CLASSIFICATION OF SCALING PATHWAYS FOR ENTERPRISES IN THE HoReCa BUSINESS SEGMENT

Abstract

Business scaling in the HoReCa sector represents a crucial driver for sustainable enterprise growth, ensuring long-term competitiveness and stability in a highly dynamic market. Scaling enables companies to achieve economies of scale, enhance operational efficiency, strengthen market positions, and expand brand awareness both locally and globally. Recent studies emphasize that the growth of hotel and restaurant networks provides opportunities for large players to invest in advanced booking platforms, customer loyalty programs, digital marketing, and integrated IT ecosystems—resources that remain inaccessible to most small and medium-sized enterprises. Moreover, diversification of geographic presence and service portfolios reduces vulnerability to market volatility, economic downturns, and seasonal fluctuations, thereby reinforcing organizational resilience.

This paper systematizes the principal models of scaling HoReCa enterprises, including organic growth (opening new outlets, service diversification, geographic expansion), partnership-based development (franchising, strategic alliances, management contracts), and integrative strategies (mergers and acquisitions). Alongside these classical approaches, it analyzes the emergence of innovative scaling formats, such as digital transformation, the use of online platforms, the proliferation of virtual brands, and the growing relevance of ghost kitchens, which enable multibrand development with minimal investment in physical infrastructure.

The study further demonstrates that successful scaling requires careful balancing of service quality, brand consistency, and operational control across the network, supported by adequate financial resources, qualified human capital, and continuous technological upgrades. It highlights the importance of integrating standardization with local adaptation as a global best practice, allowing enterprises to meet consumer expectations while preserving efficiency. Finally, it is argued that the accelerating influence of digital ecosystems, evolving consumer preferences, and the rise of flexible consumption models are reshaping the sector’s competitive landscape. These transformations create new opportunities for growth, but simultaneously demand from enterprises a high degree of strategic adaptability, innovativeness, and proactive management in order to succeed in the long run.