Press Release
April 23, 2007

Food and beverage expert advises ski lodge in mountains of Georgia

VANCOUVER, BC – When the owner of a rustic ski lodge in Georgia asked for help to make his restaurant and bar business profitable, the Canadian Executive Service Organization (CESO) sent Horst K. Plaster, of Vancouver, British Columbia.

"Despite having invested a great deal of hard work, money and enthusiasm, the client had very little knowledge about running a successful food and beverage business," recalls Horst, who has spent his career in the hotel and restaurant industry.

He was Food & Beverage Manager at Jasper Park Lodge for a number of years, General Manager at Hotel Nova Scotian in Halifax and also owned his own restaurant at one time.

He joined CESO as a Volunteer Adviser (VA) in 2001 and has completed 15 assignments, 13 of them overseas.

A non-profit, volunteer-based organization, CESO provides economic development and governance expertise to client/partners in Africa, Asia, the Americas and emerging market economies in Eastern Europe and to Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians.

Horst is one of CESO's 3,000 VAs, a nation-wide talent bank of senior level individuals who have the ability, expertise and passion to provide business advisory services, mentorship and technical expertise to clients who could not otherwise afford a paid consultant.

For this assignment, Horst travelled to the village of Gudauri in the Caucasus Mountains, 120 km from the Georgian capital of Tbilisi. He says the lodge employs nine female staff, including the manager, and provides food and beverage services, but not accommodation.

"My assignment was to evaluate the operation and suggest improvements which would lead to increased business levels and a profitable operation," explains Horst. "At the end of my assignment I was able to present to the client a system which would allow him to improve the food, bar and service quality."

A control system was introduced for food and bar Inventories, as well as cash control, effective yet simple enough to be used by employees from local villages with little or no experience. Some new marketing ideas were suggested and a template reflecting a Profit and Loss statement was provided.

"Reports from the client indicate that the systems introduced are working well; he has enlarged existing facilities and is hoping to add guestrooms in the future," says Horst. "It was a challenging, yet very satisfying assignment. The remoteness of the location, lack of facilities and poor accommodation were more than compensated for by the wonderful, enthusiastic and hospitable people I worked with."

Challenging might be a bit of an understatement. One day there was a gas pipeline explosion that knocked out the power to the lodge. No power meant no heating system when the outside temperature was 15 degrees below zero.

"Horst managed not only to survive and take the challenges with a bit of humour, but to do a great job," says CESO's country representative in Georgia. "Horst does have a really unique character and the ability to adapt to any conditions."

As a leading Canadian international development agency, CESO's work overseas is largely supported by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) while the national program receives primary funding from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC). Additional funding comes from client/partners, multilateral agencies, Canadian corporations, foundations and scores of interested individuals.

Does all this sound interesting? For information about donating to CESO or to learn about becoming a volunteer, please visit www.ceso-saco.com.

-30-

For more information, members of the media may contact:

Josie Marchese
Communications Manager
Tel: (416) 961-2376 Ext. 253
jmarchese@ceso-saco.com

Horst Plaster
Tel: 604 988-2534
plasters@telus.net