Hi, I’m Ted Schama, joint managing partner of Shelley Sandzer and founder of One Voice Hospitality. I’ve been in the game for over three decades.
I love public speaking and in fact, I love the people and the characters in my industry.
Its in the nature of hospitality to talk and engage and likewise for property people to network.
So loving the chat and the sector meant only one thing… a podcast to bring them all together
There are plenty of successes and at the same time, plenty of struggles
I think its important to share our worlds with you.
Over the series, I’m going to talk to some of the industry’s leading figures, hear their stories, and really make this the conversation starter for our industry.
Subscribe for the ongoing series and I hope you enjoy it.
Send us a text David is one of the masters of corporate hospitality. From CEO of Pizza Express to founder of Clapham House Group with restaurants including The Real Greek, Franco Manca and many many others. David shares both pearls of wisdom of finance and growth together with some amusing stories along the way.
Send us a text Sandwich sandwich is a real family affair starting in Bristol as a better sandwich shop. With Nick’s farthers approval, Richard his brother followed suit. Crucially, Josh , 17 at the time also joined giving the brand some gen Z punch. From Bristol to London, the brand continues to redefine the sandwich shop experience.
Send us a text Glen gave up his training to be a lawyer as he knew he wanted to be in hospitality. Working as a kitchen porter to bigger roles at Patty&Bun, Bao, Market Halls until post covid, decided to launch the Tamil Crown with his partner, Prince. The pubs are following a trend of high quality restaurant food allied to an old school pub with great drinks and service. Now, only two years later they launch both The Tamil Prince and Tamila with more to come. Hospitality has given Glen the ...
Send us a text Marcel, CEO of Fulham Shore, has an extraordinary career in many exceptional brands including Nandos, Five Guys and now Fulham Shore’s Franco Manca and The Real Greek. What sets Marcel apart is his non conformism and ability to implement colourful strategies keeping the brands relevant and alive. Hot off the press, the Roma pizza spin off, Super Club Roma will deliver a crispy pizza in a very retro playful Italian environment picking up on the trend for a more crispy pizza base....
Send us a text Itamar and Sarit took the plunge on a shoestring budget and managed to open a twenty seat restaurant on Warren Street. This was so successful, you could hardly get a dinner slot for months. This however was not the dream as they were having to turn guests away. The dream is to accommodate everyone and so the honey and co family of restaurants grew. Facing clear challenges today is met by sound hospitality principles that thankfully create success....
Send us a text Martin had a passion at an early age for hospitality and was even urged by his father to make a career out of it. His Polish discipline along with his Italian flair stood him in good stead. Working internationally, Martin found his home at Soho House where he helped grow the business from three houses to over 60 as COO. In his own new book part of his life, “difficult name” was borne and has already launched to great acclaim, The Dover....
Send us a text Neil is never half hearted and always fully commits to any project he applies himself to. “Frontline Chef” as is known on social media has created many excellent brands including Temper and most recently Simplicity which supplies Dishoom with their vegan sausage and The Ivy with their vegan patty. Hospitality is “I got you” which I find very comforting
Send us a text David , CEO of D&D London, had an incredible upbringing with exposure to Hotels all over Europe. This followed with hospitality training leading to senior appointments including the likes of Claridges. David worked with Des in partnership with Sir Terence Conran which ultimately led to a management buyout where D&D London was born.
Send us a text This is a really important episode facing mental health and well-being head on. Stephen served at the highest operational level in hospitality in institutions such as the Wolsey and the Manderin Oriental however with the challenges he faced, there was a breakdown of wellbeing. Stephen is now a coach to the hospitality sector and supporting CEOs and defines hospitality as making the world a better place and improve the quality of peoples lives. An episode that transcends both hospi...
Send us a text Chris , formerly world famous rockstar turned from finance to operations at Soho House whom he is still close to. Now, White Rabbit (where the name comes from, you’ll have to listen) has flagship brands including Kricket, Island Poke, Lina Stores and other white label operations. Hospitality is a feeling of belonging.
Send us a text Tim is an entrepreneur having lent his hand to pubs, having carried out extensive research, dedicated himself to competitive socialising covering both the adult and family markets with different approaches. An early entrant but also recognises the sector is still young with a long way to go. Lane7 recently opened in Victoria, cracking the London market
Send us a text Jonathan Downey aka "JD" has been around as long as the hills. Landmark operations include Match Bar, Milk and Honey and Dinerama to name but a few. He's travelled the world and has a few stories to share along the way. Creating the "hospitality union" WhatsApp groups in lockdown, JD championed hospitalities corner. Now operating and collaborating as being an owner as opposed to an operator with distinct differences....
Send us a text Although I am sometimes referred to as the man with the hat, Nick Wallis wears two. He is partner at Gerald Edelman and also jointly heads Shelley Sandzer corporate finance. Deals which Nick has facilitated include Gaucho, Simmons Bars and Bario Bars with many more on the way. Even since recording this on 16th November 2023, Edition capital has just announced its investment into Farmer J. Nick gives valuable insight into the corporate finance world and predicts lots of transaction...
