Stephen DiPrima, division president of Sodexo USA’s Leisure and Recreation Services, says that despite the recession his group’s business has grown 23 percent as consumers trade long-distance trips for daytrips to zoos, museums and theme parks. The key to maintaining that momentum, he says, is providing the best possible product and service at the group’s lengthening roster of sports and theme parks and cultural destinations.
Sports parks are something new for Sodexo in the States, right?
We entered into a relationship with RFK Stadium [in Washington, D.C.] this past year, and that’s been very successful. And our college division runs stadiums that are tied to different colleges and universities. But our sweet spot has really been museums, aquariums and zoos. We do have a very high-quality focus, so we see a real opportunity in the sports and stadiums business, to be able to deliver a high-quality visitor experience. We’re looking at that market closely and will add relationships where we think it makes sense and where we think we can be successful.
How do you account for the Leisure group’s growth despite the economic downturn?
In our cultural-destination business, sales are divided into two parts: visitor dining and special-events sales. For the most part, attendance has been holding. We have quite a bit of anecdotal information that tells us families are doing shorter vacations and “staycations,” which means there are more visits to ballparks and zoos. There has been a large drop in corporate catering, but business from social and nonprofit events is strong, still good. I mean, maybe it’s not growing as fast as it did in the past, but it’s not heading in the wrong direction like some of the corporate dining and catering has been. We are continuing to add new products and innovative promotions, adding points of service that help us to enjoy rising per caps even in this environment. We’re giving visitors what they want in a quick format that focuses on quality.
AT A GLANCE EDUCATION: bachelor of science degree in hotel management, Dallas Baptist University in DallasAGE: 48HOMETOWN: Naperville, Ill.HOBBIES: “I’m a dabbler; I play a lot of tennis, am a big baseball fan and love the stock market, but not as much as I used to.”PERSONAL: married, three children
How are you promoting the perception of value?
We’re trying a lot of different things: combo meals that increase the perception of value for visitors, a variety of kids’ meals and the addition of new products. At a theme park we serve in New Hampshire, we noticed there was a good piece of real estate there so we decided to put a fried-dough stand there. It’s the kind of thing that’s very common in the New England market; it’s a flat piece of dough served with confectionary sugar. It’s an example of something we try to make sure we’re doing—adding something that fits into the theme of the venue that doesn’t necessarily have a broader, national appeal but maybe a local appeal.
What parts of the business are not doing as well as expected and what are you doing to turn that around?
It really goes venue by venue. Those that rely on corporate catering are suffering and those that are weighted more toward social dining are not as bad. In times like this it’s easy to take a short-term view of things. One thing we haven’t done is reduce resources or staff. This economic downturn is going to end, and when it does we want to capture an even bigger portion of [business] than we already have.
What are the biggest challenges you face right now?
Managing the short-term deterioration in sales while focusing on quality and preparing for the eventual turnaround. We’re growing very fast, so it’s important we have a strong bench and make sure our managers have the tools to be successful.
