Podcast appearances and mentions of Danny Meyer

For the final episode of this season's Owners Box, we talk to Chip Wade about how the unique approach to ownership of Union Square Hospitality Group, from its founding to its current capital stack, shapes how they go to market.Special Guest: Chip Wade.

Today we're doing lunch at Manhatta, towering 60 stories above the financial district. Joining us is Rick Heitzmann, co-founder and partner at one of New York's most influential early stage venture firms, First Mark Capital.  Rick has been early to some of the most category defining companies of the last decade, backing names like Pinterest, Airbnb, and DraftKings. That foresight has landed him on the Forbes Midas list, not once, not twice, but five times. And if that wasn't enough, he's living the dream of every New York sports fan, joining the ownership group of the New York Yankees. Timecodes: 00:00 – Cold open: The Vilification of AI 01:08 – Meet Rick Heitzmann 03:18 - Philly Sports Fan Turned Yankees Owner 05:02 - How Rick Got Into Yankees Ownership 06:00 - Spotting Trends Early: DraftKings, Airbnb & Pinterest 07:50 - Sports Betting, Prediction Markets & Integrity in Sports 09:40 - Danny Meyer, Hospitality & NYC Restaurant Culture 11:27 - Why the Restaurant Business Is So Tough Right Now 12:46 - AI, Digital Health & The Future of Healthcare 15:45 - The Explosion of Women's Sports & Sports Merch Culture 18:02 - The Great Jersey Debate: Should Adults Wear Them? — FOLLOW US Instagram: riskreversalmedia   Twitter: https://x.com/riskreversal LinkedIn: riskreversalmedia   #investing #stocks #stockmarket #ApexFintechSolutions Standing Table is made possible through our continued partnership with Apex Fintech Solutions. Apex Fintech Solutions provides the tools and services that enable hundreds of clients to launch, scale, and support digital investing for tens of millions of end investors. The company provides essential infrastructure and a comprehensive ecosystem of cloud-based products to enable and streamline trading, wealth management, cost basis, tax reporting, and, through its subsidiary Apex Clearing™, custody and clearing. For more information, visit the Apex Fintech Solutions website: https://apexfintechsolutions.com/ LinkedIn: apex-fintech SUBSCRIBE: RiskReversal Pod for more from Guy and Dan: https://apple.co/3RzvgpD RiskReversal Media channel for more episodes and content:    / @riskreversalmedia   The financial opinions expressed in Risk Reversal content are for information purposes only. The opinions expressed by the hosts and participants are not an attempt to influence specific trading behavior, investments, or strategies. Past performance does not necessarily predict future outcomes. No specific results or profits are assured when relying on Risk Reversal. Before making any investment or trade, evaluate its suitability for your circumstances and consider consulting your own financial or investment advisor. The financial products discussed in Risk Reversal carry a high level of risk and may not be appropriate for many investors. If you have uncertainties, it's advisable to seek professional advice. Remember that trading involves a risk to your capital, so only invest money that you can afford to lose. Derivatives are not suitable for all investors and involve the risk of losing more than the amount originally deposited and any profit you might have made. This communication is not a recommendation or offer to buy, sell or retain any specific investment or service.​​

  “Subscribe to free weekly news letter HUNGRY FRIDAY FEAST” here”  "Hospitality happens for people, not to them." In this masterclass of an episode, Unreasonable Hospitality author Will Guidara sits down with Dan Pope on the Hungry podcast to unpack the magic behind Eleven Madison Park's meteoric rise to the best restaurant in the world. From leaving a full bottle of cognac with the bill, to systemizing serendipity with Tiffany & Co. engagement flutes, Will explains why true excellence requires a healthy dose of unreasonableness. They dive into the tension between perfection and human connection, the power of a 'Red Team' in creative brainstorming, and how to apply Michelin-star hospitality to any industry—even a UPS store.ON THE MENU:00:00:00 Intro00:01:01 Excellence vs. Hospitality00:03:49 The Fueling Power of Praise & Criticism00:13:20 Redefining Hospitality in Any Industry00:18:18 Creativity: Inviting People Into Your Imagination00:22:11 The UPS Store & Chewy: Systemizing Magic00:35:45 The Cognac Check Drop at Eleven Madison Park00:44:10 Scheduling Creativity & Collaboration00:49:07 Moving to Nashville & Embracing Messiness00:58:27 Reading the Room: One Size Fits One01:06:48 Systemized Magic: The Tiffany Engagement Flutes01:08:32 The Miles Davis Approach to Restaurants01:18:13 The NoMad Chicken & The Red Team01:28:59 Customer Recovery as Your Best Marketing01:32:36 Seth Godin's Girl Scout Cookie Advice01:35:35 Danny Meyer & The Power of Language01:46:34 Do Not Ruin a Story With the Facts01:53:08 The Art of Gathering & Designing Events02:00:11 Savannah Bananas: Changing the Rules02:11:03 The Peak-End Rule & Letting Go of Control02:22:35 Confidence, Ego, & Meeting Your Heroes02:30:49 AI in Hospitality: Copilot, Not Autopilot ============================================== ♨️Still bloody HUNGRY? Course ya are. Each week I spend 15 hours writing my newsletter. It'll take you 5 mins to read. Full of wisdom from the biggest names in food and drink. Subscribe here - https://hungryfeast.beehiiv.com/

Chef Hillary Sterling of NYC's Ci Siamo finally has a cookbook to call her own. “AMMAZZA! Culinary Adventures from New York to Italy and Back Again” is out tomorrow and showcases everything Hillary loves to make, from Roman pastas to Mexican food to Jewish classics with a twist. And the title? Ammazza is Italian for “you killed it,” “you slayed,” or good old “wow!” Hillary joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about the long road to “AMMAZZA!” and what the cookbook process taught her about herself and her cooking. She shares stories from her New York restaurant career, from working for Bobby Flay at Mesa Grill to cooking with Missy Robbins at A Voce, and opens up about the painful zero-star review she received at The Beatrice Inn, and how it ultimately helped her find her footing. They also dive into life at Ci Siamo, the women leading kitchens across Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group, and their exciting plans to bring Ci Siamo to Boston. Plus, Hillary talks pasta, vegetables, vinaigrettes, rainbow cookies, and why she doesn't have measuring cups at home.  You can find Hillary's Grilled Asparagus with Ramps & Mint Vinaigrette recipe from “AMMAZZA!” on our Substack. Thank you to Davines and Jackson Family Wines' La Crema for their support.  The Blue Heron California FarmThis Is A Curl Binding Serum from Davines Sign up for our free Radio Cherry Bombe newsletters at cherrybombe.substack.com More on Hillary: Instagram, Ci Siamo, “AMMAZZA!” cookbook More on Kerry: Instagram, “So You Want To Open A Restaurant” Substack series

