The major aspect that was unique about my study abroad experience was all the company seminars I attended. I participated in the 2017 Summer Europe Program where we visited 6 countries in 23 days. In each country, we learned from a variety of international companies, which gave us an inside look to how business is conducted in those countries.
One of the most memorable company visits from the program was a seminar with Hard Rock Café in London. Our group met with Hard Rock Café’s Senior Sales Specialist & Marketing Manager, who expressed the importance of marketing in order for a company to survive. Not only did she give us an inside look to how Hard Rock promotes their business, but she also explained how the company became what it is today.
International Marketing
Today, the café is an international company with venues in 74 countries. These venues include 174 cafés, 24 hotels, and 11 casinos. The company revolutionized itself with unique logos, pins, atmospheres, and food. Currently, the Hard Rock Café has been planning events, promotions, and sponsorships that aim to expand into the Asian markets and target millennials.
Hard Rock is continuously working to get the word out and promote itself on buses, hotel flyers, and social media. Hard Rock also does unique promotions to increase foot traffic, like creating local burgers. For example, the Jambalaya Burger is only served and sold at the New Orleans location. Hard Rock also promotes events like the Battle of the Bands and has menus for group style events in order to keep getting more people in the door.
History of Hard Rock
Hard Rock Café was founded by two Americans in London in 1971, who worked as salesmen in a Rolls Royce dealership. They were given permission to open the café in the dealership and they requested that the café logo be designed after the Chevrolet logo. And thus, the Hard Rock Café was born in London with the mission to serve authentic experiences that rock.
We learned that the iconic memorabilia that Hard Rock is known for didn’t start until 1979. It all started when Eric Clapton wanted to save his seat by placing his guitar over it in the London café. This led to jealousy by other celebrities who then began to ship their items to the café to have their seats saved as well.
Personal Takeaways
This company seminar helped us realize that anything is possible in life if you set your mind to it. The two American men had a dream without a single idea about how it would turn out. One just needs passion, dedication, and desire in order to accomplish their dreams.
I was honored to be able to learn all of this and more at the original location and according to the Sales Specialist & Marketing Manager, the busiest location out of all the 174 Hard Rock Cafés. My group also had the honor of seeing the sacred London Hard Rock vault, where the queen at one point even had her jewels held there.
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