It was a true joy to have Mowgli Street Food founder Nisha Katona back on Hospitality Mavericks. Her restaurant is all about how Indians eat at home and on their streets, and it is one of the Top 100 companies to work for in the UK. This time round we catch up on how her life and business have been since covid. In this episode, Nisha discusses how running a small restaurant can still make ambitious plans for the environment and be a reputable employer in the industry. We also explore the differe...
Sep 08, 2022•55 min•Ep 175•Transcript available on Metacast There is no doubt that Culture is a hot topic in business. But what even is it? How do you change a culture? How long does it take to change? In this episode David quizzes Michael with these questions (and many more). We review the ultimate equation of Beliefs x Behaviour = Culture. Whether youre a company of one or 100,000 culture exists in every business, so you need to know whether your culture is built by neglect or conscious intent. Tune in to this episode as we discuss rewarding good behav...
Sep 06, 2022•50 min•Transcript available on Metacast Earlier this year, I had a fascinating conversation with the CEO at Lead Different, Dave Oakley, about Good To Great by Jim Collins. In this episode, Dave returns to the show to delve deeper into this seminal book, and reflect on how it can help you attract and retain great talent. Dave shares how to get talent right by using the Talent Matrix and what we can do to build a great company. Tune in to this episode as we talk about the role of responsibility, asking good questions, Daves Talent Matr...
Sep 01, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep 174•Transcript available on Metacast I had the great pleasure to be joined by two great guests from Escapism Bar Group Head of Learning and Development, Flynn Byrne, and Managing Director, Grant Dexter. It was fascinating to learn from the nightlife industry a sector that hasnt been fully covered on the show yet. Escapism Bar Group was founded in 2004 by husband and wife team Phil and Mel Harrison. Since the opening of their first bar Mean Eyed Cat, they have gone on to open seven other unique bars which all offer something totally...
Aug 25, 2022•53 min•Ep 173•Transcript available on Metacast Todays guest has gone through an incredible entrepreneurial journey, which includes having bought a hotel on an island, and how he is trying to find a way to ensure we change the world positively through business. Giles Fuchs is the Founder and CEO at Burgh Island Hotel, as well as Office Space in Town and Gunner Cocktails. Burgh Island Hotel is a unique Art Deco hotel on its own private island in South Devon. With notable past guests including Winston Churchill, The Beatles and Agatha Christie ...
Aug 18, 2022•45 min•Ep 172•Transcript available on Metacast How do you have a story and a brand that talks to people's hearts? Find out how from Sophia Ahamed, the Principal at Monograph&Co a Design Agency based in Vancouver, Canada. They produce compelling brand identities, publications, product packaging and digital experiences for clientele both locally and internationally. She is a Designer and Artist with over a decade of experience building brands and crafting design-specific pieces for the hospitality, food and beverage, and retail sectors It ...
Aug 11, 2022•52 min•Ep 171•Transcript available on Metacast Im super excited to have Rachael Nemeth, CEO and Co-founder of Opus, on todays episode. Opus is a training platform designed for businesses with a deskless workforce that helps more than 300 businesses boost their training on the frontline. It was fascinating to learn more about Rachaels background in operations from hospitality where she worked with some great brands like Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality. In this episode we explore more about the training platform, and how it delive...
Aug 04, 2022•52 min•Ep 170•Transcript available on Metacast Shawn Askinosie left a successful career as a criminal defense lawyer to start a bean-to-bar chocolate business Askinosie Chocolate. It is a small batch direct trade chocolate maker in Missouri, sourcing 100% of their cocoa beans directly from farmers. Shawns commitment to fairness, sustainability, minimal environmental impact, and community enhancement is undeniable. It was great catching up with Shawn to learn more about his work ethic and advice on leading purpose-driven initiativ...
Jul 28, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep 169•Transcript available on Metacast Today we are joined by the co-founder of a mission-driven fashion brand Thumbprint, as well as Strategy and Brand Consultant for a number of great hospitality brands Edward Francis. We explore how Ed and his co-founder Evgenia Baydikova have launched a fashion brand that, from the outset, is helping the world become a better place. Thumbprint Apparel breaks the mold of the fashion industry, by building a business around the people who make your clothes: young women from low income communities in...
Jul 21, 2022•59 min•Ep 168•Transcript available on Metacast Todays guest, Dan Simons, co-created and co-owns Farmers Restaurant Group, which includes seven restaurants in DC, Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, including Founding Farmers, Farmers Fishers Bakers, Farmers & Distillers, and their distillery, Founding Spirits. The company supports over 1,500 employees and continues to grow. Dan blogs regularly @Dan Simons Says about restaurants and hospitality, personal productivity and time management, developing partnerships and brands and environmen...