On May 31 – June 2, in NYC, the industry-defining NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference is taking place. In this Suite Spot episode we are pulling back the curtain on what to expect at this year's landmark event. Joining us on the Suite Spot is Alexi Khajavi, President of Hospitality, Travel, and Real Estate at Questex. In this exclusive preview, Alexi breaks down the 2026 NYU IHIF agenda and shares why this year's gathering is more critical than ever for hospitality leaders, hoteliers, and investors.  Tune in now. Ryan Embree: Welcome to Suite Spot, where hoteliers check in, and we check out what’s trending in hotel marketing. I’m your host, Ryan Embree. Hello everyone. Welcome to another episode of The Suite Spot. This is your host, as always, Ryan Embree here with another hospitality event preview with a very familiar guest, very excited about this conversation. It’s spring, so right around the corner, we know what’s next, one of the premier events of the hospitality event calendar. Here to talk with me, a frequent guest, Alexi Khajavi, Questex, President, Hospitality and Real Estate. Alexi, thank you so much for joining me again here on the Suite Spot. Alexi Khajavi: Ryan, great to see you. Great to be back. Ryan Embree: Yes, it has been too long since we last spoke. We were out in Denver together at the Hospitality Show there on stage. Alexi, you were talking about everything that happened over the course of an entire year. I feel like from October to where we sit right now, in the middle of spring, it’s felt like a complete change. Whirlwind. I’m not even sure if when this episode’s released how much there could be even more change, but since then, so ground us. Give us a little sense of the state of hospitality and the sentence EE everything that you’re feeling right now. Alexi Khajavi: What we saw each other end of October in Denver, just at the conclusion of the hospitality show. And I guess, yeah, to your point, every day is, like an like a year or or seven years for that matter. So, six months on I mean, some consistencies, and I suppose the consistency is the volatility just in the geopolitics, macroeconomics, local state of affairs. And that does have a knock on effect on, on tourism and hospitality certainly. But some of the themes are consistent and that is that it is a, a continued challenging operational environment. rev pars have which we talked about rev pars, we were starting to see some normalization after they had been really on a only an up into the right performance for the prior three years. We started seeing that slowing down in Q3, Q4 of last year. And that has continued. One of the, the aspects, and a lot of people are talking about it, is a Ks shaped economy. And so you’re still seeing some, some interesting and pretty exciting, RevPAR ADR growth on the luxury side of that upper part of the K, if you will. And in the lower K of the market, you’re, you’re seeing increasing and continued challenges. Right? And I think everyone is sort of asking two questions around that, which is one is how much more runway of growth does the luxury market have? And then in on, on the sort of upper upscale midscale and economy, is the economic conditions going to encourage a trading down of the consumer. Speaking to David Pepper, for example, from Choice yesterday, they are seeing some positive RevPAR growth in that upper upscale, which, they’ve got a lot of hotel stock in. So I think the question is and we’re seeing some data that the customer is still traveling. They still see both on the leisure sh leisure side from the experience economy, travel as not being discretionary and not being something that they’re willing to give up, but something that they may trade down for make it more economical, domestic tourism, and drive to staycations those types of things versus the international travel, which certainly was in demand for the last three years. Corporate travel, I think that’s, that’s directly tied to GDP and the economy. But again, corporate travel has actually been coming back. It lagged leisure tourism recovery. So that’s been, performing quite well. Again, business is done face to face. It’s why we do live events in the, in, in, in the sectors in which we serve. So, continued operational challenge, questions around demand, a lot of impact from AI on demand, and how that demand is coming to your brand.com or to your property website, how they’re searching. SEO is in massive disruption. So, it’s not a typical recovery at this point. It’s, it’s fragmented, it’s bifurcated. It depends what part of the market you are in. There’s divergent recovery that’s sort of replacing that, that high tide lifts all boats. That uneven demand is translating into really kind of diversity of performance. And so it depends what markets you’re in. So the operating side is, is is tough. It is becoming harder and it is becoming more expensive. And yet there are some tools out there, AI and others, and technology generally that’s offering a lot of opportunity for optimization, efficiency, productivity in those areas, which will flow through to the bottom line. And then we’re also seeing, kind of a bifurcation in the capital markets. On, on, on the big side, there is a ton of capital that is chasing hospitality, moving from other asset classes whether it be office or retail or industrial. And they’re moving into hospitality for all the reasons that it’s operational real estate. It’s a tailwind market from the experience economy, despite the fact that we are cyclical, right? It goes up and down, but there’s a ton of liquidity. There’s a, there’s a wall of money that’s chasing, the asset class ranging from your owner operator franchisee, which is looking to grow from three properties to 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, whatever it may be, to institutional capital, which really never looked at a hospitality in general. So that’s creating more diversity in the type of investors which is coming into the market. So again, all of that challenge could unlock the transaction market. And then with those transactions, we see this regeneration of capital CapEx is deployed, and that’s really good for the industry. I mean, nobody likes to see falling net operating incomes, in running hotels. But that being said, it means that people have to be hyper-focused on how to run those hotels more efficiently. Why we run the hospitality show. And at the same time, NYU coming up, a lot of new capital coming into the market, a lot of capital chasing that, trying to figure out where the deals are, where to deploy that capital. And again, that’s why we have events like IHIF EMEA in Berlin, which was a few weeks ago. And to your point, NYU IHIF coming up in five weeks. Ryan Embree: It’s so many storylines in our industry right now that we’re chasing. We’d even touch on the upcoming summer, summer World Cup and events like the Olympics here in a couple years that are also gonna have a massive shift in international travel, which has been down. So again, so many challenges, but also think opportunistic time right now in hospitality and being at a spot like NYU is one of those places to capture those opportunities, to learn more about that from your peers, to have those conversations. Networking, I mean, I’ll, I’ll turn our attention there with some impressive numbers from the event. 2200 delegates, 450 plus C-suite executives, 400 plus investors, and $132 billion in assets under management there. So it’s impressive, like I said, impressive feat and number that you have all gathered in, one of the hospitality meccas of the world, which is New York City. What makes this event different from other hospitality events, and why is it a really a can’t miss for, for hoteliers investors this year? Alexi Khajavi: Yeah, I would say it’s a couple of things. One which you touched upon, which is, New York City financial capital of the world, it is the gateway city for the us it is, a hospitality driven economy. But it’s also one of the most thriving, financial market economies, in the US and certainly the world as well. So, that if you were to think, where do you hold an investment forum in any sector, but for that matter, in hospitality, New York, no better place, right? The money is there, the banks are there, the professional services are there, the brokers are there and many of the, the top brands are on the Eastern Shore board from DC and Maryland, up to the city here. So, it is just simply having it in New York. Second, it’s got a 40 year history associated with the New York University and the School of Hospitality and the John Tisch Center of Hospitality. It’s the only event where a portion of every dollar and revenue spent there goes towards supporting the next generation of hospitality professionals. So, we continue to partner with NYU and the School of Professional Studies. There, it’s an incredible partnership, which we’re just privileged and delighted to continue. And the fact that labor and talent is a massive challenge for the industry that, that you’re, you’re supporting a school which is turning out some of the most talented future hospitality professionals in the world by attending or sponsoring that’s goodwill. And, and we’re just delighted to be able to support that. So, that, again, I think is another anchor for why NYU is just such a special event and is different from a lot of the other good events that are, that are out there. And then lastly, NYU is part of a global portfolio of hospitality investment forums. And so, we have our event in Berlin. We have an event in Manchester, UK. We have an event in Athens, Greece, which is focused on the branded resi and the resort, segment, which is international and frankly, one of the fastest growing segments in hospitality. And then we have our Asia event in Hong Kong. So, we’re able to still bring in that global capital, those global operators that want to do business, want to bring their brands, want to deploy capital, want to invest in the us. So it’s not just a New York show, it’s not just a US focused show, but it’s a North America event where how do operators, how do investors, and how does the ecosystem of professional services come in and facilitate and drive deals to invest in the US and North American hotel market and all those things coming together, make it vibrant, make it diverse, make it one of the most active deal making conferences in the circuit. It really is for the investors to connect, with each other, but also the rest of the segments and the stakeholders, as it’s very diverse and fragmented industry. So deals get done. I mean, it was just on a in a conversation, a few weeks ago talking about a deal that’s been, announced since then. But they met in New York last June and really kicked off those conversations there at New York. And that ultimately consummated in a deal, in the fourth quarter of, of, of last year. We know that that’s what our value proposition is, and we know that’s why people spend their time with us and invest in, in NYU and we expect it to be even more vibrant and active on the deal making side, this June. So it should be should be a good event. Ryan Embree: That’s why I was gonna say, I had the privilege of attending for the first time last year, and I think the biggest difference for me was just the energy and the buzzing, and it just, it felt like what you said, it felt like deals were moving forward, whether that was the first time someone was connecting and networking, or whether it was something where these, these deals are not done in a vacuum or a silo that they take time, they take effort, and they take meetings like this, right? This connection, sometimes it’s, especially in a challenging market, can be the thing that brings a deal across the finish line. So it was palpable in the air when we were at that event last year. And it was a, it was a who’s who in hospitality too. You turned one way as a brand leader over here. Next is a president of asset management company. It really was an an extremely impressive event. I wanna get your thoughts, Alexi. You mentioned the sister events, the IHIF emea, which just wrapped up here at the end of March, obviously completely different markets that we’re talking about, but I still think holistically, there’s probably some lessons, feedback and sentiment that you could probably share that will translate into NYU, right? And some of those themes that are gonna make it there. What was your kind of, I guess, overall sentiment about the event and how just the energy and hotelier’s feeling was around that event? Alexi Khajavi: Yeah, I mean to go back to the start of the podcast, every day, there’s been something else. There’s been a, a ton of volatility in the market, a lot of uncertainty in, in the world. We still have a, a conflict, going on in, in Europe with, Ukraine and Russia. We now have a conflict happening in the Middle East. You’ve got macroeconomic conditions of still tariffs and the inflation that is causing interest rates still remain elevated, albeit they’ve, they’ve come down, over the last sort of 12 months. Elevated however, to historical, all of that creates uncertainty in the market. And as an investor said in, in Berlin, we can, we’re very good at penciling in risk and quantifying, the impact of that risk on both present day valuation. And a 20 year IRR, what is harder to pencil in is volatility and uncertainty. The certainty of risk is fine because you can quantify, the impact that that risk will have on the business. What you can’t is the uncertainty. And so with that, what we saw in Berlin, however, is that really is driving a lot of engagement around the expertise and the speakers and the sessions. We really pride ourselves on not having the same speakers every year saying the same things. We always leave a portion of our programs sort of unfinished, if you will, or, started but un unfinished because, because of that volatility in the market. So we saw a huge amount of engagement with people in the, in the sessions, in the rooms, which is interesting because at the end of the day, it is a deal making conference. And people are in meeting rooms, they’re up in suites they’re in the lobby and they’re, they’re engaging with each other, they’re there to do business. But we saw a lot of engagement, increased engagement with the sessions that we had. We then saw those individuals that were in a session often go out of the session and engage with each other and engage with speakers. And so one of the things that we’re doing is creating content fueled networking. So, a session will then lead to a round table where the speakers will stick around and the delegates or the folks that were in that session as an audience are able to then continue that conversation and go deeper and get into an actual conversation rather than just sort of a q and a that’s, that’s tagged on at the end. So it really created a, I think, a huge amount of engagement and peer-to-peer conversations. And really, I think people seeking a perspective. When, when you’re in a volatile market, really the most important thing you can do is to, to talk to your peers, to talk to your competitors, to talk to your mentors and get different perspectives to try and create some fidelity of what didn’t work or what has working, or what are the things that you’re trying out that’s really exciting. I mean, we really love that because, an open market, a transparent market, and an engaged market on the buy side and the sell side is a more informed market. Everybody needs that, right? It just makes markets more efficient. It make every, makes everybody better operators, and it creates a transparency as to where those opportunities are. And that’s, that is a, a tide that does lift all boats. The other thing I would say, Ryan, is, is that there’s always this question in an, an investment forum, like IHIF, like NYU as to what the sentiment is. And we’ve been tracking investor sentiment for the last five years now, since, January of 2020, which was an interesting time to first sentiment. Yeah. And it’s interesting because it certainly went down during COVID, no news flash there. It quickly rose up from 22 to 21 to 24, and then it’s leveled off since then. And it’s kind of just, a few index points gone, gone up or down depending on all of this volatility Liberation day last year, which was the first day of April, if I’m not mistaken, which was actually right during IHIF was created a lot of pessimism. It, however, was replaced with some optimism as interest rates fell down. So the sentiment to that question was, was actually quite positive. I think maybe through just the density of volatility or the consistency of volatility. People are somewhat getting used to it and separating noise from substance. And, and really there are the, there are more deals coming to market. We are seeing a diversification of capital coming into the market, lot of high net worth, lot of family office, a lot of institutional capital, sovereign wealth pension funds. And what that’s creating is more demand. So you’re starting, when we talk to the brokers, you’re starting to see a number of underbids in terms of a mandate comes to the market. A transaction occurred, but there was 6, 7, 8 under bidders in that transaction that shows interest, it shows appetite and it shows that the bid ask gap to a certain extent is narrowing. Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean in all cases that valuations have come down. I think buyers would like them to, but at the end of the day, I think capital, and we’re seeing capital become more confident and have more conviction in the market, but that also there are regeneration opportunities through CapEx deployment, through repositioning and through other levers that they have to pull, that they can take an asset that is performing at x and through CapEx and better operations and better plans, better brand, make it X plus y. And that was really the sentiment coming out of Berlin that the market is opening up, that there is a diversity of capital coming into it that’s creating a lot more demand and through a number of different sort of challenges, or let’s just say realities on the operator side, you are seeing a higher interest in selling. And I think that that will start to, to narrow the bid ask gap and look the unlocking of the market. We’ve been waiting for it for two, three years. It’s been a challenging market, but I think everyone’s seeing some optimism. I think the wishlist is, is that we reduce the amount of volatility in the market, but that’s an uncontrollable from your and and my perspective, we don’t have much control of that. Ryan Embree: Yeah. But I think the industry’s skin is, is thickening to that, right? And we’ve talked about that, how it’s our new normal is the constant state of change. And I also think it’s something, I’m not sure if we’ve talked about or thought about this too much, but we really saw worst case scenario just six years ago of being like, where everything dropped to none. When we’re assessing risk, we’re a lot more battle test. This industry is a lot more battle tested than maybe previous than it had previously. So some of these uncontrollables, like you mentioned, that yes, they are headwinds, yes, they are challenges, but it’s those investors right now that see opportunities that assess that risk and say there could be some really, really great upside at a at a time right now. And one of the places also where there is a lot of uncertainty, but I would, I would almost phrase it in the sense of a, of a positive uncertainty is the impact that AI is gonna have on our business in the future. And the gains and dividends that we can yield from those have really just scratch the surface. And we talked about this, and I wanna bring that into the conversation ’cause it’s hard to not talk about it anymore, right? It, I think we don’t go a, a podcast episode without bringing it up and people filling out their bingo cards on AI and technology. But I want, I wanna take us back to where we were a year ago, and maybe we can do this an exercise. Alexi, what would you grade right now, our industry, which historically has been maybe on the lighter end of the spectrum of a technology adoption, but what would you, what grade would you give it? Because I think we’re at this weird inflection point where hoteliers and brands and management companies and really everybody’s starting to look and saying, alright, we’ve implemented some ai. Where are the dividends? Where are the results? How do I measure these successes? What, what grade would you give and how do you think we can improve there? Alexi Khajavi: You know, that’s a, that’s a great question because it’s not an easy one to answer. Sure and not to cop out of giving you a specific answer, I would give it a a non-applicable, because the reality is, is that technology as a whole, in terms of using technology as a tool to optimize the hospitality market, I would certainly give ourselves a c plus. I think that’s historically been where we have failed for many reasons, which we can we don’t need to go into right , we know, we know that. But I think, I think AI right now is there is an overestimation of its impact on the near term, and there’s an under appreciation for its impact on, on the long term. Love that that’s, that’s quickly, quickly changing. I mean, if you, to your point, if you just look at the last six months, massive wholesale change, and I, so I think that that’s changing very quickly that people are starting to appreciate this. This is enormous, both in its capacity to be a force of good as well as its capacity to be a, a force of bad, to sort of broadly call it as such. But that being said, I think there’s sort of two themes around ai. One is on the, on the sort of operational side, AI has, has largely, I think been distributed as a individual choice through the industry and the departments. And the overall, whether you’re on the brand side or the operator side or the investor side, I know that there are mandates and there are committees and everybody’s sort of got their own playbook to how they’re using ai. But at the end of the day, it’s gonna come down to any individual that’s using it or not using it in their respective role. And that’s all over the map. Some people are using it, some people are not. And, and frankly, I think those that are using it are going to be better off for their r and d and just their effort to try and figure it out. Because the more you use it, the better off you become at using. It’s, it’s a tool like any tool, right? You, you need how to use how to use that tool in order for it to do the job you want it to do. So in that case, I think we’re probably no different than some other industries, which are certainly spending a lot of money on it and trying to figure it out. The other aspect of it though, that I think is really interesting is that it is already changing, particularly those frontline manager roles. A GM, for example, that is using AI will have more time to do the things that a GM should be doing, rather than all of the back office stuff, which AI can do at scale and at pace, and to a high degree of quality with oversight and q and a being done, not just to let AI go do all those things, but that, that frees up your general manager to go do the things that really drives guest satisfaction. Respond to RFPs, take care of guests, drive revenue, be present in the local market so that you’re capturing demand drivers, in your local city or wherever you may be. So, I think if that individual GM is using AI effectively to free them up to do what a GM really should be doing, and probably why that person went into being a GM in the first place, then I think we’re gonna start to see the progress. But we haven’t really started to measure it yet. I also see on the positive side, other industries, IE healthcare are also realizing that AI is doing a lot of back office work at a very high level, or high degree of, of quality. And that’s now freeing up their own people. And what they’re finding is, is that maybe we should be engaging, empowering those roles in a hospital or healthcare broadly to be taking care of patients in a more human hospitable way. And so, in some degree, I think the long-term impact will be that other industries are now going to start looking at hospitality as being a, at the vanguard of driving human powered experiences that will drive back to revenue and premiumization and ultimately profits. So we’ve always looked to other industries for, God, we’re, so, we’re Luddites, how do you do this? What, how do teach us in hospitality? I, I think we’re going to start to see other industries look to us to, how do you actually take care of a guest, a customer for that matter? How do you do that to create loyalty to, to a, to increase average order value or ticket receipts. So I think that’s the opportunity to answer your question in terms of one area that I think is directly and already being deeply impacted is distribution and search. Search is been a, a topic of discussion for the last 30 years. And we’ve largely gone through this used SEO to fine, the white hat, the black hat the right levers to pull your all tags, your meditechs, I mean, the whole thing, right? Brand equity, la la, la. Well, AI replaces all that in one fell swoop, and nobody really knows how that’s going to play out. But on the sort of doomsday perspective, it completely wipes out your brand equity online in a search engine. On the positive side, it reinforces it because AI is simply pulling from algorithms and behaviors on the internet to sort of drive, it’s, it’s results. But again, we don’t know the answer to that. And I think already revenue management, sales and marketing distribution, those are the areas where I think in the next six months, we’re gonna be having a conversation that is gonna be completely different than the conversation we’re having today. And we’re gonna be focusing a lot on that because that is one of the areas that today is being completely upended. Ryan Embree: I one hundred percent agree with you. I think that’s where a lot of the hunger and the appetite and thirst for knowledge right now of why maybe there’s more engagement in those sessions than you’ve seen before, is because I think people are starting to, if they haven’t already started to understand the gravity of where we’re at in this inflection point and the massive disruption that this is going to cause and do not want to be left behind. And I think you’re right. There was a fascinating point you made in there about the GM and their role, and we all, the big fears around AI are, are AI replacing jobs? And I would say when it comes to hospitality, it could really upend what the, the role of a job, right? Your GM might start looking a lot more like the GM of 40 years ago when you first got into hospitality, or where you weren’t having to do those tasks. And we almost have to learn this new job. It might be the same title as general manager, but you’re doing completely different things, which is a fascinating topic to talk about because we’ve been training these young hospitality professionals in the way of what a GM is today. That role could look completely different here in the next three to five based on the, on the speed and acceleration of these, of AI tasks that they’re doing. So it, I could talk about it all the time. We do talk about it all the time, I feel like, but it’ll be very interesting to see that impact that it’s making. I wanna switch back to NYU, and this is one of my favorite questions because there’s so much intention in these, in these shows, and that’s why I love doing these episode, these preview episodes, because you get to, to learn all the work that goes in, you’ve told me before you start on these events, day after, sometimes even now hours after that first one ended. So this year’s theme sharpening the edge. Talk to us a little bit about how the team settled on this and, and the story behind it and how you’ve incorporated it into the programming a little bit. Alexi Khajavi: Yeah, I mean, sharpening the edge is, an ode to the investment, nature of the event. It’s a deal making conference and it’s in New York. And so it’s a very sort of public market Wall Street saying, where do you find your edge or where do you find your alpha compared to another investor? If all you’re doing is chasing, the broad returns of a market or an asset class for that much, or for that matter, then you’re, you’re gonna be, at the whipping end of the overall broader market. It’s not a good place to be in a volatile market like this. And it doesn’t drive the outsized returns that investors are looking for. So it really is a tip of the, the cap to where we are. We’re in New York, we have a lot of Wall Street, public Market, New York Stock Exchange, synergies there, Sarah Eisen from CNBC, comes up and moderates the CEO panel. Most of the CEOs head down for interviews, on Wall Street and CNBC and Squawk Box and so forth. And we have that partnership still with CNBC this year. So, but as you shift it to what’s happening in the capital markets as it relates to real estate and more specifically to hospitality, private equity has been the dominant capital type in hotel investment. And that’s been the case for the last decade. And today that’s really no longer the case. It’s PE is still extremely active, but it’s more diversified in terms of across investor types. So we’re seeing, again, as I said, family offices, high net worth, a lot of sovereign, a lot of institutional capital that is growing materially, that is looking to hospitality to, to deploy capital. And with that, you’re seeing a lot of opportunities around value add. PE is really your value add investor, right? They’re looking for an underperforming asset or an asset that has the ability to perform at a higher level that’s sharpening the edge, that’s driving alpha. And so PE is really looking at this as a great opportunity as institutional capital comes in and is looking for stable, more stable returns, securitized assets, and an annuity like return over a longer hold period. It’s a great opportunity for private equity to exit in a market in which it’s been tough to exit. That being said, global hotel and fund allocations in hospitality and real estate has been tough, but it’s growing and it’s coming back. And so you’ve got a lot more money coming back into the market. And, and that’s really, a positive thing. We having events across Asia, Europe, and the us it allows for us to drive that cross-border capital. US capital has been less active, but despite all the challenges, we still see a lot of, international capital, which wants to invest in the us. So that kind of diversification of capital is a real, real positive for the market. It, it means more liquidity, it means more exit opportunities to get off, on the off ramp for PE or any other investor. As more capital comes in, it offers more opportunities to exit. It provides or, or enables less sort of seasonality, if you will, in the marketplace, right? There’s less of that volatility in the marketplace as all as well. So really the sharpening the edge is about having the education, the networking, and the quality of people in the room that have the money are looking to deploy and know how to create alpha. Getting those individuals together to hear from each other, engage with one another, and ultimately, build relationships with the ecosystem that helps a deal get done, transact that transacts, underwrites that deal, and then drives that alpha from an operating value creation perspective. Those are the folks that are in the room at NYU. Ryan Embree: And you’re right in the middle of it. I mean, I remember waking up at the, the marquee and seeing Chris Nasetta on CNBC and a few hours later seeing him just a couple hundred feet up on stage in front of me. I mean, that’s the possibilities right there. Alexi Khajavi: And talking to people, right? I mean, this is the beauty of the hospitality industry is there’s really good people, right? They’re just, at the end of the day, you may be running a public company, and on TV, you’re sitting there talking to a franchisee of a Hampton that wants to meet the CEO. So it really kind of creates this very magical engagement where the fifth floor, sixth floor, seventh floor, eighth floor of the marquee are just a hive of activity with the best and the brightest from a franchisee to Chris Nasetta, to your point, there’s not many places that create that access and that transparency and cross engagement from such a diverse, but focused, sector, as NYU. So it’s a real, real special place to be. Ryan Embree: A thousand percent. And last year you used this forum to really get us fired up for some of the sessions in educations. And now you’re talking about, especially with your experience here earlier in the year, people being more open to that, being more thirsty and, and hungry for that information, looking up and down the programming. Because we know you spoke to last year the detail and depth that your team goes to create these panels, and sometimes even putting on stage opinions that differ, that go head to head to one another, to try to get that friction to try to get a rise out of that engagement. Looking up and down the agenda this year, which sessions, if you had to pick a few, do you have your eyes on? Alexi Khajavi: Well, there’s some, some obvious ones, but always at NYU, we’ve got some, some exciting ones as well. And the first one, our first session actually Monday morning, Anthony Scaramucci, the Mooch, who is an investor himself actually owns a restaurant as well, but certainly, podcaster and just an expert, on the economy, politics, the Trump administration having worked, I think 10 days, there, if I’m not mistaken. So, he’s gonna kick us off. We always have a marquee name that’s relevant to the industry, but he really has his finger on the pulse as to, one, what are all the geopolitics and the macroeconomics, in the overall state of the economy and the country, what impact is that having on the investment markets on where the opportunities are? Alexi Khajavi: And as he runs a restaurant what is he seeing? What does he think specifically of the hotel space? So I think that’s, again, that’s, that’s just not something that you get at any of the other hotel investment forums, but you get that and you’ll get it right, served with breakfast on Monday morning. So we kick off big and we kick off bold on Monday. Obviously Monday has, is a great day. We have the CEO council on Monday as well. Or sorry, the CEO panel that’s the five top brands, again, interviewed by Sarah Eisen, which they have a great rapport with. And that really does set the tone for what they’re seeing as the opportunities. Clearly they are on top of demand and where RevPAR and ADRs and occupancies are going, how they’re performing and what the differences are by chain scale. There will be a lot of conversation around how much gas in the tank does luxury have I’m sure you’ll hear differing views on that. And then are we gonna see a return to some of the midscale and upper upscale, as potentially people trade down but still travel and where’s economy, where’s extended stay? We’ve also seen these brands make some interesting investments in new concepts, graduate hotels, which is last year, yo hotels glamping and branded resi. That’s a big day. In fact, we’ve got a full day of content on branded resi with active developers developing properties right now that are branded resi mix of hotel, mixed use, retail, hospitality and so forth. And then capital markets. Capital markets our Cap Talks session is probably one of our most popular, and that’ll be a mix of both active US investors as well as foreign capital, international capital investors, sovereign Wealth, as well as private equity, which continue to look to deploy capital in the US. Alexi Khajavi: We then have Danny Meyer, who’s the founder, and CEO of Union Square Hospitality, Shake Shack. And obviously a number of other incredible Union Square restaurants in the city here. But and then you’ve got your breakouts where you will be focusing a lot on the investment development market. Asset management is a key thing, how do you drive Alpha through the operations of these hotels? So there’s a ton of content. We’ve left a lot of time for networking. We know that’s where the deal making is the eighth floor, which is the lobby level. We’ve extended the event to include the Broadway Lounge, which is this beautiful lounge overlooking Times Square. We’ll have, food and beverage in there throughout the days. Great space to network amongst all the delegates, including the ninth floor where we’ve got Marriott and Hilton taking that space. So it’s just a ton going on. And the program’s out, it’s 90% there. We still got a few couple of marquee names that we’re going to announce over the next few weeks. But really, if you’re gonna be, if you’re in hospitality, investment development and operations where you’re driving Alpha, there really is no other place to be on the first and 2nd of June. You’ve gotta be there. Ryan Embree: Yeah. I can attest to it again, first time last year have the privilege of attending officially announcing the Suite Spot will be back at NYU this year. We can’t wait. Our associate producer’s gonna be traveling with me this time. This is her first time. And there is even a first timers meet and greet that you do as well at the event, which I had the privilege of partaking in networking last year. What type of tips for any hoteliers investors that might be considering or even attending the first time, what, what one piece of advice would you drill down for this event as the best piece? Ryan Embree: I would definitely get on the app. I know that the serendipitous meeting, which to your point, you bump into the CEO of Hilton or Marriott for that matter, is great. And that’s, there’s good value in that, but we have about 70, almost 80% of all delegates are on the app. That’s great. And that’s a great place to find people and to be found and it also gives you all the other information as the agenda speaker bios, but it allows for you to reach out to other delegates. So I would definitely do, that’s, something that can be sometimes just overlooked or just not not done. And then I would go to the Sunday evening reception if it’s your first time that’s at the marquee, six o’clock, we get about 500 people there. A good mix of veterans and, and first timers. I would certainly do that. I would try and plan out your days ahead. It’s amazing how with all that, with all everything that’s going on, you can easily kind of get sidetracked. So if there are some sessions that you wanna see, you can bookmark them in the app and make sure that you, you don’t miss those. But, I would, get some sleep, stay hydrated and be prepared to have some full days of education, networking and just a whole lot of fun. Ryan Embree: Yeah. And some of the receptions that are after hours at the end of the day, are absolutely amazing too. And I know you have sponsors that kind of do that, sometimes onsite, sometimes offsite, encourage, those to attend that in full force as well. Hospitality, we definitely know how to, to host a party, that’s for sure. So Alexi, we appreciate you hosting us here on the Suite Spot and previewing this year’s 2026 NYU. We are counting down the days until June. Thank you again to my audience to learn more information. Obviously visit the website, make sure you register. Any final thoughts before we wrap up today, Alexi? Alexi Khajavi: No, just very much looking forward to seeing you there and the other 2400 people that will be joining us. So, looking very much forward to it. And appreciate your time. Ryan Embree: All right, thank you, Alexi. Thank you for listening to The Suite Spot and hope to see you at NYU in June in New York City. To join our loyalty program, be sure to subscribe and give us a five star reading on iTunes. Suite Spot is produced by Travel Media Group. Our editor is Brandon Bell, with Cover Art by Bary Gordon. I’m your host Ryan Embree, and we hope you enjoyed your stay.

Jeremy Rhodes and Ali Chetkof Rhodes discuss the rapid growth of their business, Moonrise Bagels. The couple shares the story of how a pandemic-era experiment with "stuffing" a bagel with pizza ingredients evolved from a home-kitchen project into a multi-unit operation with a flagship location in New York City's Greenwich Village. Jeremy and Ali detail their transition from established corporate careers to full-time entrepreneurship, highlighting the operational challenges of moving from a small-town shop to the competitive Manhattan market. The conversation explores their unique product, which reimagines the bagel as a complete, handheld meal, and their focus on maintaining high quality through a handmade commissary process while expanding their reach nationwide via Goldbelly.10 Key TakeawaysThe "Accidental" Business: Moonrise Bagels began when Jeremy had leftover pizza sauce and decided to experiment by stuffing it inside bagel dough, leading to immediate viral interest on Instagram.Simplicity Scales: Jeremy advocates for a simple business model with a low SKU count to ensure operational efficiency and higher profit margins.Hospitality as a North Star: Both founders credit their obsession with "unreasonable hospitality" to their backgrounds, particularly Jeremy's tenure at Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group.Staggered Transition: To manage financial risk, the couple staggered their exits from corporate jobs; Jeremy went full-time to staff the first shop while Ali provided financial stability before joining later.The "Testing Ground" Strategy: They spent years refining their recipes and team culture in upstate New York before attempting the high-stakes New York City market.Revenue Diversification: Beyond foot traffic, the brand utilizes DoorDash as a "digital billboard" and ships nationwide via Goldbelly to reach customers in all 50 states.Product Differentiation: Moonrise Bagels are unique because they are stuffed with sandwiches and proteins, breaking the product out of the traditional breakfast-only category and into lunch and dinner.The Commissary Model: To ensure quality and consistency across multiple locations, they produce everything by hand in a central commissary and boil/bake the bagels on-site at retail stores.Entrepreneurial Delusion: The founders agree that a level of "obsession" and "delusion" is required to survive the 3:00 AM wake-up calls and the daily grind of the industry.Support Systems: They emphasize that being a husband-and-wife team helps mitigate the "lonely road" of entrepreneurship by providing a constant sounding board for ideas and challenges.

Volgens SME's Compete se direkteur, Danny Meyer, begin entrepreneurs as tuisgebaseerde informele ondernemings voordat hulle na die formele sektor oorskakel en tot klein, medium of selfs groot ondernemings groei. Mikro-, klein- en medium-ondernemings is Namibië se sleutel-broeikas vir entrepreneurskap en ondernemingsontwikkeling. Baie Namibiërs kry hul eerste betaalde werkservaring in klein plaaslike ondernemings, en dit help hulle om noodsaaklike vaardighede te ontwikkel wat later groter deure vir hulle oopmaak. Kosmos 94.1 Nuus het met Tim Parkhouse gepraat wat sê heffings en belastings maak dit baie moeilik vir klein ondernemings om suksesvol te wees.

