FACING A FINANCIAL CRISIS - THE CASE OF SPANISH RESTAURANTS

The research is situated in the field of crisis management in the tourism industry. The purpose of the study is to detect crisis readiness of Spanish restaurants. Restaurants feature rarely as object of analysis in crisis management studies. In 2008, shortly after the beginning of the current financial crisis, a survey was conducted among 291 Madrid restaurants with a response rate of 62 %. Results indicate that restaurant owners / managers fear financial crisis more than other forms of crisis. A financial crisis is considered to be more damaging for the business since it lasts longer and impacts the business more than other types of crisis. Furthermore, it could be confirmed that size is a good predictor of crisis readiness. Larger restaurants did engage in formal crisis planning. Age did not prove to be a predictor of formal crisis planning. However, older restaurants are likely to have lived through a crisis and adjusted accordingly by adapting their internal organization.