Jul 14, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep 167•Transcript available on Metacast Want to build a brand that people rave about? Dan Nash is the founder of SixEight, an agency that helps food brands turn their customers into a cult of superfans. As a Brand Strategist, its Dans mission to make food brands become a force for good, behave more like humans and generate the same intense love as the best brands in the world. He works with brands like Dishoom, Flat Iron, and Tonkotsu who have a story worth fighting for. We talk about how you tell and scale your story so it has a huge...
Jul 07, 2022•54 min•Ep 166•Transcript available on Metacast Many companies are communicating 30 - 40 years out of date. But by bringing more emotion and humanness to your language, your companys values and soul can be brought to the center stage. To learn more about telling stories, I am joined by Anthony Tasgal Trainer, Author, Speaker, Strategist and Lecturer. In this conversation, Tas talks candidly about what drew him to the art of storytelling and what we can learn from some of the great masters of communication like Pericles and Nelson ...
Jun 30, 2022•49 min•Ep 165•Transcript available on Metacast As you know, Im a big fan of checklists, so it was great having a like-minded guest on todays show Tommy Yionoulis to explore all things Operations Management and ticking things off your list. Tommy is the founder of OpsAnalitica, a platform that helps operators manage their daily operations and identify issues in their businesses, so they can address these before they escalate elsewhere in the business. Join us as we discuss how to avoid business death by a thousand mistakes, what is a da...
Jun 23, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep 164•Transcript available on Metacast Joining me on the show for the second time is Ari Weinzweig, the co-founder of Zingerman's Community of Businesses. You have probably heard me reference Zingermans on the show about how they are true trailblazers when it comes to building a business that make sound financial results as well as a positive impact on people, society and the planet. Ari has written a range of books and pamphlets including The Guide to Good Leading Series - Part 1, 2, 3 & 4 and today we will be diving into the bo...
Jun 16, 2022•1 hr 13 min•Ep 163•Transcript available on Metacast Peter Georgiou is the Founder and CEO of Supper, a platform which delivers exceptional food in London, from quality casual to Michelin starred, straight to your home or office by their custom-built fleet. They are now known as the luxury delivery company of choice for Londons finest restaurants and retailers. The idea started with a poor restaurant delivery experience one night with a friend, and Peter realised he could bring his previous expertise and insight to offer a better solution to the g...
Jun 09, 2022•44 min•Ep 162•Transcript available on Metacast With over 30 years of innovating and leading, Mats Lederhausen has a strong belief and commitment to a more long term and more impactful capitalism. Born in Sweden, Mats began his career with McDonald's and worked for The Boston Consulting Group. Now based in the US, he is now the CEO and Founder of Be-Cause, a platform for investing and building businesses with a purpose bigger than their products. I am a huge fan of his weekly blog and newsletter called In Pursuit of Elevation, which is a grea...
Jun 02, 2022•59 min•Ep 161•Transcript available on Metacast Paul Hargreaves is the CEO at Cotswold Fayre and Flourish, and author of two inspirational books Forces for Good and The Fourth Bottom Line. As a B Corp Ambassador, he often speaks to leaders who want to change the world through better business. It was powerful to learn more about his personal and professional journey thats taken him to where he is today. Paul joins me today to share what we can learn from his businesses they are great examples of how you can build a financially sound busi...
May 26, 2022•57 min•Ep 160•Transcript available on Metacast What does winning look like for you this year? Todays guest, Matt Rolfe, invites you to reflect on how you can work on yourself before you work on your team. Through his leadership coaching, Matt helps hospitality leaders and leadership teams achieve the results they want and deserve. His latest book, You Can't Do It Alone: Focusing on People to Scale, Develop, and Lead Your Restaurant , is a great read with some great insights about navigating the post-pandemic world. What stood out to me...
May 19, 2022•55 min•Ep 159•Transcript available on Metacast Creating a green and equal world needs to be a mission for all companies, not a side project. But its a courageous mission that can feel overwhelming, so there is a great book that can give you that much-needed direction Net Positive: How Courageous Companies Thrive by Giving More Than They Take by Andrew S. Winston (Consultant on corporate strategy) and Paul Polman (ex-Unilever CEO). The authors show business leaders how to take on humanity's greatest and most urgent challengesclimate change an...
May 17, 2022•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Our guest today shares how hospitality is at the foundation of many great businesses. James Geier is the Founder and President of 555 International, an interior design and specialty manufacturing firm. With over 40 years in launching and running businesses, it was never his original intention to even own his own business, so it was refreshing to learn more about his mentoring approach to leadership. A big theme from our conversation is about hospitality entrepreneurship, and how he is developing...