Die Maatskaplike Voorsorgkommissie doen 'n beroep op alle geregistreerde besighede om hul werknemers se loonopgawes voor die einde van April via hul aanlynportaal in te dien. Die kommissie waarsku dat versuim om te voldoen, kan lei tot boetes, verlies van Goeie Aansien-sertifikate en selfs regstappe. Kosmos 94.1 Nuus het met SMEs Compete-direkteur Danny Meyer gepraat, wat sê dat die nakoming van hierdie riglyn veral belangrik is vir klein besigheidseienaars.

After working front-of-the-house roles at fine dining restaurants in New York City like Carbone, Baboo, and the Grill, Adam Reiner has seen all sorts of dining behavior. He'd like to help improve the dining experience for both diners and restaurants. His book "The New Rules of Dining Out" explores how diners can be active participants in the dining experience and start to see themselves as partners, not just patrons. It is both an obvious idea and a radical one. Of course, diners play a role in their dining experience, but many modern hospitality guides, like those from Will Guidara and Danny Meyer, put so much of the responsibility on the restaurant. Through his book and his conversation with guest host Gloria Dawson, Reiner argues that diners need a better understanding of how restaurants work and should stop having unrealistic expectations for a meal out. Books like “Unreasonable Hospitality” and “Setting the Table” spread “this idea that restaurants should be these life-changing experiences,” Reiner said. “Restaurants shouldn't be life-changing experiences; they should be life-affirming experiences. If we've gotten to the point where life-affirming isn't enough, then that's to me where there's a problem.”

My new book is The Price of Becoming. To order, go to www.LearningLeader.com/Becoming This is brought to you by Insight Global. If you need to hire one person, hire a team of people, or transform your business through Talent or Technical Services, Insight Global's team of 30,000 people around the world has the hustle and grit to deliver. My Guest: Will Guidara is the former co-owner of Eleven Madison Park, the restaurant he took from a struggling two-star establishment to become the number one restaurant in the world. He's the author of the New York Times bestseller Unreasonable Hospitality, the host of the Welcome Conference, and a co-producer on the Emmy award-winning series The Bear. Notes: Key Learnings "Obsession is a beautiful thing when you can grab it by the tail." This quote is from chef Sean Brock when he opened his pizza place in Nashville. For Will, obsession is when you care so much about something that you give all of yourself to bring its most fully realized version to life. What obsession means to Will: "Loving with every ounce of my being the pursuit of something."  He can't imagine a life where he doesn't have something to be obsessed about. When you lose yourself in the pursuit of something, that's when it gets ugly. Obsession is a beautiful thing if you can grab it by the tail. For those that can't, it becomes ugly. You need to hold onto yourself while obsessively pursuing whatever it is. Find a hobby to be obsessed with before you retire. Will is 46 and has seen people he's long looked up to finally retire in their late seventies without a hobby they're obsessed with. They're feeling listless and without purpose. He's thinking about this now for his future: start to become obsessed with a hobby so that when you do one day retire, there's something else to fall into. "Adversity is a terrible thing to waste." You cannot always control what life throws at you, but you can always control how you react to those things, what you choose to learn from them, how you allow them to fuel your competitive spirit, the perspective you glean from those moments. Allow yourself and your team to feel the weight of the disappointment. When there's a moment of adversity, leaders hear "adversity is a terrible thing to waste" and immediately shift into cheerleader mode. That is not the right thing to do. You need to allow yourself to be as human as humanly possible, and give your team the grace to fully feel the weight of that disappointment.  Sometimes adversity sucks, and you just need to be able to say, "This sucks. I don't feel good. I feel bad. Let's feel bad for a moment." Suffer together. When your team is going through adversity, you want to know that your leader thinks it sucks, too. It's good to feel bad alongside a community, but then after a measure of time, that's when you say, okay, now how do we grow from this? How do we use this to compel us forward? Be thankful for the tough moments. Will can look back at every tough moment with gratitude. The girl who broke his heart two years before he met his now wife, he's so grateful that she did. Breaking up with his business partner and selling his restaurant company felt like the worst thing ever, but he wouldn't have written Unreasonable Hospitality had that not happened. "Who is a restaurateur without restaurants?" COVID forced Will to find the space to decide what he wanted to do next. When he sold the company, two days later, he had a full-blown identity crisis. COVID gave him the gift of forcing him to find the space to decide what he wanted to do next, as opposed to running back to do the thing he'd always done. Team first. "The best way to make sure that you are taking care of your customers is to start by taking care of your team." This is what Will learned from Danny Meyer. The power of language to define a culture. How beautiful and impactful it is when you take the time to clearly and succinctly articulate your values through language. Danny spoke in "isms." Every time he gave them an ism, it was clear that thing mattered to him, so it needed to matter to the team as well. Cult is short for culture. Will's friends from college joked that he worked for a cult, but cult is short for culture. The funny thing is, they worked for companies that lacked a culture. Every great team feels a little cultish, and that's because of the leader. Hospitality is the advantage. The only competitive advantage that exists over the long term comes through hospitality. Every company is trying to identify its competitive advantage: what is the thing about the business that will prevent someone else from coming in and taking away its customers? Those conversations almost always center around the quality of the product or the strength of the brand. Here's the thing: it does not just matter how good the product is, and it does not just matter how strong the brand is, because eventually someone's going to come around and build a better product or create a stronger brand. Relationships matter. Hospitality comes through consistently, generously, and creatively investing in relationships. Those take a long time to build, and if you build them in the right way, the loyalty you will earn takes a very long time to erode. McDonald's vs. Chick-fil-A. The hospitality difference. McDonald's does some of the coolest marketing things in the world. Their product is consistent, and there was probably a season for a very long time where they were the best burger chain out there. Compare that to Chick-fil-A: if you ask 10 people who makes a better chicken sandwich, a lot of people would say other people make better chicken sandwiches than Chick-fil-A. But people are still loyal to Chick-fil-A, not because of the brand, not because of the product, but because of the way that they make people feel. Little gestures go a long way. Chick-fil-A does things like "my pleasure" and refilling your drinks in the dining room. These little gestures go a long way because we are much less likely to leave one company and go to another, even if the other company is better priced and the product is a little bit better. Food is just a conduit through which to express hospitality. As many stories as you hear about Chick-fil-A doing little and big things to make people feel seen, you don't hear those stories about McDonald's. And that's not an accident. One company has chosen to invest all of itself in pursuit of that. The other one has not. If you're in the business of serving other people, these opportunities exist for you in an endless way. Find the smallest touchpoints. Every experience you're serving is filled with lots of big and little touchpoints. The problem is so many companies focus on only the most obvious touchpoints without realizing that there is impact to be made with each one of them.  Hospitality is a craft, a muscle that you can strengthen. Will created the Welcome Conference because he wanted someone who was a server at a restaurant who had dreams to own their own restaurant to have a place where they could learn about the craft of hospitality. What you can't afford to do with money, you can afford to do with time. Will can't afford the kind of speaking fees that people who inspire others on stage at his conference deserve, so he came up with a more creative way to show appreciation: a dinner the night before. It's about community, because the people who take that stage have the responsibility to create the conditions through which attendees can come together and form community. And it's impossible to form a community for others until you first feel a sense of community amongst yourselves. There needs to be a good reason for the event to exist. Will created the Welcome Conference years ago because there were chef conferences all over the world, and he was always the only dining room person speaking at them. He wanted a place for the dining room people to have community. Gift bags are a terrible idea. People think the more they put in the bag, the more hospitable they are. It's usually junk. "I look at something, design the version of that I wish existed, work obsessively to bring that vision to life, and then welcome others into my imagination."  What makes a great conference is meeting the people at those events. The best events are about the people in between the meetings. That time matters. Energy in a room is so important. Will is one of the most extroverted people in the world, but if he walks into a cocktail party and he doesn't know anyone, he seizes up. He doesn't like it. He likes to be around people he knows. Be a connector. A month before Will's event, he realized many people were coming alone, which he wasn't expecting. They sent an email to all of them and said, "We saw that you're coming alone. We have an idea. If you'd like to meet some people, let us know." They set up dinner reservations at Will's favorite restaurants in Nashville and did some matchmaking. Those 40 people ended up coming into the beginning of the conference the next day already like this one big, awesome community. Make the "yes" as easy as possible.  Will gets Emmy screeners, and some people send DVDs (which he doesn't have a player for), while others send QR codes, which make it very easy to watch. The lesson: make it easy for people to say yes to what you're offering. Shop your own business. Stay in your own hotel. Until you've actually been on the receiving end of whatever you're serving, you have an inability to see all the things you're doing wrong or the opportunities you have to do more things right. "Never let a gracious impulse pass." There's the devil and angel on your shoulder. The devil will tell you how hard it will be. Don't listen to that. If you are going to shop your own business, when an idea pops up, do something about it. Get out of the sea of mediocrity. The Unreasonable Hospitality Guide is the "how." There are exercises on how to build a team, how to build a culture of hospitality, how to work with your team to create magic, daily huddles to move the needle, the dreamweaver concept, etc. "I've never once regretted caring more. I have regretted not caring enough." People can't always notice things, but they can feel it. Reflection Questions What are you obsessed with? If you had to retire tomorrow, what hobby would you fall into? If you don't have one, what can you start becoming obsessed with now? What adversity are you currently facing? Have you allowed yourself and your team to fully feel the weight of that disappointment before shifting into problem-solving mode? Map out every single touchpoint in your customer experience. Which ones is nobody else thinking about? How can you make those more awesome? More Learning #545 - Will Guidara: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect #372 - Will Guidara: The Nobility of Service Podcast Chapters 01:00 The Price of Becoming 02:16 The Correlation of Obsession and Excellence 08:06 Adversity Is Fuel 11:38 COVID Identity Reset 15:19 Lessons From Danny Meyer 20:36 The Hospitality Advantage 26:01 Touchpoint Experience Audit 28:55 Welcome Conference Preview 30:44 Creating Community Over Dinner 32:02 Creating A Magical Event  33:35 Why Events Must Exist 35:30 Designing Hospitable Touchpoints 40:42 Make It Easy To Say Yes 45:58 Never Let a Gracious Impulse Pass 47:29 Unreasonable Hospitality Field Guide: The How To 51:20 Obsession, Care, And Excellence 55:53 EOPC

#124Josh, Mike, and Matt sit down with Arjav Ezekiel, co-owner of Birdies and James Beard Award-winning beverage director, for a candid conversation about tipping, labor, and the future of restaurant models. Drawing from his time at Union Square Hospitality Group and his experience building Birdies, Arjav unpacks the intent behind Danny Meyer's Hospitality Included movement and why it ultimately failed. The group debates whether tipping is fundamentally broken, the role of legislation versus operators in fixing it, and how economics—not just philosophy—determines what actually works in restaurants.The conversation then shifts to solutions, with Arjav sharing how Birdies was built from first principles to solve for labor while maintaining high-level hospitality. By blending counter service with fine dining elements, rethinking team structure, and redistributing tips, the restaurant has created a more sustainable model. The episode closes with a broader reflection on innovation in hospitality, the importance of mentorship and the dining room, and why restaurants may become one of the last meaningful spaces for human connection in an increasingly digital world.Links and resources

Will Guidara is the author of Unreasonable Hospitality and the soon to release Unreasonable Hospitality: The Field Guide. Unreasonable Hospitality has become a New York Times bestseller and a business bible for elevating customer experiences. Will was co-owner of Eleven Madison Park alongside Danny Meyer when the restaurant ascended to #1 in the world, the co-producer of Emmy Award-winning streaming series The Bear, host of the Welcome Conference, and advisor to business leaders ranging from professional sports to financial services on the delivery of hospitality as a primary business strategy. Our conversation explores the operating principles of "unreasonable hospitality" across the identification and enhancement of customer experiences. Will describes operationalizing exceptional service, finding magic in repeated touchpoints, building teams that embrace hospitality, and leading others through vulnerability. Once in a while, I share a conversation outside of managers or allocators designed to help you level-up your performance and business. From the day I met Will several years ago, I knew he could do just that from his valuable insights and colorful stories.   Learn more about our Strategic Investments: Ascension.   Learn More Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Access Transcript with Premium Membership     Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠)

Namibië se rang op die 2026 Innoveerders Sake-omgewing Indeks is 86ste in die wêreld en tweede in Suider-Afrika. Namibië beklee ook die eerste plek in Afrika onder die markpersepsie-pilaar, wat dui op gunstige streekbeoordelings rakende bestuur, stabiliteit en internasionale toeganklikheid. Die indeks toon 'n goeie internasionale persepsie oor die land. Kosmos 94.1 Nuus het met Danny Meyer van SMEs Compete gepraat, wat verduidelik wat gedoen kan word om die sake-omgewing vir klein- tot mediumskaalse besighede verder te verbeter.

Dans cet épisode de CHEFS D'ENTREPRISE-S, on reçoit Bastien Peccoux, cofondateur de Dehli Bazaar et Mumbai Café, deux restaurants indiens parisiens qui réinventent les codes de la cuisine du sous-continent.Il raconte un parcours qui commence entre Marseille et Montpellier, avec un père entrepreneur et une mère qui aime cuisiner. Passionné par les repas de famille à rallonge, il apprend la cuisine provençale à l'adolescence avec sa mère et sa grand-mère. Bon élève, il choisit de faire une prépa puis une école de commerce parisienne, avant de réaliser que les métiers vers lesquels il se dirige ne le font pas vibrer.L'épisode revient sur le déclic pendant le Covid, le CAP Cuisine passé en candidat libre, et la décision de tout quitter à 27 ans avec Alexis, son associé designer, pour monter un restaurant. Un déjeuner suffit pour sceller l'association. Puis vient la rencontre avec Eqbal, chef bangladais au parcours exceptionnel, qui s'est laissé convaincre par l'aventure des deux entrepreneurs après une série de soirées pop-up improvisées dans son propre restaurant du 15e arrondissement de Paris.Cet échange évoque de l'obsession du contexte, ce mot emprunté à Danny Meyer pour décrire ce que Dehli Bazaar puis Mumbai Café sont venus créer à Paris : des restaurants indiens premium et accessibles, inspirés de Londres.Un épisode sur la quête du restaurant parfait, nourrie de voyages, d'histoires transmises et d'une équipe cosmopolite qui finit par s'approprier la marque.Pour découvrir Delhi Bazaar et Mumbai Café, c'est ici ! Cet épisode existe grâce au soutien de notre partenaire LightSpeed, une solution ultra efficace pour les professionnels qu'on vous invite à découvrir ici !

#121Josh, Matt, and Mike are back for another trio episode, and things heat up right from the cold open as Mike unleashes a spicy critique of Danny Meyer's restaurant empire. Comparing Meyer's concepts to "safe, VH1-style" dining, Mike questions his public persona compared to boundary-pushing restaurateurs like Keith McNally and Stephen Starr. After the fiery start, the guys settle into discussing the intricacies of project management, prioritizing ideas using tools like ClickUp, the nuances of developing a burger blend over seven months, and Mike's past life as a bedroom musician. The temperature rises again when Matt dives into a heated debate about professional titles: What makes someone a Sommelier? If you step off the restaurant floor, are you a "former" Somm, or is it a lifelong title just like being a Chef? The trio wraps up the episode by exploring the anti-chef-driven restaurant movement, celebrating the brilliance of the original Momofuku Ssäm Bar, and Mike's full, unfiltered take on Meyer and the Eleven Madison Park buyout.Timestamps04:05 Parenting reflections and having a 10-year-old08:29 Using ClickUp and Replet for restaurant project management16:45 Wine blending, barrels, and case yields22:30 Why did it take 7 months to develop a burger blend?25:52 Mike's past life as a musician35:36 The Great Sommelier Debate: What defines an active Somm?42:26 Are TV personalities like David Chang still considered Chefs?56:23 The brilliance and innovation of the original Momofuku Ssäm Bar01:00:51 The anti-chef-driven restaurant movement01:07:18 Retirement, career transitions, and leaving the restaurant floorLinks and resources

