Good practices implemented by international tourism businesses - The Lake House case study

Chapter I – Introduction

Tourism has become a popular global leisure activity, being at the same time, a growing and highly competitive industry in virtually every country of the world. Therefore, it creates a demand for managers who possess appropriate knowledge and skills to succeed in the dynamic market place. Nowadays, the emphasis is focused on the management and the marketing of the commercial tourism companies. This is one of the reasons why I have chosen my topic to be Lake House and I’m going to present briefly their good practices in tourism business.

Firstly, this fabulous restaurant was built by a couple, Alla and Allan Wolf-Tasker. The Lake House seeks to differentiate itself from other hotel restaurant competitors in order to increase customer satisfaction and develop new services for the exact same reason. Since they’ve understood that the key to success lies within their bases, they’ve implemented different good practices. Practices such as the passion for food and wine had a significant impact. Also, staff empowerment for a greater involvement and their commitment made them a more efficient and responsible resort. Being a customer oriented company has its benefits in todays’ business activity as the demand for these types of activities are higher and higher. Being a people-centered tourism business, they also care about their staffs rewarding them periodically, thus creating a positive behavior among their human resources.

Secondly, due to the newly technologic advances, it’s important to run a business in an efficient way and always provide your customers with innovative products. The Lake House has set for their business key performance indicators and has implemented an intelligent content management, in order to provide a higher quality performance for their customers. Furthermore, a good marketing technique can boost a company’s reputation. Thus being able to employ various promotion strategies and tie different partnerships is definitely a plus in today’s competitive environment. The Lake House is a sustainable and social responsible company given by their numerous implications in the community they live, providing charity programs or helping public sector, protecting the environment.

Their commitment, passion, reputation, success and performance made me want, not just to write about this resort, but also going there:

“The Lake House .... the most sublime location for chilling out” The London Sunday Express

“There’s a generosity of spirit in the service and the food that makes Lake House Restaurant so truly wonderful". The Age Good Food Guide

It has taken 22-years to get the business to where it is today. Its growth and development has a considerable relevance for New Zealand’s food and wine tourism operators. The keys to Lake House’s success are presented in this case study. They demonstrate a clear understanding of the true meaning of hospitality, a commitment to staff well-being and development, an innate ability to know one’s market, a willingness to fully engage with the tourism industry, a dedication to involvement in the local community, and, perhaps most importantly, an overwhelming passion for excellence in food, wine and customer service..

Chapter II - A Lake House case study

Lake House is a hugely popular destination in its own right and it is credited with putting Daylesford on the tourist map. The restaurant, in the small town of Daylesford 90 minutes North West of Melbourne, does sell something else though: they sell a philosophy, a passion, an indulgent and tranquil experience.