Covid 19 Response | Main Course

Hope For Hospitality

- Covid 19 Pandemic Response

Services required: Public relations | Crisis management | Content creation | Non-profit

THE CHALLENGE

Survival.

With the greatest obstacle the hospitality industry has ever seen, Covid 19 presented many challenges. But with every void, there's an opportunity. Together Main Course Hospitality with renowned Chef Don Splain and other hospitality powerhouses, launched the Hope For Hospitality initiative.

The goal: Support the restaurants that were struggling to keep the lights on, supply support to first responders, and bring awareness to the business community of hospitality and its place in the local economy.

Be there for hospitality the way it's always there for us.

THE WORK

Create a strategy plan that brought ROI to restaurants in the form of takeout and delivery, paid for by donations, and to feed those in financial need, industry employees, and first responders.

Execute a PR campaign to gain massive media coverage for the work being doing to continue the model and on-board additional restaurants

Start a non-profit 501c3 that can take this endeavor post Covid-19 and compete with the other hospitality organizations in Florida.

Work with business industries that were not affected by Covid-19 and integrate corporate sponsorships

When the world re-opened back again, through the non-profit, host fundraiser events to keep the mission going

THE RESULTS

Very quickly, the Hope for Hospitality initiative grew with legs of it's own.

What started as an idea between Main Course and The Founder's Bistro to support the hospitality industry during this time of need AND finding a way for each our entities to survive, evolved into a community backed mission still supported to this day.

During the period between April to December 2020, Hope For Hospitality raised over $75,000 for restaurants across SWFL, fed 15,000+ hot meals to those in financial need and first responders, and partnered with over 20 other non-profits and businesses.

Click to Watch

$75,000

raised for restaurants

15k+

hot meals served

20+

new partnerships

26 news spots & articles

1 hospitality non-profit

OTHER OUTCOMES

1. Hope For Hospitality Restaurant Week
(100% of proceeds goes back to SWFL restaurants)

The Hope for Hospitality Restaurant Week serves to encourage diners to find participating restaurants with a prompt to give back to their community.

One dollar from every meal sold during Hope for Hospitality Restaurant Week will be donated to Florida Gulf Coast University’s Resort & Hospitality Management program. Rooted in the understanding that the future of hospitality will not be canceled, support for the education of the industry is also important.

“Our students are the future professionals of our area and hospitality industry all over. We’re all in this together” said Dr. Michael Martin, president of FGCU.