Robin Zander hosted a Snafu webinar for the Sidebar community on non-sales selling—think self-promotion for career transitions, freelancers, entrepreneurs, and product people. The goal: learn to "sell yourself" without the ick factor.   Participants shared fears: follow-ups feel intimidating, sales feels slimy, and success seems like a numbers game. Robin reframed it: selling is really about enrollment—being a chief evangelist for your work, not begging for attention.   Drawing on stories from his childhood pumpkin patch, his time as a personal trainer (where desperation lost him clients), and opening Robin's Cafe in San Francisco (raising $40k, serving multiple stakeholders, training staff with Danny Meyer's principles), he showed the difference between selling from need vs. service. Long-term success comes from genuine connection, curiosity, optimism, and passion.   Attendees explored their "authentic attitude" and reflected on times self-promotion felt good versus slimy. Exercises included mapping all the people who benefit from your work—employees, customers, managers, mentees, community—and practicing generosity in selling (a "Miracle on 34th Street" mindset: help customers even if it means sending them elsewhere).   In Q&A, Robin tackled: Asking for promotions as modeling for others, especially women and minorities Persistence in follow-ups (yes, emailing Mark Benioff 53 times counts) Relationship-based enterprise selling Avoiding fear-based AI marketing by knowing who you serve and what problem you solve Recommended reading: Setting the Table (Danny Meyer), Unreasonable Hospitality (Will Guidara), The New Strategic Selling.   Robin also shared upcoming Snafu conference details (March 5, Oakland Museum of California) and reminded everyone: Snafu = situation normal; all fucked up. 00:00 Start 01:06 Audience Fears About Selling Robin Zander welcomes 93 participants to the webinar Notes the session is interactive with exercises planned Encourages participants to drop questions in chat or interrupt him Last 15–20 minutes reserved for questions Robin introduces himself briefly Focuses on storytelling as a tool for self-promotion Shares experience as a community builder Runs a conference called Responsive since 2016 (not Snafu) Tools, structures, and company cultures for resilient organizations Two-day event each September on the future of work Focus on building resilience in organizations Observations on rapid change Technology and work-life changes happening at a fast pace Questions about resilience in individuals Traits needed in careers, personal relationships, professional relationships Ability to stay resilient through change Robin frames his expertise Emphasizes his strength in asking questions and fostering honest conversations Labels himself a reluctant salesperson Not the world's leading expert on self-promotion or selling Key lessons from research and interviews Two buckets matter in business and life: Example: Sidebar community forming coalitions for learning and action Operational excellence: being competent and at least as good as others Promotion/enrollment/sales: standing up, saying what you want, building coalitions Started interviewing people about influence and persuasion Started a weekly newsletter called Snafu Written by hand, not AI Shares lessons from his life and others about self-promotion and resilience Focus on courage to take action: raising hand, offering something valuable Core characteristics of self-promotion and selling yourself Connecting with others: art of connection Courage to ask: inspired by Amanda Palmer's TED Talk and book The Art of Asking Opposes traditional "always be closing" sales mentality Advocates for simply asking for what you want Current work mostly involves storytelling for large companies Clients include Supersonic, Airbnb, Zappos, and others 12:25 Service as the Core Principle Robin introduces the concept of storytelling for self-promotion Stories used to: Get promotions Build coalitions Propel career or organizational growth Emphasizes turning personal, career, or company stories into "commercials" Focus of today's talk: self-promotion with impact Core principle: service Showing up from a place of helping others Through helping others, also helping oneself Distinguishes between sleazy salespeople and effective self-promoters Childhood anecdote: Robin's pumpkin patch Tended plants all summer, learned responsibility and care Harvested pumpkins and sold them using a small red tin box labeled "money" Ran "Robin's Pumpkin Patch" for five to seven years At age five, father had him plant pumpkin seeds Engaged neighborhood kids for fun, collaborative promotion Explained product (pumpkins) enthusiastically to potential buyers Used scarecrow costumes and creative gestures to attract attention Lessons learned from pumpkin patch: Authentic enthusiasm creates value Helping people do what they were already inclined to do Early experience of earning and serving simultaneously Self-promotion is most effective when it's service-driven, not manipulative Applying childhood lesson to career and business Asking for a raise Persuading companies to choose one service over another Promoting oneself or others (e.g., Evan, web developer) Key principle: approach self-promotion from delight and service, not need or fear Authentic enthusiasm as foundation for: Interactive exercise for participants Not influenced by sleep deprivation or stress Could be inspired by childhood or adult experiences Opposite of fear; personal and unique for each participant Question posed: what is your authentic attitude when self-promoting? Examples shared from participants: Curiosity Passion Inspiration Service to others Observation Possibility Insight Value Helping others Creativity Belief in serendipity Optimism Key takeaway from exercise and story Promoting from delight, enthusiasm, and service Promoting from need or fear Two versions of self-promotion: Effective self-promotion aligns with authenticity and enthusiasm, creating value for others while advancing oneself 18:36 Gym Job and Needy Selling Robin shares the next story and sets up the next exercise Gym culture is sales-heavy Initial motivation: love of fitness, desire to help people Quickly realizes environment incentivizes personal trainers to sell aggressively Timeframe: ~20 years later, at age 20, moved to San Francisco First post-college job: personal trainer in gyms Early experience at gyms Key lesson from early failure Selling from need feels gross Promoting oneself from fear or desperation leads to poor results Recognizes similarity to unwanted sales calls received personally First authentic success in self-promotion Worked at Petro and World's Gym in San Francisco, Pilates instructor Owner confronted Robin after two weeks: no clients, potential clients being lost to others Threatened termination by Friday if no clients acquired Robin froze under pressure, approached clients but with needy, desperate energy Outcome: fired by Friday, left gym Encounters man in pain on Valencia Street, offers help as personal trainer Approach comes from genuine care, desire to serve Leads to three-year working relationship, consistent sessions, good income Next client: world-famous photographer Michael Light at UCSF swimming pool Client comes from natural connection, not pushy salesmanship Dichotomy observed: Pushy, need-based self-promotion → freeze, poor results Service-oriented self-promotion → natural connections, sustained relationships Exercise for participants Prompt: identify two moments: One time self-promoting felt slimy → what were you doing? One time self-promoting felt good → what were you doing differently? Two-minute reflection / chat participation Participant reflections/examples Slimy examples: Interviewing for a job during layoffs, giving desperate energy Selling P&L at a hyperscaler Selling computers and printers in UK post-college Sales emails getting ghosted Feeling inauthentic or performative, taking advantage of someone Good examples: Offering services out of care and love rather than ROI Showing impact of work to junior child Knowing services add real value and solve a challenge Being clear on what the other person needs Key takeaway Self-promotion feels different depending on intent and knowledge Slimy → desperate, inauthentic, unclear value to recipient Authentic → service-driven, clear value, connection-focused Effective self-promotion combines knowing your value and serving others, not just pushing for personal gain 25:35 Miracle on 34th Street Lesson Feeling good in self-promotion comes from genuinely helping, solving problems, and sharing information Santa Claus hired at Macy's to hold kids and give candy canes, but real goal: persuade parents to buy from Macy's Santa instead sends parents to competitor to truly serve them Macy's manager initially furious Outcome: customers feel genuinely served, return praising Macy's, become loyal fans Robin references Miracle on 34th Street (original version) Key insight: providing real value, even if it benefits someone else, eventually returns value to you "Put enough bread across the water, eventually good things come back" Participant reflections Slimy: knowing audience expects judgment, catering to them for approval Good: giving the gift of knowledge, providing service freely Takeaway: authentic self-promotion is rooted in service, generosity, and sharing expertise, not manipulating for immediate gain 27:45 Starting Robin's Cafe Through Service Robin shares a major professional turning point: opening Robin's Cafe in 2016 No restaurant experience beyond college busing tables Opened in three weeks, eventually grew to 15 employees by 2018 Worked in multiple industries: Pumpkin patch, personal trainer, circus performer Opened a café/restaurant in Mission District, San Francisco Courage and conviction came from clear focus on service to others Employees: create a great workplace, go-giver culture Investors: $40k raised from friends/family, provided value and potential return Landlords (ODC, nonprofit dance center): wanted success of business to support community Customers: diverse—tech workers, kids in dance classes, local community Robin himself: financial sustainability, learning, personal growth Key audiences served by Robin's Cafe Approach to challenges Used Danny Meyer's Setting the Table as a service-focused framework for employees Philosophy: "giving in order to get paid" Examples: spouse, kids, dog, manager, peers, mentees, clients, community, customers, extended family, mentors Served multiple stakeholders during crises: break-ins, flooding, city permitting, neighborhood issues Exercise: identify all the people who benefit from your work or success Key idea: the more stakeholders served, the easier self-promotion becomes, because it comes from service, not need or pressure Show up thinking: does this serve the person I'm talking to? Principle: selling yourself from a place of service Consider multiple stakeholders simultaneously Audience question: elaborate on applying this service mindset specifically to asking for a promotion Tying service to self-promotion in career advancement Result: asking for a raise, applying for jobs, pitching clients—all easier and more authentic 38:11 Promotion As Service Asking for a promotion from a place of service Example: doing the role already, deserving recognition, asking for what you believe you've earned. Personal perspective: advocating for yourself is a form of service to yourself Recognize other stakeholders in the process: Modeling courage and advocacy for the next generation Authority enables ideas to be taken more seriously Stories gained from new responsibilities enhance value to clients or teams People you mentor, especially women or underrepresented groups The organization: your promotion can make it stronger Your family or children: showing them what it looks like to advocate Concrete examples Outcome: trajectory of career positively influenced, demonstrated courage, modeled behavior Asking first time for a manager role Later asking for VP title as a director Courage and small steps Courage = acting despite fear, not absence of fear Practice by taking incremental steps toward what scares you Avoid masking or hesitation; direct action builds confidence and results Persistence and follow-up Busy people require patience and multiple nudges Example: Mark Stubbings emailing Mark Benioff 53 times before a yes Persistence = respectful, consistent follow-ups Role modeling for women and minorities Demonstrates that asking is a normal, expected, and service-oriented act Many don't ask for promotions or raises due to upbringing or cultural norms Modeling advocacy teaches the next generation, including children, to speak up Service mindset in practice Approach self-promotion by asking: is this good for the other person? Keep intention aligned with service, not desperation Books for guidance: Setting the Table – Danny Meyer: service-driven sales and employee culture Unreasonable Hospitality – Will Guidara: lessons from the restaurant world on giving value and delight Key takeaways for promotion and asking Serve yourself, your mentees, your organization, and your broader audience Take small, courageous steps to ask for what you deserve Follow up respectfully and consistently; don't assume silence = no Self-promotion becomes easier and authentic when rooted in service, not fear or need Snafu Newsletter Weekly newsletter written by Robin Covers influence, persuasion, and modern workplace dynamics A resource for ongoing learning and practical insights 56:55 Where to Find Robin Robin's newsletter covers influence, persuasion, and modern work. Snafu Conference Responsive Conference Robin Zander on social medias  

Today, we're welcoming Bob Campana, a California-based serial entrepreneur with more than 40 years of experience building businesses across hospitality, travel, real estate, and aviation.ROBERT's WebsiteROBERT on YouTubeFrom hot tub manufacturing to founding the beloved Redwood Café in Modesto, to leading Redwood Café Tours across Europe, Asia, and Oceania, Bob's career is a living case study in adaptability, optimism, and grit.He's also the author of the book Don't Look Down! The Improbable Adventures and Battle-Tested Lessons of a Serial Entrepreneur, where he shares candid lessons learned from a lifetime of figuring it out as he went. Bob has his own entrepreneurship podcast, continuing his mission to share what really happens behind the scenes of business building.1. A Lifetime of ReinventionBob, you've built businesses in very different industries—from manufacturing to hospitality to aviation. Looking back over 40 years, what allowed you to keep reinventing yourself rather than getting stuck in one version of success?2. Risk, Fear, and the Title “Don't Look Down!”Your book title says a lot. Don't Look Down! suggests both courage and consequence. How have you learned to take risks without being reckless—and what's one moment when looking down might have stopped you if you'd let it?3. Building Places That Connect PeopleRedwood Café became more than a restaurant—it became a community hub, and now it's evolved into Redwood Café Tours around the world. What do you think makes an experience or a business truly memorable to people? (Bob recommends two books. “Moments of Truth: How the SAS President and CEO Adapted to the New Customer-Driven Economy” by Jan Carlzon. “Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business” by Danny Meyer.)4. Lessons Earned the Hard WayYour book promises “battle-tested lessons,” not theory. What are one or two hard-earned truths about entrepreneurship that you wish more people understood before they start their first venture?5. What's Next—and Why Keep Going?You're still expanding into real estate and aircraft leasing, writing books, and launching a podcast. What keeps you energized at this stage—and what advice would you give to entrepreneurs who wonder if it's too late to start something new?Bob, if you could leave our listeners with one mindset or principle that's helped you navigate uncertainty over four decades, what would it be?

Michael welcomes Nicole back to discuss her new book, "Help Wanted," focused on finding “human magic” in hiring—going beyond technical skills and surface-level values fit to build teams and cultures that can withstand challenges. Nicole, a culture architect and founder of Banana Pepper HR, argues hospitality is at risk of becoming transactional and has an opportunity to re-center belonging and human connection. They critique standard, rushed recruitment as soulless and misaligned with brand promises, emphasizing “hospitality begins in-house” and that recruitment is a brand's first act of hospitality. Nicole highlights “super skills” often dismissed as soft skills—empathy, kindness, curiosity, creativity, vulnerability, resilience, and more—and explains how missing them can lead to poor service, brand damage, and commercial loss. Practical ideas include slowing down hiring, doing stronger reference checks (including peer references), interviewing for stories by creating psychological safety, and using a three-course interview framework (appetizer/entrée/dessert). Nicole shares why she chose 10 super skills, drawing inspiration from Danny Meyer's “HQ” and behavioral science (including Brené Brown). The episode ends with where to find Nicole and the book at bananapepperhr.com/book (and retailers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Waterstones).Connect with Nicole:https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicoleantoniogadsdon/https://www.bananapepperhr.com/Book:https://www.bananapepperhr.com/bookhttps://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/help-wanted-the-rule-breaking-guide-to-hiring-an-extraordinary-team-of-hospitality-alchemists-nicole-antonio-gadsdon/1f7ae8fc32978cb1?ean=9781781339558&next=tConnect with the podcastJoin the Hospitality Mavericks newsletterTune in via your favourite podcast platform - here More episodes for you to check out here A big thank you to our episode sponsor Monotree.They help hospitality operators strengthen operations and scale company culture by creating a "Branded Front Door" for your workforce.Head to their website to sign up.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

Peter Waters, owner of T/aco in Boulder, Colorado, discusses the state of the industry as we enter 2026. Peter candidly reflects on a difficult 2025, noting that rising operational costs and shifting socialization patterns among college students and remote workers have made for a less profitable year. However, the conversation pivots to a deeply inspiring story of community support: T/aco donated $50,000 in gift cards to 50 local families facing food insecurity. This "fire hose" approach to marketing not only provided these families with a "T/aco rich" experience where they could dine without financial worry, but it also rejuvenated the staff and built immediate, meaningful relationships with a new demographic of regulars.Key TakeawaysThe "First Four Gifts": Peter shares Danny Meyer's philosophy that restaurants are unique because they can provide the first four gifts a human ever receives: eye contact, a smile, an embrace, and food.The "T/aco Rich" Concept: By giving $1,000 gift cards to families, Peter wanted them to feel "rich" in his restaurant., able to order anything they want for about ten visits without checking their bank balance.Vanishing Demographics: Due to high rents, the 22-to-30-year-old post-college audience has almost entirely left Boulder, leaving a gap in the customer base.The Work-From-Home Effect: With more people working remotely, restaurants are losing the "stop-off" drink and socialization business that used to happen between the office and home.Fire Hose Marketing: Instead of a "sprinkler" approach of small, scattered ads, Peter focused his resources on one massive, impactful community donation.Shift in Peak Hours: Peter has observed that guests now tend to eat strictly between 6:00 PM and 7:30 PM, with a dramatic "drop off" in business after 7:45 PM.Gen Z Socialization: Students aged 18–22 are socializing differently, often staying in their rooms and relying on delivery or "rejection-proof" digital interactions rather than going out.Wage and Housing Disparity: Peter points out that even as minimum wages rise, they cannot keep pace with real estate; a person would need to make $60 an hour to afford a home in Boulder.The Gift Card Tip Benefit: A secondary benefit of the gift card program was that the families used the cards to leave tips, directly benefiting the T/aco staff financially.Sundance Film Festival: Boulder is preparing to host the Sundance Film Festival in 2027, which Peter hopes will turn the typically slow month of January into a profitable period for local businesses.

Send us a textLynn Thoman is a professor at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs and the founder of 3 Takeaways, a top 1% global podcast known for distilling big ideas from influential leaders shaping policy, business, and society. Drawing on experience across corporate strategy, public sector advisory work, and board service at institutions such as the Brookings Institution and Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, Lynn brings a cross-sector lens to how AI is reshaping decision-making, learning, and human potential.In this conversation, we discuss:Why AI is best understood as an amplifier of human capability, especially in leadership, where judgment and choices matter more than technology.How the real upside of AI is giving people more space for imagination, empathy, and meaningful human connection.How to prepare students and professionals for an AI-shaped job market by prioritizing learning paths, adaptability, and relationships over fixed career tracks.Why the biggest risks of AI come from small, hard-to-detect changes in data or models that can create serious downstream harm.How AI is pushing education, work, and leadership back toward core human skills like judgment, curiosity, and imagination.Where cautious optimism comes from, including AI's potential to expand access to knowledge, healthcare, and opportunity when used with care.Resources:Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work NewsletterConnect with Lynn on LinkedInAI fun fact articleOn How genAI studios launch AI-first companiesOther podcast episodes mentioned on the show:On reinventing the academic curriculum for MBAs with Dave Marchick, Dean of the Kogod School of BusinessFrom 3 Takeaways:The Genetic Revolution Has Begun - George Church on What Comes NextThe Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business: Setting the Table with Union Square Hospitality Group Founder & CEO Danny Meyer

What does it take to lead one of the most prestigious award brands in the creative world? For CEO Nicole Purcell, it's based on humility and hospitality. Purcell joined Prometheus Global Media 15 years ago to lead the annual event and has since transformed the Clios into a multi-industry powerhouse spanning sports, music, health and entertainment along with creating rich content that highlights today's creatives. In this episode, Purcell discusses her "hospitality first" leadership style — inspired by Danny Meyer's Setting the Table — and why she believes every CEO must be a creative at heart. She also gives us an exclusive look at the upcoming Clio Creators Awards, the brand's new venture into the influencer space, and explains why, in an AI-driven world, physical experiences and human connection are more valuable than ever. campaignlive.com Music - Take you Out by Lucid Tides, courtesy of Triple Scoop. What we know about advertising, you should know about advertising. Start your 1-month FREE trial to Campaign US. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Send us a textAmidst a volatile economic landscape marked by significant job losses in the hospitality sector, the alignment between spirits brands and on-premise venues has never been more critical. In this episode, we join Brown-Forman Advocacy Director Nidal Ramini to unpack the "Hospitality Algorithm," a strategic framework that helps suppliers and entrepreneurs understand the operational mindset of successful bars.We explore how Ramini evolves Danny Meyer's "Enlightened Hospitality" into a roadmap for business resilience, demonstrating why "culture eats strategy for breakfast". We also discuss key entrepreneurial lessons, from distinguishing between passion and vision to prioritizing community investment, and analyze why treating awards as a result rather than an objective is the key to sustainable brand growth.Featured Guests:Nidal Ramini, Advocacy Director - EAA Division, Brown FormanMentioned in this episode:Brown-FormanWatch on YouTube: The Hospitality Algorithm: A Playbook for On-Premise SuccessWant to stay in the know about new episodes from the podcast? Fill out the form below: https://share.hsforms.com/1MEb-81x2TXi3f15qO_yEpA4tip1Learn More About Park StreetSign up for our Daily Industry Newsletter.Sign Up for our Monthly Newsletter.Check out Park Street's Guide to Getting Started in the U.S. MarketFollow us for more industry insights onLinkedIn FacebookTwitterInstagram

Kevin Hartz, Co-founder of A*, Eventbrite, Xoom, and Sauron.Kevin has been building and investing in technology companies for 30 years, and we talk about how the industry's evolved, why he calls AI the Mother of All Bubbles, why we're still early, and lessons today's breakout AI companies can learn from those that survived the Dot Com Crash.Kevin is a big proponent of backing young founders. A significant percentage of his latest fund at A* is invested in teenagers, and he shares how he identifies outlier talent so early, from Seed investments in Airbnb, PayPal, and Pinterest, to many of today's hottest AI companies.He also shares the insane story of investing 100% of the proceeds from his first startup into PayPal's Seed round, how PayPal's early fraud systems inspired Palantir, what he learned from the PayPal Mafia, from Peter Thiel, and what makes Founders Fund special.We also talk about how he and his wife recently had two babies, five months apart, using genome screening and surrogates.Thanks to Ramtin Naimi, Navya Gudimetla, and Bennett Siegel for helping brainstorm topics for the conversation.Try Numeral, the end-to-end platform for sales tax and compliance: ⁠https://www.numeral.com⁠Sign-up for Flex Elite with code TURNER, get $1,000: https://form.typeform.com/to/Rx9rTjFzTimestamps:(4:25) Power shift from VC's to founders since the 90's(9:08) AI is the mother of all bubbles(12:40) Why AI is still underhyped(14:10) What Kevin and A* are investing in today(16:02) Investing 100% of his first startups proceeds in PayPal's Seed round(21:21) What made the PayPal Mafia special(23:37) Parallels between the 90's and today(26:40) What makes Founders Fund special(35:07) How Palantir evolved from PayPal's fraud models(39:06) Building Xoom on the PayPal API(43:38) Lessons between Kevin's 1st and 2nd startups(46:52) Starting Eventbrite off early PayPal API app(51:51) Eventbrite's hidden TAM challenge(53:49) Selling Eventbrite to Bending Spoons(54:59) Investing 20% of A* in teenage founders(1:02:33) Incubating Sauron, the home security company(1:08:44) Making breakfast for our kids(1:13:33) Having kids with genome screening and surrogates(1:20:31) Collecting art, how to get startedReferencedhttps://www.a-star.co/https://www.eventbrite.com/https://www.xoom.com/https://www.sauron.systems/https://www.orchidhealth.com/Setting the Table by Danny Meyer: https://www.amazon.com/Setting-Table-Transforming-Hospitality-Business/dp/006074276320% of fund in teenage founders: https://techcrunch.com/2025/10/18/this-top-vc-bet-close-to-20-of-his-fund-on-teenagers-heres-why/https://nypost.com/2025/12/14/us-news/xu-bo-chinese-billionaire-reportedly-sires-more-than-100-kids/Follow KevinTwitter: https://x.com/kevinhartzLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hartzFollow TurnerTwitter: https://twitter.com/TurnerNovakLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/turnernovakSubscribe to my newsletter to get every episode + the transcript in your inbox every week: https://www.thespl.it/

