Restaurant Organisations & Associations
There are numerous trade associations for the food service industry. Most offer plenty of free advice and publish relevant trade magazines as well as great award ceremonies every year. There are a lot of Trade Organisations out there for the hospitality industry, many with excellent benefits and reasons to join.
Below is a list of just some of the reasons to join a Trade Organisation.
Benefits of membership include:
- Networking with colleagues and friends is a major benefit of joining a food service organisation. The hospitality industry is notoriously tough, and its tight-knit community provides support, advice and education to its members.
- Many Trade Organisations also serve as a great source of talent for recruiting. A lot of organisations have jobs sections on their websites, and events are also a great way of finding your next superstar employee.
- Financial benefits such as discounts on training and education courses and potentially discounted rates from suppliers.
- Trade Organisations also conduct industry research and analysis that can be very useful to its members. Forecasting industry trends and providing valuable insight for their members are a key tent of Trade Organisations.
This is not a complete list, far from it, but these are just some of the Trade Organisations we admire in the UK, Ireland and North America.
Check out the following:
UK & Ireland
The British Franchise Association
The BFA is the voluntary self-regulating governing body for franchising industry. Becoming a franchisee or a franchisor? This is a great place to start.
The British Beer and Pub Association
The BBPA is the leading organisation representing the UK beer and pub sector. Their members account for 98% of beer brewed in the UK and own more than half of Britain’s 54,000 pubs.
The Sustainable Restaurant Association
The SRA is a not-for-profit, nationwide, membership based organisation committed to promoting sustainability across the UK’s restaurant industry, from high street chains to fine dining operators. The SRA provides restaurants with advice and support to help its members navigate the whole spectrum of sustainability issues.
The Restaurant Association of Ireland
The RAI is the representative group for the Irish Restaurant Industry, providing a wealth of benefits and services to restaurant owners.
USA & Canada
The National Restaurant Association
The NRA is a restaurant industry business association in the United States, representing more than 380,000 restaurant locations
American Hotel & Lodging Association
The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) is the sole national association representing all segments of the 1.8 million-employee U.S. lodging industry, including hotel owners, REITs, chains, franchisees, management companies, independent properties, state hotel associations, and industry suppliers.
Slow Food USA
Slow Food USA is part of the global Slow Food network of over 100,000 members in more than 150 countries. Through a vast volunteer network of local chapters, youth and food communities, we link the pleasures of the table with a commitment to protect the community, culture, knowledge and environment that make this pleasure possible.
Restaurants Canada
Restaurants Canada is a national, not-for-profit association representing Canada’s diverse and dynamic restaurant and foodservice industry. With more than one million employees; 80,000 locations; and 18 million customers a day, the restaurant industry is the number one source of first jobs for young people.
National Coffee Association
Whether your company is a roaster or importer, retailer or wholesaler/ distributor, a company that provides services to the coffee industry or one that grows coffee or exports it to the United States, your NCA membership will give you all the information you need to stay on the competitive edge.
Speciality Coffee Association
The SCAA has also been at the forefront of developing and promoting specialty coffee and is committed to meeting the challenges of a rapidly changing industry by setting and maintaining standards, expanding our professional certification programs, conducting industry-specific research, and providing even more opportunities to connect, exchange, and work together so our industry continues to thrive.
