M&C takes five minutes to talk to Jamie Barber, the restaurateur behind the Cabana and Hush Brasserie, about a billion dollar idea and the looming rise in living wage.
What’s your main business priority for the coming 12 months? We are looking to do another five sites in 2016 which will present geographic and infrastructure challenges. The 2016 Olympics in Rio gives us another impetus to continue to educate customers about Brasil and Cabana’s take on Brasilian food and culture.
What is the best marketing campaign you have seen this year? We recently won the Eat Out award for best use of social media for our #WeAreBrasil which featured huge posters of Christ the Redeemer with that hashtag but without using any Cabana branding. Red’s ran a great engaging campaign of YouTube videos which was terrific.
Where did you have your best meal this year?
I am a big fan of The Palomar which is owned by an old school friend of mine, Leyo Paskin.
Which business in the sector provided the best experience?
I still find The Delaunay a pretty perfect service experience and the right balance between preciseness and informality.
What is your main concern for the sector?
Property prices and the increases in minimum wage are the two big spectres that are restricting growth by making more marginal site decisions harder to approve.
Which other business (any sector) would you most like to run and why? I would imagine that coming up with a piece of technology that goes from zero revenue to a billion dollar valuation in 12 months must be pretty rewarding!