Welcome back to Snafu with Robin Zander. In this episode, I'm joined by Jeff Jaworsky, who shares his journey from a global role at Google to running his own business while prioritizing time with his children. We talk about the pivotal life and career decisions that shaped this transition, focusing on the importance of setting boundaries—both personally and professionally. Jeff shares insights on leaving a structured corporate world for entrepreneurship and the lessons learned along the way. We also explore the evolving landscape of sales and entrepreneurship, highlighting how integrating human connection and coaching skills is more important than ever in a tech-driven world. The conversation touches on the role of AI and technology, emphasizing how they can support—but not replace—essential human relationships. Jeff offers practical advice for coaches and salespeople on leveraging their natural skills and hints at a potential future book exploring the intersection of leadership, coaching, and sales. If you're curious about what's next for thoughtful leadership, entrepreneurship, and balancing work with life, this episode is for you. And for more conversations like this, get your tickets for Snafu Conference 2026 on March 5th here, where we'll continue exploring human connection, business, and the evolving role of AI. Start (0:00) Early life and first real boundary Jeff grew up up in a structured, linear environment Decisions largely made for you Clear expectations, predictable paths Post–high school as the first inflection point College chosen because it's "what you're supposed to do" Dream: ESPN sports anchor (explicit role model: Stuart Scott) Reality check through research Job placement rate: ~3% First moment of asking: Is this the best use of my time? Is this fair to the people investing in me (parents)? Boundary lesson #1 Letting go of a dream doesn't mean failure Boundaries can be about honesty, not limitation Choosing logic over fantasy can unlock unexpected paths Dropping out of college → accidental entry into sales Working frontline sales at Best Buy while in school Selling computers, service plans, handling customers daily Decision to leave college opens capacity Manager notices and offers leadership opportunity Takes on home office department Largest sales category in the store Youngest supervisor in the company (globally) at 19 Early leadership challenges Managing people much older Navigating credibility, age bias, exclusion Learning influence without authority Boundary insight Temporary decisions can become formative Saying "yes" doesn't mean you're locked in forever Second boundary: success without sustainability Rapid growth at Best Buy Promotions Increasing responsibility Observing manager life up close 60-hour weeks No real breaks Lunch from vending machines Internal checkpoint Is this the life I want long-term? Distinguishing: Liking the work Disliking the cost Boundary lesson #2 You can love a craft and still reject the lifestyle around it Boundaries protect the future version of you Returning to school with intention Decision to go back to college This time with clarity Sales and marketing degree by design, not default Accelerated path Graduates in three years Clear goal: catch up, not start over Internship at J. Walter Thompson Entry into agency world Launch of long-term sales and marketing career Pattern recognition: how boundaries actually work Ongoing self-check at every stage Have I learned what I came here to learn? Am I still growing? Is this experience still stretching me? Boundaries as timing, not rejection Experiences "run their course" Leaving doesn't invalidate what came before Non-linear growth Sometimes stepping down is strategic Demotion → education Senior role → frontline role (later at Google) Downward moves that enable a bigger climb later Shared reflection with Robin Sales as a foundational skill Comparable to: Surfing (handling forces bigger than you) Early exposure to asking, pitching, rejection Best Buy reframed Customer service under pressure Handling frustrated, misinformed, emotional people Humility + persuasion + resilience Parallel experiences Robin selling a restaurant after learning everything she could Knowing the next step (expansion) and choosing not to take it Walking away without knowing what's next Core philosophy: learning vs. maintaining "If I'm not learning, I'm dying" Builder mindset, not maintainer Growth as a non-negotiable Career decisions guided by curiosity, not status Titles are temporary Skills compound Ladders vs. experience stacks Rejecting the myth of linear progression Valuing breadth, depth, and contrast The bridge metaphor Advice for people stuck between "not this" and "not sure what next" Don't leap blindly Build a bridge Bridge components Low-risk experiments Skill development Small tests in parallel with current work Benefits Reduces panic Increases clarity Turns uncertainty into movement Framing the modern career question Referencing the "jungle gym, not a ladder" idea Careers as lateral, diagonal, looping — not linear Growth through range, not just depth Connecting to Range and creative longevity Diverse experiences as a competitive advantage Late bloomers as evidence that exploration compounds Naming the real fear beneath the metaphor What if exploration turns into repeated failure? What if the next five moves don't work? Risk of confusing experimentation with instability Adding today's pressure cooker Economic uncertainty AI and automation reshaping work faster than previous generations experienced The tension between adaptability and survival The core dilemma How do you pursue a non-linear path without tumbling back to zero? How do you "build the bridge" instead of jumping blindly? How do you keep earning while evolving? The two-year rule Treating commitments like a contract with yourself Two years as a meaningful unit of time Long enough to: Learn deeply Be challenged Experience failure and recovery Short enough to avoid stagnation Boundaries around optional exits Emergency ripcord exists But default posture is commitment, not escape Psychological benefit Reduces panic during hard moments Prevents constant second-guessing Encourages depth over novelty chasing The 18-month check-in Using the final stretch strategically Asking: Am I still learning? Am I still challenged? Does this align with my principles? Shifting from execution to reflection Early exploration of "what's next" Identifying gaps: Skills to acquire Experiences to test Regaining control External forces aren't always controllable Internal planning always is Why most people get stuck Planning too late Waiting until: Layoffs Burnout Forced transitions Trying to design the future in crisis Limited creativity Fear-based decisions Contrast with proactive planning Calm thinking Optionality Leverage Extending the contract Recognizing unfinished business Loving the work Still growing Still contributing meaningfully One-year extensions as intentional choices Not inertia Not fear Conscious recommitment A long career, one organization at a time Example: nearly 13 years at Google Six different roles Multiple reinventions inside one company Pattern over prestige Frontline sales Sales leadership Enablement Roles as chapters, not identities Staying while growing Leaving only when growth plateaus Experience stacking over ladder climbing Rejecting linear advancement Titles matter less than skills Accumulating perspective Execution Leadership Systems Transferable insight What works with customers What works internally What scales Sales enablement as an example of bridge-building Transition motivated by impact Desire to help at scale Supporting many sellers, not just personal results A natural evolution, not a pivot Built on prior sales experience Expanded influence Bridge logic in action Skills reused Scope widened Risk managed Zooming out: sales, stigma, and parenting Introducing the next lens: children Three boys: 13, 10, 7 Confronting sales stereotypes Slimy Manipulative Self-serving Tension between reputation and reality Loving sales Building a career around it Teaching it without replicating the worst versions Redefining sales as a helping profession Sales as service Primary orientation: benefit to the other person Compensation as a byproduct, not the driver Ethical center Believe in what you're recommending Stand behind its value Sleep well regardless of outcome Losses reframed Most deals don't close Failure as feedback Integrity as the constant Selling to kids (and being sold by them) Acknowledging reality Everyone sells, constantly Titles don't matter Teaching ethos, not tactics How you persuade matters more than whether you win Kindness Thoughtfulness Awareness of the other side Everyday negotiations Bedtime extensions Appeals to age, fairness, peer behavior Sales wins without good reasoning Learning opportunity Success ≠ good process Boundaries still matter Why sales gets a bad reputation Root cause: selfishness Focus on "what I get" Language centered on personal gain Misaligned value exchange Overselling Underdelivering The alternative Lead with value for the other side Hold mutual benefit in the background Make the exchange explicit and fair Boundaries as protection for both sides Clear scope What's included What's not Saying no as a service Preventing resentment Preserving trust Entrepreneurial lens Boundaries become essential Scope creep erodes value Clarity sustains long-term relationships Value exchange, scope, and boundaries Every request starts with discernment, not enthusiasm What value am I actually providing? What problem am I solving? How much time, energy, and attention will this really take? The goal isn't just a "yes" Both sides need to feel good about: What's being given What's being received What's being expected What's realistically deliverable Sales as a two-sided coin Mutual benefit matters Overselling creates future resentment Promising "the moon and the stars" is how trust breaks later Boundaries as self-respect Clear limits protect delivery quality Good boundaries prevent repeating bad sales dynamics Saying less upfront often enables better outcomes long-term Transitioning into coaching and the SNAFU Conference Context for the work today Speaking at the inaugural SNAFU Conference Focused on reluctant salespeople and non-sales roles Why coaching became the next chapter Sales is everywhere, regardless of title Coaching emerged as a natural extension of sales leadership The origin story at Google Transition from sales leadership to enablement Core question: how do we help sellers have better conversations? Result: building Google's global sales coaching program Grounded in practice and feedback Designed to prepare for high-stakes conversations The hidden overlap between sales and coaching Coaching as an underutilized advantage Especially powerful for sales leaders Shared core skills Deep curiosity Active listening Presence in conversation Reflecting back what's heard, not what you assume The co-creation mindset Not leading someone to your solution Guiding toward their desired outcome Why this changes everything Coaching improves leadership effectiveness Coaching improves sales outcomes Coaching reshapes how decisions get made A personal inflection point: learning to listen Feedback that lingered "Jeff is often the first and last to speak in meetings" The realization Seniority amplified his voice Being directive wasn't the same as being effective The shift Stop being the first to speak Invite more voices Lead with curiosity, not certainty The result More evolved perspectives Better decisions Sometimes realizing he was simply wrong The parallel to sales Talking at customers limits discovery Pre-built pitch decks obscure real needs The "right widget" only emerges through listening What the work looks like today A synthesis of experiences Buyer Seller Sales leader Enablement leader Executive coach How that shows up in practice Executive coaching for sales and revenue leaders Supporting decision-making Developing more coach-like leadership styles Workshops and trainings Helping managers coach more effectively Building durable sales skills Advisory work Supporting sales and enablement organizations at scale The motivation behind the shift Returning to the core questions: Am I learning? Am I growing? Am I challenged? A pull toward broader impact A desire to test whether this work could scale beyond one company Why some practices thrive and others stall Observing the difference Similar credentials Similar training Radically different outcomes The uncomfortable truth The difference is sales Entrepreneurship without romance Businesses don't "arrive" on their own Clients don't magically appear Visibility, rejection, iteration are unavoidable Core requirements Clear brand Defined ICP Articulated value Credibility to support the claim Debunking "overnight success" Success is cumulative Built on years of unseen experience Agency life + Google made entrepreneurship possible Sales as a universal survival skill Especially now Crowded markets Economic uncertainty Increased competition Sales isn't manipulation It's how value moves through the world Avoiding the unpersuadable Find people who already want what you offer Make it easier for them to say yes For those who "don't want to sell" Either learn it Or intentionally outsource it But you can't pretend it doesn't exist The vision board and the decision to leap December 18, 2023 45th birthday Chosen as a forcing function Purpose of the date Accountability, not destiny A moment to decide: stay or go Milestones on the back Coaching certification Experience thresholds Personal readiness Listening to the inner signal The repeated message: "It's time" The bridge was already built Skills stacked Experience earned Risk understood Stepping forward without full certainty You never know what's on the other side You only learn once you cross and look around Decision-making and vision boards Avoid forcing yourself to meet arbitrary deadlines Even if a date is set for accountability (e.g., a 45th birthday milestone), the real question is: When am I ready to act? Sometimes waiting isn't necessary; acting sooner can make sense Boundaries tie directly into these decisions They help you align personal priorities with professional moves Recognizing what matters most guides the "when" and "how" of major transitions Boundaries in the leap from corporate to entrepreneurship Biggest boundary: family and presence with children Managing a global team meant constant connectivity and messages across time zones Transitioning to your own business allowed more control over work hours, clients, and priorities The pro/con framework reinforced the choice Written lists can clarify trade-offs For this example, the deciding factor was: "They get their dad back" Boundaries in entrepreneurship are intertwined with opportunity More freedom comes with more responsibility You can choose your hours, clients, and areas of focus—but still must deliver results Preparing children for a rapidly changing world Skill priorities extend beyond AI and automation Technology literacy is essential, but kids will likely adapt faster than adults Focus on human skills Building networks Establishing credibility Navigating relationships and complex decisions Sales-related skills apply Curiosity, empathy, observation, and problem-solving help them adapt to change These skills are timeless, even as roles and tools evolve Human skills in an AI-driven world AI is additive, not replacement Leverage AI to complement work, not fear it Understand what AI does well and where human judgment is irreplaceable Coaching and other human-centered skills remain critical Lived experience, storytelling, and nuanced judgment cannot be fully replaced by AI Technology enables scale but doesn't replace complex human insight The SNAFU Conference embodies this principle Brings humans together to share experiences and learn Demonstrates that face-to-face interaction, stories, and mutual learning remain valuable Advice for coaches learning to sell Coaches already possess critical sales skills Curiosity, active listening, presence, problem identification, co-creating solutions These skills, when applied to sales, still fall within a helping profession Key approach Use your coaching skills to generate business ethically Reframe sales as an extension of support, not self-interest For salespeople Learn coaching skills to improve customer conversations Coaching strengthens empathy, listening, and problem-solving abilities, all core to effective selling Book and resource recommendations Non-classical sales books Setting the Table by Danny Meyer → emphasizes culture and service as a form of sales Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara → creating value through care for people Coaching-focused books Self as Coach, Self as Leader by Pam McLean Resources from the Hudson Institute of Coaching Gap in sales literature Few resources fully integrate coaching with sales Potential upcoming book: The Power of Coaching and Sales  

Namibië is 104ste uit 190 lande geplaas op die Wêreldbank se Ease of Doing Business-ranglys. Dit is bewys van burokrasie en ander uitdagings om nie net ‘n besigheid te stig nie, maar ook sake te doen. In lande soos Rwanda betaal nuwe kleinbesighede niks om besighede te begin nie. Kosmos 94.1 Nuus het met Danny Meyer van SME Compete gepraat wat Namibië se posisie verduidelik.

Bill Gurley (@bgurley) is a general partner at Benchmark, a leading venture capital firm in Silicon Valley. His new book is Runnin' Down a Dream: How to Thrive in a Career You Actually Love.This episode is brought to you by:Momentous high-quality creatine for cognitive and muscular supportOur Place's Titanium Always Pan® Pro using nonstick technology that's coating-free and made without PFAS, otherwise known as “Forever Chemicals”Shopify global commerce platform, providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail businessCoyote the card game​, which I co-created with Exploding Kittens*Timestamps:[00:00:00] Start.[00:01:43] The book that gave Jerry Seinfeld permission to pursue comedy and inspired Runnin' Down a Dream.[00:03:59] AI bubble or not?[00:06:33] Circular deals and SPV chaos.[00:12:01] Angel investing in the AI era.[00:14:32] Why you should be the most AI-enabled version of yourself, regardless of field.[00:20:47] China deep dive: Ten days, six cities, high-speed trains, and a Xiaomi SU7 factory tour.[00:22:43] Communism misconceptions.[00:25:40] Lei Jun: The Steve Jobs of China.[00:29:17] Jack Ma, ByteDance's invisible CEO, and the risks of prominence in China.[00:32:11] America vs. China (Lawyers vs. engineers).[00:41:01] Keys for US competitiveness.[00:43:47] Bill is bullish on these countries.[00:47:30] Matthew McConaughey's “Don't half ass it” moment.[00:49:45] Runnin' Down a Dream thesis: Helping people pursue X instead of A, B, or C.[00:51:03] The 80,000-hour question.[00:52:47] The self-learning test.[00:56:58] Bob Dylan as music expeditionary.[01:00:27] Go to the epicenter where the action is.[01:10:56] Danny Meyer's pivot.[01:13:30] Working for free.[01:19:37] Never too late: Tito Beveridge started Tito's Vodka at 40.[01:21:51] AI sanity checks.[01:25:59] AI-proof bets.[01:29:13] Sam Hinkie's Moneyball moment.[01:32:37] Competitive strategy, avoiding false failures, and regret minimalization.[01:43:46] Purpose, Progress, and Prosperity — the P3 Policy Institute.[01:47:18] Regulatory capture explained.[01:51:55] Why the IPO market is broken.[02:01:52] Stablecoins putting Visa and Mastercard on notice.[02:03:40] Hopes for Runnin' Down a Dream and parting thoughts.*For show notes and past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show, please visit tim.blog/podcast.For deals from sponsors of The Tim Ferriss Show, please visit tim.blog/podcast-sponsorsSign up for Tim's email newsletter (5-Bullet Friday) at tim.blog/friday.For transcripts of episodes, go to tim.blog/transcripts.Discover Tim's books: tim.blog/books.Follow Tim:Twitter: twitter.com/tferriss Instagram: instagram.com/timferrissYouTube: youtube.com/timferrissFacebook: facebook.com/timferriss LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/timferrissSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jill Rowe's creative path has been shaped by art, hospitality, and an enduring connection to nature. She began her career in fashion and the NYC art world before turning to film production and culinary work, opening her own restaurant in upstate New York and later running Danny Meyer's Union Square Café . Cooking, community, and the art of caring for people through the senses became the foundation of her work.Seeking a life more rooted in land and craft, Jill moved to the Hudson Valley, where she met her husband, photographer and author Matthew Benson, who restored Stonegate Farm into a vibrant ecosystem of organic produce, botanicals, and creative living. There, Jill co-founded Cultivate Apothecary, a skincare and wellness brand that unites her skills as a chef, sommelier, formulator, and gardener. Working directly with the botanicals she grows, she creates products and rituals designed to reconnect people to nature, nourishment, and themselves.Website:  CULTIVATE APOTHECARYUSE DISCOUNT CODE: https://cultivateapothecary.com/discount/spacewithcody20FRIENDS, THIS IS THE BEST HOLIDAY GIFT EVER! ✨ Thank you for tuning into Create the Space with Cody Maher! ✨I hope this episode sparked something in you—a shift, an insight, a reminder to create space for what truly matters.

Danny Meyer is best known as the founder of Shake Shack and the legendary restaurants of his Union Square Hospitality Group in New York City. He joined host Jeff Berman in 2024 for the first Masters of Scale Live, presented by Capital One Business. Later in the conversation, Danny's daughter, Hallie Meyer, joined them on stage. Hallie is busy scaling her own food venture, the gourmet NYC ice cream shop Caffè Panna. The Meyers offer invaluable insights on how to scale great experiences for customers and teams.Subscribe to the Masters of Scale weekly newsletter: https://mastersofscale.com/subscribe See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Die Namibië Handelsforum word aangespoor om meer plaaslike supermarkte te dwing om in lyn te kom met die land se kleinhandelsektorhandves en hul rakke oop te maak vir plaaslike produsente. Direkteur van SMEs Compete, Danny Meyer, het aan Kosmos 94.1 Nuus gesê dat die opkomende groenteboere in die noorde van Namibië vertragings en streng voorwaardes van kleinhandelaars in die gesig staar.

Volgens Namfisa se kwartaallikse verslag het die mikroleningsektor se leningsboek teen Maart vanjaar 7,6 miljard Namibiese dollar bereik, wat deur 259 266 mense verskuldig is. Termynleners, wat hul lenings oor 'n vaste tydperk van maande of jare terugbetaal, het 61 persent van die bedrag geskuld. Korttermyn- of betaaldagleners is verantwoordelik vir die oorblywende 39 persent. Kosmos 94.1 Nuus het met Danny Meyer van SME Compete gepraat wat sê die probleem lê by families wat meer spandeer as wat hulle kan bekostig.

Shake Shack takes pride in being the first in its category to launch on-trend menu items, according to Nancy Combs, SVP of culinary and calendar innovation at the fast casual.Although Shake Shack was founded in New York City by Danny Meyer and his Union Square Hospitality Group in 2001 and still has headquarters in the Big Apple, the chain recently built a second headquarters in Atlanta. Combs is based down South, where she oversees a state-of-the-art test kitchen that opened earlier this year. Guest insights drive menu development, she said, which is focused on Shake Shack's core menu of burgers, shakes, fries, chicken sandwiches and hot dogs. But the team of chefs is always thinking outside the box, like the new onion rings launched in September as part of a larger French onion soup-inspired menu rollout. And in the Spring, the chain was one of the first to jump on the Dubai chocolate trend with the debut of its Dubai Chocolate Shake.Combs said at the end of the day, everything she and the culinary team introduce is something they would be proud to eat themselves. Listen as she shares Shake Shack's menu strategy, how innovation differentiates the brand in a crowded segment and what's next on the calendar. This episode of Menu Talk is brought to you by TABASCO®. With spice, garlic and subtle heat, TABASCO® Salsa Picante is rated superior to leading Mexican-style hot sauces.