Send us a text charlie had one of the most notorious and hippest nightclubs in notting hill called Woodys, where no one can quite remember all the stories. time moved on and charlie set up draft house
Send us a text Will describes finding success through continuous mistakes, ultimately taking a restaurant lease on Commercial Road and cost saving meant using the existing grill and Hawksmoor was born from there. Along the way Hawksmoor reached amazing milestones of attracting investment from Graphite capital to conquering New York and shortly to open in Chicago.
Send us a text Ben oozes luxury and really has seen the best of the best. Former editor of Square Meal and now writes for Telegraph Luxury, The Evening Standard amongst others. We talk about the prevailing trends in London and the soon to open ultra luxury hotels.
Send us a text Stefan is the editor of Restaurant magazine , seeing trends come and go. We cover off everything from challenges whilst also relishing the comeback of big names including Jeremy King, Jamie Oliver etc.
Send us a text Put simply, Guy wanted to creat a hospitality business with everything else wrapped around it. Maslow is the mothership and from that was born Mortimer House followed by 1 Warwick and the acclaimed Nessa restaurant, both redefining high end hospitality with dining, offices, bars etc.
Send us a text Olly met Charlie playing rugby on the beach in Thailand. A while later they realised they are perfect partners to pioneer a new way of working, blending the office with hospitality. The Office Group was born long before the competition came to town, however, they were wisely advised that this was coming. Olly and Charlie went from strength to strength still working out how to make things even better again. Hospitality? That’s a smile...
Send us a text Karan was always set on applying himself to food and hospitality. Pure passion and attention to detail. Leaving an excellent academic career and qualifications, Karan went to work in kitchens chopping onions. Tales of hospitality abound, in the end, hospitality is defined as a warm fuzzy feeling
Send us a text Robin has been recognized by a number of awards such as “Retailer of Year” awarded by MCA, “Group Restauranteur” awarded by Catey, “Icon Winner” at the annual Peach Factory Hero & Icon Awards, and received an OBE (Order of the British Empire) for outstanding services to hospitality in 2016. Incredible pearls of wisdom including Robin’s five “P’s”. Description of hospitality ? One word - life....
Send us a text Contrary to my expectations, Rik had never visited India prior to opening Kricket in Brixton. Kricket is one of the most successful modern Indian restaurant brands branching out into delivery and most recently into an award winning coctail bar, Soma in Soho. Rik believes hospitality is how it makes you feel and Ive gone one step further in what I learnt in Malta....
Send us a text James had a passion for street food and being fed up with media and other ventures, made the plunge to source a pizza oven. A pilgrimage to Naples followed with purchasing their very own Italian mobile pizza oven which they drove through Italy and all the way back to London.
Send us a text Tony started from the humble beginnings of a smaller town in Algeria selling lemonade to football match goers every Friday. From there he arrived in London as a tourist and got a taste for the big smoke. Turning down university he eventually got his parents blessing to go back to London a make a go of it. The rest is history. Some heartfelt moments and ultimately Tony describing hospitality as love....
Send us a text Joe was disillusioned with City finance life and was itching to get into hospitality . Prompted by his parents, he cut his teeth at Roast Borough Market and quickly seized upon the better burger movement opening up Patty&Bun. Plenty of ups and downs on this episode. Hospitality ? That would be joy according to Joe.
Send us a text This week is another fascinating story of Kurt, keen to make a buck in Australia and as soon as he could afford his first home is offered as unmissable opportunity to launch Nobu in London with training in NYC. Kurt is founder of Chotto Matte, nikkei cuisine which is globally hugely popular and now open in America and the Middle East with further territories to follow
Send us a text An exceptional story from the nomad mexican chef. Santiago started working out of a suitcase, much like a rockstar on tour without a tour programme and the rest is history. Who would have thought all this came from inspiration from the back of a ritz cracker packet?!
Send us a text The Caravan team came together from a collaboration in New Zealand followed by extra ordinary experience in Providores, Marylebone High Street and Le Caprice events. Laura, Chris and Miles followed their hearts and instinct and opened Caravan, Exmouth Market. This was followed by an absolute belter in what was the beginnings of Kings Cross regeneration. They’ve clearly gone from strength to strength. Laura likened hospitality to welcoming into their home....
Send us a text Charlie’s journey talks about taking challenging sites and turning the negatives into a positive. Taking off pitch sites in the right postcodes to ultimately securing prime sites in prime locations such as St Martins Lane, Covent Garden and Battersea Power Station. Tellingly, Charlie doesn’t refer to a bar business but creating unique and memorable experiences. Perhaps entering hospitality from promoting is a key to his success? This recording was made just prior to Inception Grou...
Send us a text Mark came from a very different background covering the Olympics. Now Mark is director of hospitality and leisure at Land Sec covering the length and breadth of the UK. Notably, Mark deep dives into world class assets including Piccadilly Lights and One New Change spotting trends at a very early stage.
