owner of the company, Iason Tsarouchas, reports. “We are already at -30% in terms of turnover since the beginning of the “Previous bans that allowed only vaccinated or customers with laboratory tests to visit our stores”, he notes characteristically.

He even expresses the assessment that “it would be better if they stopped our operation completely, as was done last year, and to serve only through delivery, as in fact we would have much lower operating costs in our stores. It is indicative that even yesterday Sunday that the weather was spring and we had the opportunity to work harder in the outdoor areas of our stores, all stores with the exception of Glyfada, moved down by -10 to -15% compared to what would happen respectively in a weekend without the force of corresponding restrictions ”.

Referring to the attitude of the people towards the measures, he says that “most people know about the measures. However, some people bet on my acquaintance with them or the fact that they have been customers in our stores for a number of years, which in no way can “In these special circumstances we all face. Such an argument, as you understand, could in no way cover my business before the supervisory authorities.”