SummaryBranden McRill, Detroit-raised restaurateur, operator, and Michelin-star winner, traces a career from dish pits to Alinea and stints with Danny Meyer, Jean-Georges, Alain Ducasse, Marcus Samuelsson, and more, before cofounding acclaimed NYC spots Pearl & Ash and Rebelle (earning a Michelin star within months). He then expanded to Philadelphia, while recently relocating home to Michigan. He shares a philosophy that rejects “balance” in favor of riding life's waves, embracing calm and chaos, paired with risk tolerance and a bias for action. McRill argues hospitality pros are innate givers who deserve tools that free them to be present with guests; that's the promise of 5-out, his forecasting and automation platform that continuously re-forecasts sales, labor, and product needs (and can close the loop on purchasing and prep), augmenting, not replacing, human judgment, especially on messy, human scheduling. He sees adoption accelerating as AI gets embedded in existing systems.  Waves, not balance: McRill manages life and work by accepting cycles of calm and intensity and staying steady through both. Risk forward: He credits outsized wins to taking big swings, and not letting fear of others' opinions block action. From Alinea to Michelin: Early exposure to elite kitchens set standards that shaped Pearl & Ash and Rebelle, which earned a Michelin star just months after opening. Hospitality first: The joy is creating experiences that “wash over” guests; tech should buy back time for that human work. Tech as a new teammate: AI in restaurants does the jobs most shops aren't doing (analysis, forecasting), rather than replacing core human roles. What 5-out does: Pulls POS, weather (historic + forward), traffic, and local events to forecast revenue by hour; converts that into labor budgets, item-level sales, purchasing, and automated prep lists. Closed loop optionality: 5-out can auto-send POs and prep, or let teams review/override—human in the loop where it matters. Re-forecasting nightly: Like a stock ticker, the plan updates every day so operators always see the best available signal. Why some don't adopt: Cost, another login, and rollout friction - hence faster traction with multi-unit groups that have champions. Future = partnerships: Mass adoption for independents will come as AI embeds inside familiar tools; best results will come from specialized apps working together (e.g., Schedulefly + 5-out).

Andrew McCaughan, Chief Development Officer at Shake Shack, joins Fast Casual Nation to discuss the iconic burger brand's ambitious journey from 3 locations to a goal of 1,500 U.S. restaurants. McCaughan shares insights on Shake Shack's evolution from urban high-profile locations to suburban expansion with multiple formats including drive-throughs, experiential flagships with full bars, and innovative digital ordering systems. Learn about their technology strategy, international growth across 20 countries, real estate challenges, culinary innovation including the viral Dubai Shake, and how they're maintaining Danny Meyer's hospitality values while scaling globally. Plus, hear about their new Atlanta innovation center and plans for Oklahoma City expansion.ShakeShack #FastCasualNation #RestaurantIndustry0:00 - Intro0:14 - Rising food costs & staffing challenges3:24 - Guest intro: Shake Shack's Chief Development Officer5:05 - Growth from 3 to 600+ global locations7:51 - Expanding into suburbs, drive-thrus & bar concepts11:35 - Tech & AI roadmap: kiosks, app, personalization14:35 - Scaling while preserving brand values & culture16:11 - Global expansion: 20+ countries & local menus21:14 - Maintaining warmth & New York credibility22:04 - Balancing digital orders with in-store hospitality24:23 - Atlanta innovation center & kitchen tech27:11 - Real estate shifts & development challenges28:52 - Next experiential store: Atlanta & Las Vegas31:00 - Reaching Gen Z & next-gen burger fans33:02 - Rapid fire: new markets, metrics, trends35:09 - Closing remarks & episode wrapGet Your Podcast Now! Are you a hospitality or restaurant industry leader looking to amplify your voice and establish yourself as a thought leader? Look no further than SavorFM, the premier podcast platform designed exclusively for hospitality visionaries like you. Take the next step in your industry leadership journey – visit https://www.savor.fm/Capital & Advisory: Are you a fast-casual restaurant startup or a technology innovator in the food service industry? Don't miss out on the opportunity to tap into decades of expertise. Reach out to Savor Capital & Advisory now to explore how their seasoned professionals can propel your business forward. Discover if you're eligible to leverage our unparalleled knowledge in food service branding and technology and take your venture to new heights.Don't wait – amplify your voice or supercharge your startup's growth today with Savor's ecosystem of industry-leading platforms and advisory services. Visit https://www.savor.fm/capital-advisory

Die regering se besluit om aansoekers van die Nasionale Jeugontwikkelingsfonds toe te laat om aansoek te doen sonder Bipa-registrasiedokumente, is as 'n positiewe stap verwelkom. Suksesvolle aansoekers sal nou slegs hul Bipa-besigheidsregistrasie hoef te voltooi sodra hul projekte goedgekeur is. Die ouderdomsgrens vir aansoekers is ook van 35 na 45 verhoog. In 'n onderhoud met Kosmos 94.1 Nuus het Danny Meyer, direkteur van SMEs Compete, gesê dat hierdie veranderinge Namibiërs in al 14 streke 'n beter geleentheid sal gee om voordeel te trek uit die fonds.

This episode is sponsored by Lockton, click here to learn more Watch the Full Video on YouTube - click hereWhen people in the automotive world talk about leaders who bring out the best in others, Kim Less's name always surfaces. As Vice President of aftersales for Nissan Americas, she leads a team of more than 1,600 people in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and South America.Her leadership philosophy? Constant gentle pressure. The phrase, which came from Danny Meyer, perfectly captures how Kim shows up daily. To her, "constant" means persistence and accountability. "Gentle" means having your team's back while guiding them toward growth. And "pressure" is the drive to win, move with urgency, and deliver. Together, they form the balance she strives for: leading with calm confidence but never without expectation.At Nissan, Kim has spent years redefining what aftersales means inside the organization. For her, aftersales isn't an "afterthought," it's the engine that fuels brand loyalty and future sales. Leading across multiple countries means managing different cultures, languages, and expectations. Kim talks about how she's brought the entire Americas region together as one unified team. She does that by traveling to meet teams in person and building relationships and credibility. Over time, those consistent actions turned into a shared culture built on mutual respect and accountability.As the automotive industry evolves, Nissan is focused on simplifying its processes to make quicker decisions. Kim recalls working with the dealer advisory board to streamline 60 dealer-facing programs; removing or simplifying two-thirds to sharpen focus on what truly matters. To her, simplification isn't about doing less; it's about removing distractions so teams can move faster and stay focused on impact.She ties that same thinking to the importance of trust inside organizations. Once people trust each other and the data and systems they rely on, they no longer waste time validating every decision. That's when speed naturally follows. She also reflects on the personal side of leadership and the lessons from finding balance. Earlier in her career, while raising twins, she often hesitated to step away from work for family events. Over time, she learned that setting boundaries wasn't a weakness but a necessity. Now, she mentors others, urging them to "own their calendar," set limits, and protect their well-being. It's advice she lives by and passes down to emerging leaders who often feel pressured to choose between career and personal life.Themes discussed in this episode:How Kim Less applies “constant gentle pressure” to balance accountability, empathy, and performance in leading Nissan Aftersales AmericasThe leadership lessons Kim Less learned from Saturn and GM that shaped her people-first approach at NissanWhy calm leadership and consistency drive stronger team alignment across multiple cultures and regions in the AmericasThe business case for aftersales as a core growth engine that strengthens brand loyalty and customer lifetime valueThe transformation of Nissan's Aftersales organization through simplification, streamlined programs, and faster decision-makingThe process of uniting 1,600 employees across North and South America under one shared vision and operating modelThe importance of visiting markets and building relationships in person to earn credibility and alignmentHow setting boundaries, owning your calendar, and leading with authenticity sustain energy and focus in high-pressure rolesFeatured guest:

Namate Namibië nader aan 'n finale beleggingsbesluit in groot olie- en gasprojekte beweeg, word die deelname van klein en mediumgrootte besighede in die sektor belemmer deur 'n gebrek aan befondsing en toegang tot toerusting. Danny Meyer van SMEs Compete sê terwyl regeringsgesteunde waarborgfondse hulle kan help om toegang tot toerusting te kry en aan sertifiseringsvereistes te voldoen, kan beleggersondersteuning ook nodig wees. Hy het met Kosmos 94.1 Nuus gesels.

The great Danny Meyer said, "Policies are nothing more than guidelines to be broken for the benefit of our guests". I come back to this idea often when trying to balance the tension between the need for structure and boundaries, and the freedom to be flexible in them and sometimes in spite of them. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about when to break the rules you make in your shop, when not to, and why it is critical to delivering on great hospitality to be flexible in how you operate. Related episodes: 414: Secret Ingredients for a Successful Coffee Shop 549: The Power of Great Consistent Work Over Time The Conversational Reality of Your Business : Thought on how to approach creative projects in the new year   HIRE KTTS CONSULTING AND COACHING! If you are a cafe owner and want to work one on one with me to bring your shop to its next level and help bring you joy and freedom in the process then email  chris@keystothshop.com of book a free call now:  https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min    Thank you to out sponsors! Everything you need for back of the house operations https://rattleware.qualitybystainless.com/   The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com    

It was truly a blast to have Danny Meyer in the studio. Danny is a great spokesperson for the restaurant industry and a hell of a storyteller. In today's episode, we focus on his most near and dear restaurant, New York's Union Square Cafe, which turns 40 this year. We talk about the early years, the legendary customers, and what it was like to pack everything up and move a couple of blocks over in 2016. What a great conversation.  Also on the show, I have a great talk with Lena Ciardullo, the current executive chef of Union Square Cafe. We talk about what it's like to shepherd this iconic restaurant, and we get into her own personal style and tastes. Subscribe to This Is TASTE: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube 

It's a haphazard way of paying workers, and yet it keeps expanding. With federal tax policy shifting in a pro-tip direction, we revisit an episode from 2019 to find out why. SOURCES:John List, economist at the University of Chicago.Michael Lynn, professor of consumer behavior and marketing at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration.Uri Gneezy, economist at the University of California, San Diego's Rady School of Management.Danny Meyer, founder of Union Square Hospitality Group, and founder and chairman of the board of Shake Shack. RESOURCES:"How ‘No Tax on Tips' Will Affect Waiters, Drivers and Diners," by Julia Moskin (New York Times, 2025).“The Drivers of Social Preferences: Evidence from a Nationwide Tipping Field Experiment,” by Bharat Chandar, Uri Gneezy, John List, and Ian Muir (The National Bureau of Economic Research, 2019).“Design and Analysis of Cluster-Randomized Field Experiments in Panel Data Settings,” by Bharat Chandar, Ali Hortacsu, John List, Ian Muir, and Jeffrey Wooldridge (The National Bureau of Economic Research, 2019).“The Effects of Tipping on Consumers' Satisfaction with Restaurants,” by Michael Lynn (The Journal of Consumer Affairs, 2018).“The Importance of Being Marginal: Gender Differences in Generosity,” Stefano DellaVigna, John List, Ulrike Malmendier, and Gautam Rao (The American Economic Review,  2013).“Restaurant Tipping and Service Quality: A Tenuous Relationship,” by Michael Lynn (The Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 2001). EXTRAS:“The No-Tipping Point,” by Freakonomics Radio (2016).“Should Tipping Be Banned?” by Freakonomics Radio (2013).

If you're agonizing over a big life decision, Chef Tracy has a simple solution for you. Flip a coin. It sounds crazy, but that's exactly what she and her husband, Arjav Ezekiel, did when they couldn't decide where to move. Start their future together in Portland, Oregon, where Arjav was from? Or move to bustling Austin? They tossed a quarter in the air and let fate decide. “Tails, it's Texas” prevailed. Today, their restaurant, Birdie's, is one of the most celebrated eateries in the city, the state, and beyond. Fans love the food and drink, the counter-service vibe, and the warm hospitality. (Arjav recently won a James Beard for being a great beverage pro. Congrats, Arjav!) But Birdie's is also admired for its enlightened employee practices, like paid vacation, maternity leave, and health insurance. It's one of the reasons Tracy was named to our first-ever Cherry Bombe Power List. Tracy joined me from Austin for this episode to chat about her life and career, from working for Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group to cheffing through IVF and a tough pregnancy, and her love of fingerling potatoes. Do all chefs love potatoes? I think so. Tracy's an inspiring human, and I'm so happy to have her back on the show. Give a listen, and, of course, if you find yourself in Austin, go visit Birdie's. –Host Kerry DiamondThank you to Visa & OpenTable for supporting our show. Tickets for Jubilee L.A.Join the waitlist for our Summer Tastemaker TourSubscribe to Cherry Bombe's print magazineFollow me on Instagram

Kim DiMarco is a veteran textile executive and the founder of Somato Textiles, a brand reimagining hospitality fabrics through creativity, sustainability, and heart. With over 30 years of global industry experience, Kim brings a rare mix of business acumen and design passion to every swatch she touches. Susan and Kim talk about pattern psychology, people-first operations, and planet-friendly practices. What You'll Learn About: How Kim hustled her way into the textile industry by volunteering in a basement Why wild hotel carpet patterns were never just about hiding stains What makes hospitality textiles tougher (and smarter) than your couch fabric Kim's fresh take on fabric pricing—with a menu full of vintage restaurant references How she's turning old textiles into air-freshening, tire-strengthening biochar The real reason white bedspreads aren't going anywhere Why building a company around people, not profit, can still be wildly successful A hilarious, heartfelt cold pitch to Danny Meyer—complete with branded sweatshirts Her top advice for entrepreneurs: go slow, stay scrappy, and follow the spark

Jill Rowe's creative journey is anything but conventional—and that's what makes it powerful. She began her career in fashion, modeling for iconic photographers such as Herb Ritts and David Bailey, before transitioning into New York's downtown art world, where she worked with visionaries like Keith Haring and Ed Ruscha. Her curiosity led her to film production, then to the kitchen, where she discovered a love of feeding others, hosting intimate farmhouse dinners, and eventually opening her southern-inspired restaurant. She spent eight years running Danny Meyer's Union Square Cafe, honing her skills in service, leadership, and connection. Ready for a return to entrepreneurship, Jill moved to the Hudson Valley and met photographer and author Matthew Benson, who had already transformed Stonegate Farm into a biodiverse, organic estate. Together, they launched Cultivate Apothecary, crafting potent skincare and wellness products from the botanicals already thriving on the land, while adding new plantings known for their potent efficacy. In today's episode, Nada and Jill discuss her various careers as a model, restaurateur, and farmer, and how each path eventually led to co-founding a beauty brand. Jill describes developing an early interest in skincare while living abroad, and later developing a knack for food during her time in Manhattan. Once she moved to small-scale farming, she began creating with nature's bounty. Jill shares what it's like being partnered in both life and business with her co-founder, as well as the joy of fully discovering herself in the middle third of her life. Check out Cultivate Apothecary for more information on Jill's beauty products. Follow on Instagram @thejillrowe, @stonegatefarmny, and @cultivateapothecary.Please follow us at @thisislibertyroad on Instagram; we want to share and connect with you and hear your thoughts and comments. Please rate and review this podcast. It helps to know if these conversations inspire and equip you to consider your possibilities and lean into your future with intention.

