Liverpool-based Lucky Penny has joined forces with procurement specialist, Phil McGuinness, to assist hospitality businesses as they emerge from the lockdown. Tony McDonough reports

Liverpool-based hospitality consultancy has created a new procurement business to help the hard-hit sector respond strongly after the coronavirus pandemic subsides.

Lucky Penny Consultants has joined forces with procurement specialist, Phil McGuinness to provide a ‘one stop shop’ for the effective management and reduction of costs for all areas of the hospitality industry, from hotels to bars, restaurants to leisure outlets.

Their new service can also be applied to any sectoral needs, including retail, FMCG and manufacturing. With a client base covering the UK, Europe and the UAE, the new enterprise will be known as Lucky Penny Procurement. 

They will use a three-pronged approach to support businesses:

• A supply chain diagnostic report to ensure value for money, to check it’s ethical and sustainable, including benchmarking and risk analysis.
• Utilising their own e-procurement platform to manage markets more efficiently, reducing costs and accelerating the tender process.
• Helping their clients to maintain lasting relationships which generate trust.

Lucky Penny says it can assist all businesses from boutique bars to large hotel groups to obtain best prices and to negotiate with their suppliers for everything that their business needs.

Phil McGuinness will be the managing director of the venture. He has more than 20 years’ experience of purchasing and consulting having held senior purchasing and director roles at ASDA, The Real Good Food Company and BrightSourced Consulting.

Lucky Penny Consultants is run by Steven Burgess and Josh Moore who recently opened Abditory in Liverpool’s quirky Queen Avenue which links Dale Street and Castle Street in the city centre.

Lucky Penny also launched the Love Lane Brewery in 2017, while Steven Burgess co-founded the hugely successful Camp & Furnace venue in Liverpool’s Baltic Quarter. Lucky Penny are currently bringing forward multiple schemes across the region, including the multi-million-pound Beacon Arts Village in Hoylake, Wirral.

Mr Burgess said: “This is an incredibly difficult time for the industry which is also affecting our own business. The full impact of the pandemic on the hospitality sector has yet to play out fully, but it has already been catastrophic for businesses and jobs.

“In response to this crisis, we decided to adapt and innovate and bring forward plans to expand our services, not only to ensure our long-term survival, but also to help others to plan properly and implement the correct strategies to make vital savings for when they can open their doors and trade again.”