Article

Provista Hospitality Offers Perks That Go Beyond the Plate

December 16, 2019
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The Provista Hospitality Program offers a diverse range of products and services to meet the needs of many different types of businesses, from casinos to high-end resorts and everything in between. David Richard, senior director of Program Development for Provista Hospitality, explains what the program entails, the members it serves, the value it brings and how it’s different from other group purchasing organizations’ (GPO) programs.

Q. What types of members does Provista serve through the hospitality program?

A. The hospitality program’s members range from luxurious resorts to beautiful boutique hotels to large sporting arenas and stadiums, music venues, casinos and even theme parks. On the recreation side, we also serve aquariums, zoos and convention centers.

Q. Does serving a wide range of members require a diverse portfolio?

A. Absolutely. For example, boutique hotels require high-quality specialty products. We offer everything from luxury European linens to caviar, to nachos at a ball game. Not only do we have a full portfolio of food built especially for hospitality, but we also have robust offerings beyond the plate. We provide IT services, security and surveillance for casinos and resorts, and anything a hospitality related company would need on any given day.

Q. GPOs are mostly new to hospitality. Are members now realizing the value you bring?

A. We provide savings and reduce costs—the average savings are between 15% and 20%. Our savings are usually facility-wide. We helped one member streamline purchasing and consolidate suppliers, which reduced invoices, drove costs out of the system and reduced the number of daily deliveries by 10 trucks a day. At most hospitality companies, employees may not have time to focus on reviewing national agreements and negotiating best in the market pricing. Their focus is providing unique and great experiences to their guests. Our members usually don’t have large purchasing departments, so we act as an enhanced extension of their department to help them save time and money to bring savings to their bottom line.

“We provide savings and reduce costs—the average savings are between 15% and 20%. Our savings are usually facility-wide.”

Q. What benefits beyond contracts help differentiate Provista’s services from those of other GPOs?

A. Our program is so much more than agreements and pricing. We go far beyond that. Our job is to constantly look for ways to save members money, and we do that by looking at members’ spend on an ongoing basis. We utilize program analytics to supply members with information monthly, quarterly and annually so they can make the decision on how much they really want to save.

We offer a proprietary member dashboard, which is a great tool. It shows members’ spend by category and the products and services they utilized. It also shows all of their program financial incentives, giving members suggestions on reducing costs. Members have everything they need to make more informed purchasing decisions, all in one place without having to go through endless amounts of reports.

Q. In what other ways is Provista different?

A. One way Provista is unique is that we create mini-customized shows where we bring in our strategic suppliers to present to our members at the end-user level. Members can see new products, upcoming trends and new flavors so they’re prepared for what their guests are going to be asking for next. Seeing and sampling new foods that have been specifically selected for their operations has been a big hit with our members.

Q. How does the Hospitality Advisory Council add value to the program?

A. The council is made up of members from hotels, casinos, resorts and other hospitality businesses. Council members provide us with direct feedback on what products we should have on contract, what trends they’re seeing and what price points we need to have. They’re a great resource and critical to our continued success.

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