Message from the International Chair

This is my first letter to you all as the new Chair of the International Council of Management (ICM).  There are thanks to be given, a welcome and good luck in a new role.  Thank you to Mike Donohoe, of the Americas, for his exemplary time as Chair of Council and to Ian Nicol who has now stood down from Council having been a member since 2013.  A welcome to Stephen Harrison who is the newly appointed EA representative and also good luck to Council member Nicola Lee who has now taken over the role of AP Chair from Council member, Michael Tamburri.

Firstly, on behalf of you all, I would like to thank Mike Donohoe for his tireless support of IWFS and his exemplary time as Chair of Council. We will continue to benefit from his wisdom and knowledge of IWFS as he continues as a member of Council. I would also like to thank Ian Nicol for his contribution to IWFS on his retirement from Council. Over more than 10 years, Ian was a member and Chair of both Council and Europe Africa – he attended many International and regional festivals, as well as organising some very successful ones on behalf or Europe Africa. He has been replaced by Stephen Harrison, the newly appointed Chair of Europe Africa.  Nicola Lee has also been appointed as Chair of the Asia Pacific region, taking over from Michael Tamburri.

The purpose and tenets of our Society have been long established - obviously a love of food and wine, voluntary service to achieve its aims, working together to generate benefits and experiences for our members, and to attract potential members.

I believe strongly that the core of our Society is our branches/chapters and that our branches/chapters have a plethora of ways in which to satisfy their members' expectations. Examples include regular dinners with fine wine, access to wonderful wine cellars, focussed wine tastings, local visits to producers of wines and food, food and wine education, events in special venues not normally available to individuals. Members, when travelling, can also exploit the unique international spread of the Society by contacting branches throughout the world.

Many of our members joined the Society through contact with friends or family. Our membership profile, except in parts of Asia Pacific, has aged significantly over many years. To maintain our presence as a pre-eminent Society we need to recognise the major shift in the way younger generations communicate and socialise, to ensure that we generate experiences which will enable us to attract new members.

I believe that we underestimate the value of our Society’s publications and products, as well as our history, much of which lies dormant in our archives. How can we exploit these assets to attract new members? Our activities have been a considerable beneficiary, as well as a contributor to, the hospitality industry and “gastronomic” tourism over many years. Through IWFS connected charitable foundations and other contacts with educational institutions, we have contributed to the development of future generations of industry professionals. We could do more!

The bedrock of everything we do is dependent on the voluntary contribution of our members, whether it is organising events in branches/chapters, keeping records of members and funds and many other necessary tasks. I thank all of those who already “make things happen” in the Society and would urge all members to improve their experience by “helping” in some way or another.

During my term of office, I look forward to meeting members from all our regions. Furthermore, if you have ideas about our future direction or even should not do as a Society, please contact me by email at chair@iwfs.org.

All the best,
John Nicholas,
Chair, IWFS Council of International Management