No course

Corinne CutajarCorinne Cutajar

Freelance designer Corinne Cutajar finds it is somehow inappropriate to talk money and deals while at table. She also admits that the main reason she does not do business lunches is mainly because of time.

“People have too many commitments nowadays and break time is valuable,” she says.

The designer does not do business lunches. However, she says that they could have a positive effect on clients, as the setting could be a casual, informal one.

Academic Sandra Vella hates business lunches but admits that sometimes they are a necessary evil.

“I enjoy my food and lunch breaks are meant to be about eating and about taking a break. So to me a business lunch is akin to a Christmas test: the juxtaposition doesn’t really work,” she says.

Jurgen GaleaJurgen Galea

That said, she concedes that: “If lunching means that the other is mollified and mellowed, as a result of the gratification which can come from eating after a period of hard negotiation, then I wouldn’t want to miss the opportunity for a gentle re-entry into the topic of negotiation.”

Lawyer and gourmand Jurgen Galea is on the same page as Cutajar and is adamant that, “good food should not be spoiled by business talk”.

He does note, however, that a business relationship may be established or improved over a good meal. But, he says: “A good business meeting is all about ideasfuelled by coffee or tea or any other beverage of choice, but you should never ruin a good meal with sums and figures. But maybe that’s just me.”

Second helpings

Neville BezzinaNeville Bezzina

For Neville Bezzina, director at InboundMuse, business is all about relationships and people and goes as far as to compare business relationships with dating. One needs to work on building relationships.

“When the only reason you’re meeting someone is to get them to buy from you, they will know, even if you buy them the finest wine. It’s just not a good foundation to build a relationship on,” Bezzina says.

“I never try and go in with a specific agenda. It’s more about picking the other person’s brains, understanding what makes them tick and forging a solid connection based on trust. It’s not that different from dating really,” he says.

Some lunches turn into deals eventually, others turn into partnerships, yet others have an intrinsic value. Bezzina says that you might learn something about the industry your lunch guest works in that you hadn’t thought of.

Jonathan DalliJonathan Dalli

For Jonathan Dalli, founder and managing director at Concept Stadium, the most important aspect of a business lunch is having an agenda that all parties follow.

“A lunch that does not stop at merely how tasty the food was, but rather a set of action points that all parties need to follow up on, constitutes a successful business lunch,” he says.

On the other hand, and speaking from first-hand experience, Dalli notes that a bad business lunch is where discussion stops at the weather and football.

Dalli has business lunches around twice a week and advises that no more than four is the ideal number of diners. For such lunches he meets clients with whom he already does business as a means of client retention and to take stock of their views on their service levels, hot leads or prospects and partners in business in view of any possible strategic collaborations.

Edward Duca Photo: Julian BonelloEdward Duca Photo: Julian Bonello

Edward Duca, manager of Science in the City and editor of Think magazine is a believer in business lunches but says that they are rarely anything fancy. They are usually just lunch and everyone pays for themselves, unless the other guests are students, when he pays.

Duca does business lunches every week during which he meets a wide variety of people, from performers and scientists to writers, installation artists and students. He also meets people he needs to discuss EU projects with, plan events and brainstorm for ideas.

“I use business lunches to get to know the person and to think in an informal environment,” he says. However finances are never discussed over lunch.

I use business lunches to get to know the person and to think in an informal environment

Duca finds business lunches very effective to build a relationship with the other person.

“We all need to eat and when the workload starts becoming overwhelming it’s an excellent way to kill two birds with one stone. Business lunches are the ideal way for some creative brainstorming. The environment helps you relax and that helps my creativity.”

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