Re-releasing a DAT listener favorite! Dr. Lewis Chen is aboard the Dental A-Team! Dr. Chen has become an extremely successful dentist in a short amount of time — like, 10-practices-in-two-years successful. He shares with Kiera what he did differently to find his success, including utilizing the right resources and committing to a schedule. Dr. Chen and Kiera also discuss the difference between work and luck, things that went well, and pitfalls he wishes he'd avoided. He also shares life hacks, his best tip for delegation, and how to elevate teams. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:05) Hey everyone, welcome to the Dental A Team podcast. I'm your host, Kiera Dent, and I had this crazy idea that maybe I could combine a doctor and a team member's perspective, because let's say dentistry can be a challenging profession with those two perspectives. I've been a dental assistant, treatment coordinator, scheduler, pillar, office manager, regional manager, practice owner, and I have a team of traveling consultants where we have traveled to over 165 different offices coaching teams. Yep, we don't just understand you, we are you.   Kiera (00:14) Because face it.   Kiera (00:34) Our mission is to positively impact the world of dental. And I believe that this podcast is the greatest way I can help elevate teams, grow VIP experiences, reduce stress, and create A-Teams. Welcome to the Dental A Team Podcast. ⁓   Team listeners, this is Kiera and you guys. Today is a pretty special day. I have a dear friend. We have chatted so many times. He is a rock star on Instagram. If you do not watch his channel, you definitely need to. And he's just one of the coolest people that I feel is a great inspiration. He's been able to do what a lot of other offices have not been able to do. So I'm so jazzed to bring on Dr. Louis Chen. How are you today, Louis?   Dr. Chen (01:14) Good. Thanks for having me. It's always a pleasure. It's been so long since we've been actually meeting in person. think the last time was in 2018, 2019.   Kiera (01:23) I Because I saw you I think first, was it Paul Goodman's event, the dental nachos? I think that's where we first met.   Dr. Chen (01:30) Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, that's when I saw Mark in person for the first time and then I saw you for the first time, but I've known about both of you, you know, from some years back. So it's about time. Almost fangirling at the time. I'm fangirling now still.   Kiera (01:43) So.   Well,   you're so kind. You just you inspire me. So I am so jazzed. Kind of take our listeners. I know a little bit of your journey, but gosh, you have done some impressive work since 2019, only in 2021. And in the middle, we had COVID. So kind of just walk our listeners through just your back history, your backstory of how you even got to being a dentist, what kind of inspired you to become one, where you're at today. Just kind of give people your quick bio on you.   Dr. Chen (02:13) Quick bio, so okay, I'll give myself a short version. So I started in college with an economics major to which I graduated with that degree. And during that time in sophomore year, I remember interning at dental office and my parents liked the arts, liked the sciences, tried dentistry and I did. since that time, I shadowed a dentist and he was very,   I was very shy guy. He's like, listen, you should spend some time learning about patient care. Just learn about patients. Don't think about the dentistry. Dentistry will come. go to school for that. School doesn't teach you how to speak to people. ⁓ then later I focused a lot of my time doing it. And I realized in New York City, the crux of New York City, dentistry is not cheap. It's an expensive commodity. part of that   you when I sat there, realized like, you know, patients who've had a great time when they checked out, they had to build a pay, it's usually not as exciting.   Kiera (03:21) It's true   Dr. Chen (03:23) Yeah, so I had I was sought out on mission. said, well, you know, why in New York City is very saturated? Why should I be perpetuating that sort of, you know, that the stereotype of dentistry, dental work to be expensive? So I sought out a vision and said, you know what? I love dentistry. I want to provide good quality care. It's like, social hour, happy hour, every day, every hour. But why can I just make it a little bit more affordable?   than my neighbor, neighboring dentists. And I wanted to provide exceptional patient experience and exceptional patient care, the dental care, so on and so forth, the whole camera things. And then I said, know what? I want to do on a scale. I want to at least have five offices by the time, and I want to achieve that. And I was 19 at the time.   Kiera (04:13) Haven't even gone to dental school. You're like, here's the vision. This is what I want. And let's make it happen.   Dr. Chen (04:18) Yeah, and that's exactly what I mean, through dental school, wasn't my vision. My vision was to be an exceptional provider, which is kind of still falls into my core values when I first started. purpose behind what I do is just, know, making, helping as many lives as, you know, impact as many lives as possible through this journey. then now fast forward, you know, I went to dental school, did right residency. And then 2019 to 2021, my partner and I   which is who I met in dental school. was my professor at the time. And since then I've got all the new partners we just started to build and from two locations and now in 2021, hopefully by the end of 2021, we'll have 10.   Kiera (05:02) You guys heard that right. That was 10. So, you know, 2019 to 2021, 10 practices. It's pretty impressive, Louis. And what I love, ⁓ you and I are very aligned. Our mission at Dental A Team is to positively impact the world of dentistry in the greatest way possible. And you also wanted to positively impact, ⁓ and change the way patients view dentistry. So I just love it. Louis, I think you're an inspiration to so many. So I'm going to like, let's get ready. Let's dive deep. Cause I'm sure people listening are like how.   How did you do it? It like, that's great. You had a vision when you were 19, you went to dental school. Sounds like you partnered up with somebody fantastic. And now here you are two years later and you've got 10 practices. So kind of walk us through some of the things that you felt helped perpetuate that and make it into a reality. You're also in New York. I mean, you got hit hard with COVID. I think you actually were one of the hardest hit places of all. I mean, massive growth, massive, massive change. And you're also like real chill. You are always like,   fun and engaging. also attend a ton of CE. You also have a personal life. So I'm a lot of people ask how and I'm always curious to know like very successful people, people who just I feel like and sometimes it's weird to say like successful people because you're like, I'm just Lewis, like I'm just this person. But it's like you do things differently. You are a different breed. Everybody else has the same opportunities in life, but you do things differently. So what are some of those things that you feel like you've done differently to get to this state in your life right now?   Kiera (06:18) Your   Dr. Chen (06:29) That was a loaded   Kiera (06:30) It is a loaded question. That's why you're on the podcast, Louis. You can ask all the questions to you.   Dr. Chen (06:33) I   You asked amazing questions. I'm happy to entertain and I feel like I should be a better question asker too. To start, think to perpetuate is one is having the proper resources available to you and just committing yourself. I remember when I was in residency or whatnot, on top of being in residency, learning what I had to do and just kind of self-learning. I was listening to lot of podcasts and then eventually podcast was a huge learning experience because it's available. It's available and why not utilize it? Over time as you start building your sort of   operations business, I entertain, you know, just taking CEF. Actually, one of my team members, couple of my teams are infatuated with you, Kiera, by the way. They love you. They're like, Oh my God, I wish I could be Kiera. I'm like, you should.   Kiera (07:19) When I come to New York, I'll be there in December, let me know, we'll hang out, be a time. It'd be a fun surprise list, we should definitely like off air, come up with a surprise, it'd be real fun.   Dr. Chen (07:30) Yeah, it's it's it's I do send a lot of information you send out to your newsletters are fantastic. So again, actually reading the resources are provided. I know sometimes people just kind of sift through and kind of toss it away. But I should sift through it and I say, well, I'm going to forward to the appropriate team members so I can elevate them. Right. So one of the just, you know, being the good filter of resources is one of what you do is committing yourself to a schedule. Right. For me, like I'm always an early bird now, like   5 to 35, 45 wake up. I work pretty much all day, like nonstop and it's hard to get a hold of me. I'm always bouncing around offices. And I what gets me going is really just that commitment to purpose, which I think that people don't focus so much on. And when they go into dentistry, it's that purpose. I still stand by what I want to achieve when I was 19 till now, which is basically just continue to drive and push for great, great things, you know, and over time it, you elevate yourself.   and you realize you just start to grow in size, expand, you need to have a belief system. And it comes first, which is, know, what's your core values and really just redesigning everything that you do. So ⁓ that gets me going. I wake up in the morning, I have a purpose behind what I do. ⁓ I have my own personal core values that I abide by. ⁓ And there's nothing better than that.   Kiera (08:51) I love it. I love it so much. And Lewis, of course, I'm going to dive in deeper. think a few pieces I pulled from that is one, it sounds like you're very, ⁓ let's say like regimated, like, you know what you want to do in life. And I found that when I talked to successful people, it's one of my favorite things about the podcast is picking people's brains. ⁓ Tony Robbins has a quote that I love and it says successful people ask better questions. So it's like, what is that routine? Like you have a morning routine, you wake up at certain times, you're very much dedicated to a purpose, something beyond you.   Because like when those hard days come, which they will always come, it's pulling back to why are we doing this? What is the why behind it? So I love that you, started first with that. I also love that you mentioned you filter through the resources that are available. You're right. This podcast is free. Like people can download it, listen to it. We put it on for free and we bring on really awesome guests. also like our newsletters are written by our consultants and I check all of them, make sure there's awesome facts, tangibles in there. It's not just a newsletter of like   But it really is, but also filtering through like what is that best information? So I love hearing that you actually take the time to read through it. Be systematized in how you operate. So I'm going to dive into like, what do you feel? Cause I feel like I was given the golden spoon of success meeting Mark Costas. Like I will say that again and again and again, just like proximity is power, right place, right time meeting people I connected in, I helped an office grow exponentially. They connected me with Mark Costas, had the whole DSI experience. It was amazing.   Kiera (09:56) but you're also very   Kiera (10:18) perpetuated Dental A Team, learned a ton, but like that was a strike of lightning, but I don't think it was just pure luck. think right place, right time, also looking for opportunities. So for you, what were some of those opportunities again, cause I hate when people say it was just luck. I'm like, yes, did I get a really lucky golden card out of heaven? Absolutely yes. But I also think there was a lot of preparation that came for it. So what were some of the things you feel like you've been, you've done well that has kind of propelled you to be able to do 10 practices in two years?   Dr. Chen (10:46) To your point, know, like I do say it's a part of luck, but I think it's a little bit of understanding whether the luck is presented to you. Because sometimes people, there's plenty of opportunities that presented it. And sometimes we just don't visualize it to be a luck. know, for me, I was really hard. You I worked hard and I graduated early from dental school, but I was the only guy who worked till the very, very end. Even though didn't have to, I still wanted to work.   didn't take the vacation that other people did. I just really wanted to be the absolute best at what I did and be comfortable with it. And my partner at the time, my professor at the time is a prosthodontist. So he's very detail oriented. He had his eyes on me, like this hard worker, great with people, loved dentistry, good clinician. And I had a vision, know, him and I sat down and he said, what are your goals? Because he wanted to hire me as an associate. What are your goals? What do you want to do?   And then as soon as we got off that dinner, I remember it was December 2016, something like that. He was just like, what if I want you to work with me? Like not just work with me, like work, build something with me. I'm like, what's going on? And I didn't went to residency and I was like, all right, cool. I'll continue to do what I had to do. ⁓ But I continued to revisit and commit to my, that luck and opportunity. ⁓   Again, I think to that point, I think we have to understand that we have to our best self out for us every day because if you're not performing optimally, yeah, sometimes people perceive, you know, under performance is not optimal performance. And I'm going to deliver, you know, if an interview falls short, you know, like what I have to do, that's the first impression, right? ⁓ So I definitely think that we have to be on A game all the time for sure in order to, and then...   Once you hit that point, critical mass like a games always your game.   Kiera (12:38) That   becomes your new standard. That's where it is. That's your baseline.   Dr. Chen (12:41) That's the baseline. Did I answer your question, Tyler? There's another loaded question. So I was like,   Kiera (12:46) It   was a loaded question, Lewis. I just like to pick people's brains of like what it sounds like if I were to recap it in a way, it's almost as if I feel like you put in a lot of hard work, hustle and grit. And I think that that's important. I love the picture. I'm sure a lot of us have seen it of the ballet slippers. Like there is a ballerina on point and one foot's in the ballerina slipper and the other foot is this like cut up bloody hot mess. And it says everybody wants success, but they often don't realize what it takes to get there. And   I think about, like, I just heard a lot of that hard work, that grit. You also had a vision and you were very committed to it. So I think about team members, I think about practice owners of what is that vision and are you actually committed to it? Are you a fair weather fan or are you like ride or die? I will achieve this goal. And I hear a lot of conviction, but also because of that conviction from you, Louis, I feel like it also presented you opportunities that might have otherwise passed you by. This professor was looking for an associate.   ⁓ You had proven yourself to be this very successful student. So they were looking, there was an opportunity sitting there. You didn't even know it. I tell people often, I groom people. I watch people before they even become in leadership. My husband was groomed for about four years before he was taken into leadership. Had no idea it was happening, but people are constantly watching. There are opportunities always around us. It's just, like you said, who are you presenting day in and day out? So I love that. I love that.   Kiera (13:51) And a lot of times I   Kiera (14:11) And I hope other people are listening and realizing it's not just a stroke of luck. Being your best self, having that baseline continually, that's what's gonna set you up for opportunities that you may have otherwise missed. next up, professor, decide you're going to become partners. You're gonna take this on, you finish up residency. So I also love that you equipped yourself with the skills and tools you needed. So if it didn't work out with your professor, all eggs were in that basket. You're like, with you or without you, I will do this. And I like that you did that.   Kiera (14:15) It is literally.   You and   Kiera (14:40) So then what are some of the things you felt you and your partner did very well from the get go? Cause I also feel a lot of success comes from pivoting quickly, learning from your mistakes very quickly. So what were some of the things you felt at the beginning you guys did really, really well, and then I'm going to pivot to mistakes. But right now, what are some of the things you felt like that set me up for success exceptionally well in the beginning?   Dr. Chen (15:03) Well, I think they keep an open mind and think that having the clear expectations of one of each other is important. As we continue to grow, we add more to partners too. We've been again, it's awesome to have different. we, we, we may get very clear what our strengths are, stay in your lane kind of thing. My partner is great with the financial aspects. I'm great with, well, I'm not great with system, but I like systems.   Kiera (15:26) I can tell you wake up at a certain time, the process, I got the vision, you're good.   Dr. Chen (15:30) Yeah, the gaining writing it, the process, the system, putting it in place, organize, that's the hard part that he doesn't take care of. But that's what I do. The one thing that we did do well is we talked about where we want to what we want to achieve. I think that one of the things that he mentioned was, you know, what he's trying to achieve is not, you know, for the financial goals. His is very in line with mine, which is to provide exceptional care. So our core values were aligned. So at any given point.   I just know the decision that he suggests and makes ⁓ is for better, for good purpose or for the right reasons, not for any other intent. That was really important to us. ⁓ of course, you know, just building a lot of trust. I did throw a lot of my eggs in his back. And in fact, I did, threw everything in. have nothing. All my trust is all in. and, be, you know, be, be have the conviction to finish and, and strong.   And that's kind of where we stood. And I think that's what we did well. And we continued to grow. We weren't stagnant. We all, like my partner, he's 10 years my senior. So he's constantly in leadership classes because he needs to be a better leader. He wants to be a better leader. He takes the necessary classes to be a better leader.   He understands he's self-reflective and self-aware about how he presents himself to his team. And it rubs off on me. again, we learn ⁓ one also great thing is we embrace honest mistakes. We embrace the humility. Cause even if I made a mistake and I would, I would honestly tell them like, cause I'm looking my bad. I didn't think about this. I didn't think about that. Here's the outcomes. Like it's fine. Just, just don't do it again. Just figure it out. Put it on a sheet of paper, figure it out, do it again. And ⁓ that's, there's a lot of forgiveness in that process, which helped.   I oftentimes think that if there's no open communication to allow for humility, ⁓ people get, you know, they're probably get stuck with within their own confines. ⁓ And I think that's something that was really beneficial for us.   Kiera (17:38) As you guys look back on 2021, how was it? Was it your best year? Was it a year you could have done a little better? And as you're looking forward to 2022, what type of a practice and a person do you want to be? Well, guys, now is the time to take massive action and to have the life and the practice you've always wanted. Dental A Team Platinum is where it's at, guys. We focus on system development. That's right, top to bottom. Team development, growing leaders, growing you as a person, making sure you're balanced, that we have happier teams.   And we also ensure that your practice is profitable, teaching you how to be business. So if you're looking to enhance your practice, take it to the next level. You yourself want to grow. Now is the time. Dental A Team platinum. We fly to your practice. Most of our offices see a 10 to 30 % increase in revenue, reduction of stress, happier teams, better patient experiences. So if you know, you want to rocket launch yourself into 2022, don't wait guys. We are only taking on so many platinum practices because we physically fly to you. So email us today.   Kiera (18:09) Abby.   Kiera (18:34) Hello@TheDentalATeam.com and you better believe we have something special for you end of year offices. So be sure to reach out Hello@TheDentalATeam.com. Remember you're only one decision away from a completely different light.   Kiera (18:37) So   Gosh, so many good takeaways because I think so many people have partnerships that actually don't go well. And so helping to see you guys were in your lanes, you also had complimentary skillsets to one another. I think that that's actually amazing that you figured out stay in your lanes. And then there's the honest mistakes, like that happens. I tell everybody like fail successfully. And I also love another quote, like there are no failures. There's just results. Like what happened? Why did it happen? Like let's learn from it so it doesn't happen again and move forward.   And when teams and partners feel that they can make those mistakes, there's so much freedom. Like the rules and the boundaries are all open. You can have anything. There's massive creative success and openings and ideas that can come because you feel very, very free, I guess, to make those mistakes. You know you're gonna be accountable to it, but there's nothing wrong in not having it go exactly as planned. So I'm not gonna pivot, Louis. Like you've been so generous. And I just, wanted to pick your brain. I've been dying to talk to you. You guys have such a fun culture.   which I think kudos to you guys for doing that. But now next up is going to be, what do you feel, like I know I can go back in my career and say like, these were big pivotal mistakes that if I could do it over again, I would never have done that. So maybe one or two of those, and not even mistakes, I guess it's just like, like of course I learned from them. I'm grateful I had them, but if I was giving someone guidance, these would be some pitfalls that I wish I would have known about prior to making them. Do you have any of those that have come? I mean, 10 practices in two years, Louis, I'm not gonna lie. Like it's impressive.   I love it, I'm so freaking proud of you. I'm like high fiving you through the screen right now. Just impressed with who you are and that your vision's coming to light. What were some of those pitfalls though that you're like, wish I would have done that.   Dr. Chen (20:25) I couldn't, there was a laundry list and to your point of failing successfully, so important failing forward. I mean, God, like it's, can give you a whole separate podcast on just fail failures. Biggest thing is, Eagle let go of Eagle. Huge thing about Ventus is Eagle. It's like, it go. Number two, team culture. number three, put the, pro provided proper resources for success. you know, seek out, there's tons of resources out there. Like you said, you can.   Kiera (20:27) Ha   Dr. Chen (20:55) You can purchase the protocols, can purchase manuals, can, you know, whatever it is, you don't have to reinvent the wheel if you don't have to. Very simple, right? And oftentimes people think I want my own recipe. And I always say it, I say it to my teams. I'm like, at some point, re-revent the recipe, you know, the wheel, or just follow, always following someone else's recipe. Use the recipe to make something that you like to cook, not what they like to cook. If you want that breaded chicken, maybe you want some breaded cutlet chicken cutlet with some other paprika or something like, or Cajun.   That's your recipe. What are those additional variables? But you don't have to reinvent the wheel, save yourself the time and struggle. ⁓ Number three is learning to elevate the team. I realized that people forget that every team member is looking for growth. You just have to provide that platform for growth. Another one is, again, same thing with race humility about your leadership. I think that sometimes people look for   team members with skillset and they don't provide the opportunity to look at potential more than skillset. And to this day, I don't hire for skills. I hire for talent to hire for potential because you can't find someone who's really good with hospitality, who hasn't been in the hospitality.   Kiera (22:05) Amen. true. So true. I love it.   Dr. Chen (22:09) Yeah, there's so much more to things that I, ⁓ again, even cultural alignment with your partners, resetting that, having that conversation or revisiting, you figuring the differences out that, know, the only way you can grow is to be aligned and there's no other question. There's no other way around it.   Kiera (22:27) Gosh, I love it so much. think that there's just so many pieces on there. And something I really wanted to highlight, the reason I asked that question is because again, I think so many people look at that and say, my gosh, 10 practices in two years. Is this person really human? Do they ever make mistakes? And I think it's really important to realize on the path of success.   I loved, heard a quote and it's called the success tax. Like there are hard times that follow. There are things that we wish we wouldn't have done. There are things that we learn along the way, but it's like, just keep growing and becoming better. So I'm actually gonna ask you, I came up with a few questions that I've wanted to ask podcast guests that I'm like, ⁓ I'm gonna remember to ask Louis these. So my first question is, what is your best time saving hack?   Dr. Chen (23:12) time-saving hack. People oftentimes say it's because I sleep so little.   Kiera (23:17) How many how many hours do you sleep at night Louis let's talk about that   Dr. Chen (23:21) So I got an aura ring. So this is a ring that measures your sleep and the REM sleep. So I'm trying to life hack myself through data by understanding like, well, if I'm, if I'm getting X amount of hours of deep sleep or REM sleep or whatnot, am I going to, do I wake up feeling like I'm going to be productive? Right. I feel like I'm energized. Do I feel like I'm putting myself, you know, put my best foot forward? That's key. I am huge on calendars. I know that I heard a podcast on productivity. Some people say to do lists are great, but   calendars even better, but I personally have all my work that I do actually on calendar by blocks almost. I put it on my calendar to say, all right, today payroll, got to do payroll. Not that I hope to achieve it, but there's so many moving parts that what time set forth is not usually the time I will take to complete. at the minimum, I try to tackle it by, I have a to-do project management to-do list and I break it down by location, by management, by, you know,   team members or administrative or all that stuff. And I prioritize it based off deadlines. So for me, I feel like I will prioritize and provide a deadline for myself if I find this work's gonna take a little longer. If it's easy, I'm not gonna get out because there's no point to delay procrastinating easy tasks because I feel like completing easy tasks, tasks drive, provides us momentum and inertia to continue to achieve more. So sometimes I wake up waking in the morning, like tackling the biggest task and like,   this is a drag. gonna take a long time to do it. But if I just start tacking like, you know, just, you know, finishing off some emails or just, you know, taking off some of the things on the to-do list, I get this momentum of feeling pro tip productive and I continue to be more productive. ⁓ but that's one of my life hacks.   Kiera (25:03) I like it.   I like it. Okay. So I like also that you, one thing I hope people are picking up is that you innovate. You are literally looking at your sleep habits to see do, could I actually be as productive with less sleep? Like I love it. I love that you're testing it out. You're trying it out here. Like you think outside the box and I really hope that people are realizing like it doesn't just come with like the flick of your wrist or you know, a magic wand. Like this is called, you're actually putting these things into play. also agree with you. Calendaring.   It is a world of difference like I literally put blocks on the calendar because if there aren't blocks I've got an hour or two of free time Well instantly that hour or two gets sucked up by all these other things because I didn't actually proactively take care of it. So awesome next question is What's your best tip for delegation? And this is me just selfishly asking you all the things I want to get better at So I'm just asking this is you and me having a private podcast more for myself. So best tip for delegation. Louis. What is it?   Dr. Chen (25:58) I think the best question that that question I should be asking you instead, because you've been you've been able to grow practices, you're in consult now. So like, delegation is a weird thing. I think everyone says it the same, you everyone says the same thing. Abdication is very, very different delegation. Abdication is really just kind of relieving yourself of the work that you don't want to achieve. And it's putting into hands of someone with autonomy and then not providing the outcomes that you find to be successful. ⁓ Delegation is understanding that   your productivity will increase by you offloading some of the workload. So you can spearhead the delegation, not to do the work, but you can provide projects or spearhead, you know, with an individual who can take the load off and understanding an agenda. Even for myself right now, I'm at the point where I need to hire some more HR recruiters and more operations team members. And I know what I need because my time is   diminished if I continue to focus on so many different things that I know I can offload and just oversee, have a project timeline for that.   Kiera (27:06) Totally. I love it. I also, like, as you said that I'm hoping people heard that you prioritize your time and you're constantly hiring and innovating and bringing on different people. So that way you're always on optimum peak performance. Like what are the things that only you can do? Times being diminished. I could outsource this. I could hire somebody else. So, ⁓ and then the last question I have for you is your best tip for like team communication, or you talked a lot about elevating your team. This is a team podcast. What is something that you feel you do really, really well?   I think you guys have a really fun culture from what I see, super jazz for what you guys are doing. What do you feel is something that you've done very well to help have a great team culture in your practices?   Dr. Chen (27:46) So when I, and I still do the HR, so I hire for, I hire every person. And one of the biggest things is me being the person who can establish that culture through the interview from the get-go because, that comes from speaking to if with the right candidate, ⁓ I spend a little bit more time really going through the company culture as well as the core values of the, of the, of the office. So this way they come in expecting that what's harder is kind of shaking up the culture that doesn't exist.   Basically trying to create something that didn't start. like every office I'm trying something new, like find you the new Peto office that my partners and I have, you know, I came in and did this whole cultural thing and I'm not great at it. I'm trying it, but I walk in, I feel amazing. You know, I feel amazing. I see the team, the team is great. I feel I can't wait. I love coming to the office, right? And I love knowing that I can, because I also know that the team loves that too. ⁓   So that's one thing is to create the culture is just establish it from the get go. Like do not this do not delay the process to onboarding. If the moment you get onboarded culture comes first the belief systems. ⁓ Another thing is, you know, being honest with yourself with that process because it's very it's corny. And everyone talks about no one no one is like when I first started like core values, what are those like this work needs to be done right? Totally.   realize that toxicity happens and there's other stuff that needs to be managed and navigated. And it's just so much harder if you don't, especially if you start growing, the culture has to be consistent across the board. So yeah, and it's easier with one because you see the same people all the time. But if you're drop shipping yourself in different locations, you expect the culture to persist. And am I great at it? I am far from it. And   I'm constantly, even right now, I'm just trying to figure out how do I measure culture, right? How do I ensure that it's being consistent? Maybe because I'm coming in, people are performing well, maybe they're not, right? And how do I measure that? That's being, that's, I think that's the first and foremost thing.   Kiera (29:59) I really love that you said that and I love that you said it's cheesy because I think so many people think it's cheesy so they actually don't do it. And yet at the end of the day, we've got great resignation. It's hard to hire all these different pieces, but I'm like, you clearly are hiring a lot of people. And I think having a great culture that people genuinely love to work there. Having a culture that is based on core values. I have redone my core values. I think we're on like rendition four, but it's because I realized like things are being missed from our company.   And so I love that you brought up like the cheesy aspect of it. So bottom line is, and then you ask, and I'm actually just going to give you a tip that I've heard for how do you measure culture? Cause you're right. Like it should be a tangible thing. should be something when we walk in, it is the same from practice to practice to practice. So an office that I really, really love and respect and admire, they actually send out quarterly surveys or twice a year surveys. So November and May, and they actually have an anonymous survey of like, how is the culture? So they get a pulse on all the practices. ⁓   For my team, I'm constantly ripping our core values down and I will spot audit them and say, all right guys, what are our core values? And I will randomly ask different people on calls just to see, do they know the core values? Having core value shout outs at morning huddle where they have to all choose a team member and pick a core value. I don't care which one it is that exemplifies that. it'd be like today, Dr. Chen, I'm going to give him the core value of fun. Like he's always fun. He brings a lot of fun energy. So it actually is infused into your practice.   but then how to measure it doing those quarter or those twice a year surveys oftentimes can give you kind of a anonymous pulse on your practices. So I love that you brought these pieces in. I love that you're focused on it because I really do believe great cultures are where great practices are able to impact their community stronger. And it also impacts the lives of those that work there. So I love it. Those are so fun, Lewis. think it's fun to see your journey. It's been fun to watch you grow.   Kiera (31:40) this is happened.   Kiera (31:51) I I met you pre even owning practices and now to see you where you are and I just know there's so much more ahead of you. So I love it. I'm always rooting you on always happy to help. We should definitely plan a time to meet up. I'm always in New York. So I'd love to see you guys, but ⁓ thanks for sharing. Thanks for sharing all your tips. Any, any last things you want to share as we wrap up? I'd love to hear anything else you want to add in.   Dr. Chen (32:13) I think to any team member or any provider, particularly the providers, because to grow, you have to keep an open mind to what's out there. And even for myself, like you mentioned, I do say it's cheesy, but no one talks about it. But you know what? I see the difference day and night. It changes the way you deliver your care, it the way you lead, it changes the way you manage. And to your point, I tried the team surveys.   Again, I like trying a lot of things. And I realized that sometimes trying things has to have a structure. when you're ready for it, like I couldn't measure culture if I didn't understand what culture meant. But now that I have culture set in court, the core values of company culture established, now this might have a better impact. Now I have team members who can understand that and deliver that. So it is requires a lot of step back. I think one thing to learn from any team member is like,   take a step back and just kind of take a read on the practice. Whether people are feeling great, there, you know, I like, I like Danny Meyer. Danny Meyer, is podcast I sent it to you. And he talks about having team members, you know, check the weather report before to come in. Because if you're feeling sunny, there's going to be a sunny day in the office, patients, team members, everyone. But if you're feeling like you have a rainy day, you check yourself, leave that rain behind because you're going to rain on everyone else.   So that's one thing that I've started to realize is I gotta make sure to check on my Retherport every single day before I deliver my results.   Kiera (33:46) That's awesome, Lewis. You are just like I said, an inspiration. It's fun. Thank you for sharing. know it's sometimes uncomfortable to share our successes, sometimes uncomfortable to share failures. But I just love that's why I love this podcast because we bring the best of the best. We share ideas because I think sometimes just hearing someone's story, hearing someone's experiences, learning from them helps rocket launch so many other practices to success. So thank you, Lewis. I just adore you. I'm so glad you're here today. Always cheering you on. So thank you. Thanks for being a part of this today.   Dr. Chen (34:15) Thank you, appreciate it.   Kiera (34:17) Of   course. All right, you guys that wraps it up. Dr. Lewis Chen, super grateful guys. If you check him out, he's all over social media. ⁓ great, great person. He will respond to you. Like you will never believe this man is as busy as he is because he responds all the time. He's always gathering so much information. So check him out. Such an inspiration. And as always to all of you, thank you for listening and I'll catch you next time on the Dental A Team podcast.   That wraps it up for another episode of Dental A Team Podcast. Thank for listening and we'll talk to you next time.   Kiera (34:44) Thank you so much for  