May 12, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Ep 158•Transcript available on Metacast Im super excited to speak with Thom Elliot co-founder of Pizza Pilgrims, who makes authentic Neapolitan pizzas in Central London and beyond. Pizza Pilgrims started life in 2011, after Thom and James drove a three-wheeled Piaggio Ape back from Italy on a 6 week Pizza Pilgrimage of discovery to learn everything there is to know about pizza. I love their latest venture, the Pizza Academy, which is designed to inspire young people to choose hospitality as a career and be a center of excellence for a...
May 05, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep 157•Transcript available on Metacast Roland Hornes approach to the pursuit of mastery is fascinating. He entered hospitality because he was a disgruntled customer. Fast forward to today, he is the founder and CEO of the Central London specialty coffee chain WatchHouse. From day one it has been the companys vision to grow and offer great coffee to great communities. This was a truly remarkable conversation where we find out how businesses should give more than they take. If you want to learn more about growth, then this one's ...
Apr 28, 2022•51 min•Ep 156•Transcript available on Metacast Mark Cribb is the host of Humans of Hospitality podcast and Director of Urban Guild a local, independent hospitality company based in his hometown Bournemouth, UK. From his travels on the road, its been his mission to bring an inspired, energetic, creative environment to his hometown where the wonders of people and the world could be embraced and shared every day. 17 years on, Urban Guild is now made up of the Urban Beach hotel, The Wood Oven & Urban Reef, Jenkins & Sons restaurant...
Apr 21, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep 155•Transcript available on Metacast What makes a place special to work at? Im excited to share with you a conversation I had with an expert in this field. David Dressler is a leadership coach, strategic advisor to purpose-driven entrepreneurs, author of Ten Year Plan and one of the co-founders of Tender Greens a successful and purpose-driven restaurant chain in the USA. In this candid interview, David shares how to form a ten year business plan, making a difference in your community, the current restaurant Renaissance, and w...
Apr 14, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep 154•Transcript available on Metacast How can you involve your people in building a better culture? Find out from Mel Miller, Director of Marketing & Business Development at Pathfinder Hospitality, about how they do this by operating as a people-first company. The organisation develops hotels and also manages hotels for third-party investors by leveraging its talented workforce, relationships with major hotel brands, and buying power with major hospitality-focused vendors. Join us as we discuss their philosophy around growth and...
Apr 07, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep 153•Transcript available on Metacast Todays guest is obsessed with solving business problems and helping organizational leaders rethink the connection between employee and customer experiences. He is the co-founder and COO of Nudge, an employee communications platform. Their recent report, The Deskless Report 2021, gives some fascinating insights into the state of the deskless workforce, which we uncover in this episode. Jordan also shares what they have learned working with tech that amplifies frontline employees engagement and pe...
Mar 31, 2022•55 min•Ep 152•Transcript available on Metacast Hawksmoor is a British steakhouse and cocktail bar chain founded by Will Beckett and Huw Gott in 2006, after they set out in search of the perfect steak. Fast forward to today, they run nine steakhouses based in London, with a recent new opening in New York City. Will joins the show to share how they have built a business that they are proud of. This is a truly enlightening conversation where we explore how Hawksmoor makes their customers feel special. We also discuss prioritising yo...
Mar 24, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep 151•Transcript available on Metacast I love speaking with guests who find different ways of building a business, and todays guest is no exception. Carly Trisk-Grove is the Co-creator of OPOP (One Plate One Price), a social enterprise restaurant that offers a new model for casual dining. Carly is on a mission to find out how restaurants can be run for the benefit of the community they serve. Carly shares how restaurants can be a catalyst for change in society through three ways: health, work and combating loneliness. Tune in a...
Mar 17, 2022•57 min•Ep 150•Transcript available on Metacast Todays guests with no prior experience in hospitality have excelled in their food business. Born and brought up in rural Tibet, Yeshi Jampa learned to cook nomadic food outdoors at a young age. He found his way to Oxford via India, picking up exciting new flavours along the way. They cook the finest, freshest, most authentic Tibetan food this side of the Himalayas. After first being a market stall, they now serve at festivals and private events, and have their own brick and mortar. Julie K...
Mar 10, 2022•1 hr 13 min•Ep 149•Transcript available on Metacast We don't need to be as busy as we need to be Anese Cavanaugh makes a great point in this episode to be conscious of where we spend our time and energy. Anese is the CEO of Active Choices, Inc., and author of several highly impactful books, which we explore more about on the show. Anese is also the creator of the IEP Method (Intentional Energetic Presence) and the Positive Energy Workplace Initiative, a strategist and advisor to leaders and organizations around the world and a keynote speaker. To...
Mar 03, 2022•1 hr•Ep 148•Transcript available on Metacast