When I came to Britain aged 14, as the son of Kurdish refugees from Turkey, I was immediately drawn to the familiar smells of a restaurant cooking my native cuisine. There, I found myself well-suited to the lively atmosphere of the kitchen and it was this first experience of the hospitality industry that set me on a path to opening up a number of my own restaurants and eventually to launching the Kebab Awards.
Last month, I was delighted to host our 6th annual Kebab Awards in London, an evening that celebrated the cultural and economic contribution this cuisine has made to the UK. As Chairman of the British Takeaway Campaign (BTC), an umbrella group representing a diverse range of cuisines in the takeaway industry, I am excited by similar celebrations taking place across our industry this year.
These include the Golden Chopsticks Awards earlier this month, the first event to highlight the contribution of oriental cuisine to the UK, National Pizza Day and National Fish and Chip Day. Plus, with the Bangladeshi Caterers Association Awards, the Curry Life Awards and the British Takeaway Awards still to come, there are still many more to look forward to.
These annual events are an opportunity to recognise the often overlooked success of the UK’s takeaway industry, which is an engine of economic growth, generating £9.4 billion a year and employing more than 231,000 people across the UK. As someone who grew up working in a takeaway, I understand the hard work and entrepreneurialism that is driving the growth of our industry and I’m determined to see it continue to thrive. But despite takeaways being a British success story, the industry faces some hurdles. While takeaway spending is expected to hit £11.2 billion in 2021, the sector is now facing a triple whammy of rising businesses rates, food price inflation and a looming recruitment crisis.
That’s why the BTC was formed – to give our industry a platform and a voice – and to provide solutions to the challenges that takeaway businesses face. Spearheaded by Just Eat, our members include: Bangladesh Caterers Association; British Kebab Awards; CurryLife Magazine; Foodservice Packaging Association; Just Eat; K10 restaurants; National Federation of Fish Friers; Nationwide Caterers Association; Night Time Industries Association; QuickBite; SeeWoo; UKHospitality, Westmill Foods; the Catering Equipment Suppliers Association and the UK Bangladesh Catalysts of Commerce and Industry. The BTC also works in collaboration with the Pizza, Pasta and Italian Food Association.
One of the biggest burdens for our members remains business rates, and the latest uplift in rates, which came into effect this month, will have potentially disastrous consequences. That’s why the BTC have called on the Government to overhaul the current business rates regime to make it fairer and more transparent, as well as to ensure that local councils are prevented from hoarding business rates relief funds. A full review of the business rates regime is now long overdue.
Access to skills remains a barrier to growth for many small businesses. As the owner of three small restaurants that employ over 60 people, finding the right staff is becoming increasingly challenging and this is something that is felt across the industry – almost a quarter of takeaways are unable to recruit the staff needed to run their businesses. The impact of this is evident on London’s Brick Lane, where curry houses have been disappearing from the high street, partly as a result of not being able to access the specialist staff and chefs they need.
The Government should ensure our immigration system enables takeaways to recruit from within the European Union and beyond. This includes addressing the anomaly in the Shortage Occupation List which allows for the recruitment of specialist chefs for restaurants – but bizarrely not for those working in takeaways. The current salary level for a non-EU visa, which requires restaurants to pay at least £29,570 per year – also needs reviewing as a matter of urgency.
At the same time, we recognise the need to attract more home grown talent to the takeaway industry, which is why we want to work with Government on shaping the new vocational Catering and Hospitality Technical Level. Taking this twin-track approach to the UK’s skill shortage is crucial in ensuring our industry’s continued economic growth.
While our sector has often been an unsung hero, we now have a powerful united voice to stand up for our industry and deliver meaningful change. The BTC will play a crucial role in championing our sector, which makes such a significant contribution to the social and cultural enrichment of the UK’s high streets.
By Ibrahim Dogus, chair of the British Takeaway Campaign and founder of the British Kebab Awards