HoReCa—short for Hotels, Restaurants, and Cafés (or Catering)—is the shorthand the hospitality and foodservice world uses to describe the professional channel that serves meals, drinks and accommodation. It’s a practical label, but behind the three letters lies an enormous global industry: consumer-facing, trend-driven, operationally intense, and a major engine of economic activity.
1. What Does HoReCa Mean?
HoReCa groups together businesses whose primary activity is serving food, drink and/or accommodation to guests. That includes:
- Hotels and resorts (room service, banquet halls, in-house restaurants)
- Restaurants of every stripe (fine dining, casual, fast-casual, chains)
- Cafés, coffee shops, bakeries and small F&B outlets
- Catering and contract foodservice (events, corporate catering, institutional foodservice)
The term is used by suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and consultants to differentiate professional foodservice demand from consumer retail (grocery, e-commerce). Thinking in HoReCa terms shifts the buyer’s priorities: volume, durability, replacement cycles, wash-ability, and consistent aesthetics matter far more than in the single-family consumer market.
2. Why Is the HoReCa Sector So Important?
HoReCa is huge — and it matters to the global economy in multiple ways: revenue generation, jobs, cross-border tourism spillovers, and the supply chain for food, equipment and tableware.
A few recent, reliable data points that show scale and momentum:
- The global foodservice / HoReCa market was roughly $3.1 trillion in 2023–2024, and major industry analysts (Grand View Research / IMARC / Business Research Company) project continued growth in the coming years. This figure covers restaurants, catering and related foodservice sales worldwide.(Source: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/)
- The broader travel & tourism sector—of which HoReCa is a core component—contributed about US$10.9 trillion to the global economy in 2024, supporting hundreds of millions of jobs; WTTC’s economic impact research highlights how travel recovery and rising visitor spending feed hotel and restaurant demand worldwide. In short: when tourism grows, HoReCa grows with it. (Source: https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/)
Why those numbers matter to suppliers and tableware makers: HoReCa buys at scale, cycles stock frequently (breakage, refreshes, menu rebrands), and spends on specialized products (hotel china, banquet sets, heavy-duty stoneware). For manufacturers and exporters, HoReCa is often a more stable, predictable revenue stream than retail—especially for companies that can meet certification, durability and supply lead-time requirements.
3. Who Are the Major Players in the HoReCa Supply Chain?
HoReCa doesn’t function in isolation—its performance depends on a wide chain of suppliers and partners:
- Hotels, restaurants and caterers(the end buyers). They set product specs: stackability, kiln-fired strength, glaze compatibility with dishwashers, color and logo options.
- Large distributors and foodservice wholesalers(Sysco, US Foods, Compass, etc.), which aggregate demand and supply restaurants and institutions at scale. These players often control what products restaurants actually receive and rapidly change ordering behavior.
- Tableware manufacturers and specialist makers (porcelain, bone china, stoneware factories), who design product families specifically for HoReCa’s heavy usage patterns.
- Third-party logistics and importers, because many HoReCa buyers prefer consolidated sourcing and shorter lead times.
- Designers and culinary consultants, who influence trends and product selection through presentation techniques and plating preferences.
Understanding this chain helps explain why ceramic dinnerware makers must deliver not just beautiful designs but tested durability, consistent color batches, and reliable delivery schedules.
4. Why Ceramic Dinnerware Matters in HoReCa
Ceramic dinnerware is the most common and influential category of tableware in HoReCa—and for good reasons that span taste, performance and culture.
4.1 Practical performance
Professional porcelain, stoneware and bone china are fired at high temperatures to become vitrified and low-porosity. That translates into better chip resistance, dishwasher resilience, low water absorption, and consistent heat retention—all critical in a fast-paced kitchen and busy service environment. Chefs and M&E managers care about plates that survive repeated wash cycles and look the same dish after dish.
4.2 Presentation and branding
Ceramics are the canvas for a dish. Chefs and restaurateurs use plate shape, finish (matte vs. gloss), rim width, and color to frame food and reinforce the restaurant’s identity. Custom glazes, logos, and signature shapes become part of the brand experience.
4.3 Timeless cultural role
Porcelain and ceramics carry centuries of cultural value. As Robert Finlay argues in “The Pilgrim Art: Cultures of Porcelain in World History”, porcelain shaped global taste, trade routes, and artistic exchange—porcelain’s status as both functional object and cultural symbol has deep historical roots. That historical weight makes ceramic dinnerware more than just functional; it’s a storytelling tool that connects a guest’s meal to a longer heritage of craft and style. Quoting that scholarship helps explain why ceramics never go out of fashion in HoReCa settings.
5. Advantages of Ceramic Dinnerware for the HoReCa Industry
Here’s a practical breakdown of how ceramic dinnerware supports HoReCa operations and strategy:
- Durability and cost-efficiency: High-fire porcelains and vitrified stonewares resist chipping and thermal shock better than earthenware. Less breakage = lower replacement costs and fewer supply headaches.
- Heat retention and service quality:Ceramic holds heat, helping dishes arrive at the right temperature—important for guest satisfaction and perceived food quality.
- Hygiene and compliance:Low porosity means fewer food residues and better sanitation. Reputable manufacturers also provide lead/cadmium testing and compliance documentation required in many markets.
- Aesthetic flexibility: From rustic hand-thrown stoneware to thin, translucent bone china, ceramics can match any culinary concept. They allow chefs to “frame” food the way photographers and food critics prefer, which matters for social sharing and PR.
- Custom branding:Ceramics accept underglaze/overglaze logos, rim colors, and bespoke shapes—so hotels can present a unified brand experience across outlets and events.
- Sustainability potential:Well-made ceramics last longer than many alternatives, and some factories now use lower-impact glazes and eco-efficient kilns—important as HoReCa buyers adopt sustainability policies.
Final Thoughts
HoReCa is more than a market category—it’s a global ecosystem that connects tourism, dining, design and manufacturing. Recent market data show the sector’s size and resilience: billions in annual turnover, strong employment impact, and steady growth tied to travel and consumer confidence. For suppliers, that means opportunity—if you can meet the HoReCa bar for durability, delivery, compliance and design.
Ceramic dinnerware sits at the intersection of function and storytelling for HoReCa. It keeps food hot, survives the wash line, and communicates brand and culinary intent in a single, beautiful object. As scholars like Robert Finlay have shown, porcelain’s cultural role runs deep—so while plating trends come and go, ceramic dinnerware remains a durable, practical, and emotionally resonant choice for hotels, restaurants, and cafés.