“ It's a core tenant of who we are, and it's called put people first. We take care of our people.” Derek De Salvia, Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Officer at Hilton Grand Vacations, joins Dan today to dive into the world of vacation ownership. The discussion covers the personal and professional aspects of hospitality, the evolution and benefits of the vacation ownership model, and how Hilton Grand Vacations differentiates itself in the industry, especially as one of Newsweek's Top Most Loved Workplaces. Derek shares insights into customer education, the impact of multi-generational ownership, the importance of team member engagement, and the adaptability of vacation ownership through economic cycles and evolving customer needs. The episode concludes with advice for potential customers and an invitation to experience Hilton Grand Vacations firsthand.Takeaways: Train your team to understand the difference between basic service and true hospitality. Aim for over-delivery on guest expectations.Highlight the importance of creating lasting memories for families, which can be a significant selling point for returning customers and multi-generational travel.Ensure guests are well-informed about how to maximize their memberships or stays through tutorials, seminars, and resources available on member pages.Foster a culture of hospitality among team members. When employees feel valued and cared for, they are more likely to pass on that sentiment to guests.Consider the long-term benefits and memories that owning a timeshare can create for your family across generations, rather than just focusing on the upfront costs and annual fees.Continuously gather and act on feedback from guest surveys and team member inputs to refine services and address any issues promptly.Quote of the Show:“We couldn't talk about hospitality and what that means to people if we didn't share that love and warmth of hospitality to our team members.” - Derek De SalviaLinks:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derek-desalvia-m-s-5a2b5521/ Website: https://www.hiltongrandvacations.com/ Shout Outs:0:59 - Newsweek https://www.newsweek.com/ 3:32 - Hilton https://www.hilton.com/en/ 7:59 - Danny Meyer https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Meyer 18:21 - Great Wolf Lodge https://www.greatwolf.com/ 18:25 - Blue Green Vacations https://www.bluegreenvacations.com/ 18:27 - Bass Pro https://www.basspro.com/home 

“We are a hospitality company first and foremost.” Joining Dan this week is Alissa Klees, the Brand Leader of Spark by Hilton, the trailblazing brand that earned Hilton recognition as one of Fast Company's 2024 Most Innovative Companies. Alissa delves into what hospitality means to her, encompassing both personal and professional interactions. She shares the incredible journey of Spark, from its secretive "Skunkworks-type room" origins to its rapid global expansion. Highlights include the brand's focus on simplicity, affordability, and owner satisfaction, making conversions quick and efficient. Alissa emphasizes the positive impact on hotel staff pride and guest experiences, backed by Hilton's innovative culture and robust supply chain strategies. The episode also explores future growth opportunities and the lasting impact Spark aims to achieve within the industry.Takeaways:Ensure that the guest experience is straightforward and predictable to meet their expectations consistently. Consider establishing strong partnerships with supply chain managers. Look into negotiating bulk purchasing agreements to keep your renovation or building projects on schedule and within budget.Implement systems that align with the philosophy of 'people serving people' to build a strong, service-oriented culture.Collect and analyze guest feedback to identify design or service aspects that need improvement. Be flexible and ready to adapt based on the feedback to continually enhance the guest experience.Provide value-driven experiences to make budget-conscious guests consider and prefer your brand.Quote of the Show:“We are a hospitality company first and foremost.” - Alissa KleesLinks:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alissak/ Website: https://www.hilton.com/en/brands/spark-by-hiltonShout Outs:0:48 - Fast Company https://www.fastcompany.com/ 1:50 - Skunkworks https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/who-we-are/business-areas/aeronautics/skunkworks.html 2:00 - Lockheed Martin https://www.lockheedmartin.com/ 2:35 - Larry Traxler https://www.linkedin.com/in/larrytraxler/ 5:38 - Danny Meyer https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Meyer 6:17 - Hampton https://www.hilton.com/en/brands/hampton-by-hilton/ 16:24 - Sonesta https://www.sonesta.com/ 17:58 - JM Hospitality https://www.jmhospitality.com/ 19:58 - DoubleTree https://www.hilton.com/en/brands/doubletree-by-hilton/ 20:02 - Rogers Arena https://rogersarena.com/ 25:42 - Peloton https://www.onepeloton.com/ 32:55 - Chris Nassetta https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisnassetta/ 36: 23 - Waldorf Astoria https://www.hilton.com/en/brands/waldorf-astoria/ 37:32 - Tru https://www.hilton.com/en/brands/tru-by-hilton/ 46:01 - Ernest Hemingway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Hemingway 49:18 - Conrad https://www.hilton.com/en/brands/conrad-hotels/ 52:58 - Graduate https://www.hilton.com/en/brands/graduate-hotels/ 53:14 - NoMad https://www.hilton.com/en/brands/nomad-hotels/ 53:25 - MGM https://mgmgrand.mgmresorts.com/en.html 

It takes determination to dive into hospitality and come out with a boutique hotel that is successful, and that is what Chris Lenz, Founder and CEO of La Compania Hotels and Resorts. Chris shares his journey from opening 37 restaurants to creating extraordinary hotels in Panama. They explore his passion for hospitality, his uncompromising vision, and the meticulous planning that goes into building unique hospitality experiences. Learn about Chris's journey from restaurateur to hotelier, his innovative trifecta perfecta concept, and his ambitious plans for redefining luxury travel in Panama.Takeaways: Always strive to create unique and memorable experiences that differentiate your property or service from others. Focus on curating personalized touches and special features in your establishment that guests will remember and talk about.Maintain an uncompromising vision and execute it with passion. The team must understand and align with this vision to consistently deliver the intended guest experience.Consider partnerships with larger brands for access to their distribution networks, loyalty programs, and market reach. Ensure the partnership aligns with your property's unique and boutique characteristics to maintain brand integrity.Enhance the guest journey by minimizing travel hassles. For example, offering private transportation or concierge services that streamline and personalize the guest's travel experience.Even with growth, maintain high standards for service, safety, and uniqueness. This is critical for retaining your brand's value and ensuring guest satisfaction.Quote of the Show:“I'm gonna build the best historic landmark hotel in Central America. I'm gonna change the tourism of this country.” - Chris LenzLinks:Website: hlcpanama.com https://www.hyatt.com/unbound-collection/en-US/ptyub-unbound-hotel-la-compania Shout Outs:2:02 - Mikey Dobin https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikey-dobin-04308468/ 2:02 - Diana Dobin https://www.linkedin.com/in/diana-dobin-319108b5/ 4:25 - Journey https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journey_(band) 4:26 - Arnel Pineda https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnel_Pineda 9:36 - Setting the Table by Danny Meyer https://www.amazon.com/Setting-Table-Transforming-Hospitality-Business/dp/0060742763 10:10 - Union Square Cafe https://www.unionsquarecafe.com/ 10:15 - Gramercy Tavern https://www.gramercytavern.com/ 11:52 - McDonald's https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us.html 13:14 - Rafael Nadal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafael_Nadal 25:27 - Holiday Inn https://www.ihg.com/hotels/us/en/reservation 26:25 - UNESCO https://www.unesco.org/en 37:27 - Marriott https://www.marriott.com/default.mi 37:53 - Hyatt https://www.hyatt.com/ 43:41 - booking.com48:08 - Omni Hotels https://www.omnihotels.com/ 1:06:42 - Amtrak https://www.amtrak.com/home.html?msockid=13e7d50d81a968200de9c1bb80596956 

How can we foster a culture of "unreasonable hospitality" and go above and beyond conventional standards to deliver exceptional experiences? Will Guidara, a distinguished figure in the world of hospitality and fine dining, has not only earned numerous accolades but has also revolutionized the way people perceive dining experiences.  His journey teaches us that creating a culture of "unreasonable hospitality" is all about pushing the boundaries, rewriting the script, and delivering extraordinary experiences. It is a testament to the idea that success transcends ordinary standards and is marked by a relentless commitment to exceeding expectations. Will is recognized for his role as a co-owner of Eleven Madison Park, a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in New York City, which under his leadership, earned the title of the "World's Best Restaurant" in 2017. Beyond his restaurant endeavors, he is a passionate advocate for the 'extra mile' mentality, inspiring individuals and businesses to prioritize people and deliver exceptional experiences. In this episode of The Greatness Machine, Will joins Darius to share insights on his inspiration for prioritizing others, drawing from his experiences with Danny Meyer. He underscores the importance of financial management in the restaurant industry and creating a culture of unreasonable hospitality. Will also touches on personal growth, leadership, and lessons learned from pursuing excellence in the culinary world and writing a book. Topics include: What inspired Will to embrace the idea of serving and prioritizing others Will looks back at his experience working with Danny Meyer Will discusses the importance of managing your finances carefully Creating a culture of unreasonable hospitality The importance of owning up to your mistakes and vulnerabilities as a leader Will talks about their pursuit of becoming the number one restaurant in the world The importance of separating one's identity from their work Will shares the lessons he learned while writing a book And other topics…  Connect with Will: Website: https://unreasonablehospitality.com/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/willguidara Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wguidara/  Twitter: https://twitter.com/wguidara Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WillGuidara/  Connect with Darius: Website: https://therealdarius.com/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dariusmirshahzadeh/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whoompdarius/ YouTube: https://therealdarius.com/youtube Book: The Core Value Equation https://www.amazon.com/Core-Value-Equation-Framework-Limitless/dp/1544506708 Sponsored by: Huel: Get Huel today with this exclusive offer for New Customers of 15% OFF with code GREATNESS at https://huel.com/GREATNESS (Minimum $75 purchase). ExpressVPN: Secure your online data today with ExpressVPN. Go to expressvpn.com/darius. Indeed: Get a $75 sponsored job credit to boost your job's visibility at Indeed.com/DARIUS. Shopify: Sign up for a $1/month trial period at shopify.com/darius.  Write a review for The Greatness Machine using this link: https://ratethispodcast.com/spreadinggreatness.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dave introduces today's guest, Will Guidara, author of ‘Unreasonable Hospitality,' and his storied culinary background. Dave then interviews Will and they talk about Will's philosophies on hospitality, the influence of Danny Meyer's approach to hospitality, problem-solving, and having a positive attitude regarding work. Dave finishes with an Ask Dave. Listen to the previous DCS episode with Will here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0356ddrsgQgqDbWQOUw2J9?si=EW6uezCeRE2vFnmvVLAnlw Purchase ‘Unreasonable Hospitality' here: https://www.unreasonablehospitality.com/#TheBook Check out Will's newsletter here: https://www.unreasonablehospitality.com/newsletter Check out past speakers at The Welcome Conference here: youtube.com/@TheWelcomeConference Send in your questions to askdave@majordomomedia.com Subscribe to the show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thedavechangshow Subscribe to Recipe Club on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@recipeclubofficial Submit your favorite food moments in your favorite movies to majorfoodporn.com Join our community discord on majordomo.com Host: Dave Chang and Chris Ying Guests: Will Guidara Video/Audio Producer: Felipe Guilhermino Majordomo Media Producers: Kelsey Rearden and David Meyer Editor: Stefano Sanchez Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Serial entrepreneur Julia Collins is tackling climate change with her latest venture, Planet FWD. It's a B2B platform helping brands make their supply chains better for the environment – and their bottom lines. Julia joins host Jeff Berman to share lessons learned from her earlier endeavors in the food industry, which involved a failed unicorn, pizza robots, Danny Meyer, and sustainable snacks.Read a transcript of this episode: https://mastersofscale.comSubscribe to the Masters of Scale weekly newsletter: https://mastersofscale.com/subscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Go to www.LearningLeader.com for full show notes This is brought to you by Insight Global. If you need to hire 1 person, hire a team of people, or transform your business through Talent or Technical Services, Insight Global's team of 30,000 people around the world have the hustle and grit to deliver. www.InsightGlobal.com/LearningLeader Chris Beresford-Hill is the Worldwide Chief Creative Officer at BBDO. Previously he spent 2 years as North America President and CCO of Ogilvy, where he helped bring the agency and its clients a new level of relevance. He brought Workday to the Super Bowl, led the team that brought in the Verizon account, and one of the biggest Super Bowl campaigns ever, “Can't B Broken,” featuring Beyonce, and created the most celebrated Super Bowl campaign of 2024, the social & influencer lead "Michael CeraVe," for CeraVe. Chris and his teams have won every award for creativity and effectiveness many times over. He has been included in ADWEEK Best Creatives, the ADWEEK 100, and Business Insider's Most Creative People in Advertising. Notes: Cold Emails: Be specific in your praise and specific in your ask. The lame "Can I pick your brain" type emails get deleted and ignored because they aren't specific. You never need permission to take responsibility. Chris learned this from Ed Catmull's book Creativity Inc.… And he's embodied this his entire career. The people who build huge careers take ownership of their own and regularly solve problems and improve their clients' and colleagues' lives. Chris has done this since his early days as an intern. At any level taking on responsibility yourself, unasked, makes you stand out. Competence combined with insane follow-through. For some clients, it takes 50 ideas to get to the one that will work. Creating a culture where the team can share all of their bad ideas safely to get to the one great one. The creative process: Brain dump everything. Purge your brain of everything it has. When you think you're done, you're not. There's more. You have to get it all out. "A lot of creative people aren't fully aware of the process or the structure, they just feel it (Rick Rubin). "When you can see it lift off the page, you feel a sense of mastery over it." Chris's first Super Bowl commercial -- Emerald Nuts. He won it because he was both funny and added the fact that the product provided energy. Most people only covered one part, Chris did both. Push your edges - Chris is like Lionel Messi. He's always walking around in the office, asking questions, looking for ideas, being curious. Then he sees an opportunity and goes for it 100%. Chris has a standing reservation every week at the same restaurant where he meets with a mentor, mentee, or peer to deepen the important relationships in his life. That would be a good idea for us all to do. Chris was pen-pals with Dave Matthews for 8 years.  Chris saw that they recorded at Bearsville studios and wrote a letter to Dave there. He also said, "Show up with gifts." He gave Dave a Beatles Bootlegged album. A leader takes what comes and then turns it into an opportunity. The formula is Competence + Insane Follow-Through. How to build relationships: Meet with people in person. Get drunk with them. Do hard work with them. Go through something bad with them. Laugh with them. I got hired from my internship by cold calling Mark Cuban to get him to approve of using his name in an ad. The best ideas are often bad in their first moments, or massively wrong, and then someone flips it or unlocks it. You have to stay on things and play around. I made my first ad by going through a garbage can to learn how to write a script and sending a bunch of Budweiser scripts to my boss. The art of finding an idea on the edge of possible, and the value of going over your skis when on the cusp of greatness - having a stomach for it. I've told a lie to keep things moving on every great campaign I was part of. I learned the best lesson in leadership when we lost our biggest account (Accenture).  I put Danny Meyer's mentality into practice, and we took that moment to put the business and clients second and play for each other. Culture carried us. Culture is built by the stories we tell and the behaviors we highlight.