The president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa; The president of CaixaBank, Tomás Muniesa, and the president of elBulliFoundation, Ferran Adrià, presented the Genhesis Plan this Monday. The business plan for gastronomic restoration promoted by the financial institution and the foundation. The event was also attended by the bank’s CEO, Gonzalo Gortázar, and the book aims to help professionals in the sector understand, plan and manage their restaurant with greater business rigor.
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Illa stressed that Adrià “is fully part of the list of universal Catalans” and highlighted that he has shown that creativity without management has no future, but that with method, he said, it is the perfect combination. The president added that the book is a road map for the 50,000 hospitality establishments in Catalonia and has stressed that the agri-food sector is “an essential driving force for Catalonia”. On the other hand, he said that these are times of change and that these changes bring opportunities that must be had the confidence to take advantage of, and he has appealed to all economic actors to have “a generous vision for the country as a whole”, which includes the entire population. The president of Caixabank has explained that the restaurant industry has important challenges such as increased costs, tax pressure, labor regulation and the uncertain environment, and has stressed that the Government has recognized this sector as strategic. Muniesa recalled that the collaboration between CaixaBank and elBulliFoundation has completed a decade and that the bank is “a fully integrated actor in the progress and professionalization of the restaurant business.”
Ten years searching for opinions
Adrià has claimed the importance of food and restaurants in the Catalan and Spanish economy, and has explained that work is being done to make a plan for the gastronomic industry in Catalonia. The chef and businessman said that the book presented this Monday has included ten years of experience, more than 50,000 opinions and more than a thousand events. Adrià regretted that 60% of restaurants close before five years of life and that the majority do not make business plans or annual budgets, and he stressed that even «a self-employed person has to make a budget.» He also added that for a business to be profitable it needs relative quality, that is, to have the best product in its price range, and to have an innovative attitude, «which is looking for a living.» The gastronomic expert explained that it is «the most difficult book to write in a sector» and said that it will serve students, entrepreneurs and professionals in the industry. The book aims to help reduce uncertainty and improve decision-making in gastronomic restoration projects, and proposes approaching restaurants as companies that should be profitable, sustained and well managed. It applies the Sapiens methodology, developed by elBullifoundation, and connects all the key decisions of the project: from the definition of the gastronomic offer, the identity and the business model, to the economic and financial planning, the preparation of the opening and the management of the restaurant once in operation. The book is complemented with digital content that includes editable templates, checklists and practical resources, designed to facilitate the real application of the business plan in the day-to-day life of the restaurant. The publication of the book is part of the strategic collaboration between both entities, which began ten years ago to promote professionalization, training and applied knowledge in the restaurant sector.
