Hospitality Mavericks Podcast

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. Shawn’s 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 initiatives. Tune in to learn more about the dangers of the ‘cult’ of goodness, the sufficiency economy, reversing the inequality train in the cocoa supply chain, how he is open about the company’s finances with his employees – and baking in monasteries.Links:‘Meaningful Work’ by Shawn AskinosieAskinosie Chocolate#163 Ari Weinzweig, CEO of Zingerman's Community of Businesses, on Visioning and the Myth of the One Thing#114 Ari Weinzweig, Co-Founder of Zingerman's, on Self-Leadership#161 Mats Lederhausen, Founder and CEO at

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 India, initially in south Mumbai.Tune in to this episode as Edward talks candidly about running a founder-led business, making space for experimentation, dealing with the complexity of the supply chain, and how he is intentionally living a simpler life.  Links:#134 David Lockwood, MD of Neal's Yard Dairy, on Having a 10-year Plan#161 Mats Lederhausen, Founder and CEO at Be-Cause, on Impactful Capitalism#150 Carly Trisk-Grove, Co-Creator of OPOP, on On How Restaurants Catalyze ChangeEd’s InstagramEd’s Linke

Today’s 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 environmental issues.Tune in to this episode to learn more about how Dan has built a business as a force for good. We talk about unbundling the supply chain, how their capital is aligned with the business in every way, teaching personal productivity – and how to make space for undistracted time and daydreaming. Links:The Founding Farmers#163 Ari Weinzweig, CEO of Zingerman's Community of Businesses, on Visioning and the Myth of the One Thing#122 Tom Barton, co-founder of Honest Burgers, on Leading by Example‘How To Br

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, it’s Dan’s 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 impact now and in the future on your brand and sales. We also discuss building local connections, the power of naivety, creating a manifesto, Anthony Bourdain – and his previous life as a digital nomad in Thailand.Links:OmsomHiut DenimLiquid Death Water#20 Your Brand as Your Promise With Cliff Ettridge, Partner at The TeamConnect with Dan on LinkedInSixEightConnect with the podcast:Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter: https://rb.gy/5rqyeq  A big thank you to our sponsor Bizimply who are helping p

Many companies are communicating 30 - 40 years out of date. But by bringing more emotion and humanness to your language, your company’s 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 Mandela. We also explore the power of personality, the problems with business cliches and jargon, the ‘Pratfall’ Effect, and some of his practical tricks of storytelling that you can start with today.Links:‘The Inspiratorium’ by Anthony Tasgal‘InCitations’ by Anthony Tasgal‘The Storytelling Workbook’ by Anthony Tasgal‘The War Against Cliche’ by Martin Amis#122 Tom Barton, co-founder of Honest Burgers, on Leading by ExampleHome Grown Cub‘Into the Woods’ book by John Yorke‘Nudge’ by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein‘T

As you know, I’m a big fan of checklists, so it was great having a like-minded guest on today’s 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 data-driven checklist, why Operations Management is (and needs to be) the next big thing – and Tommy’s stint in standup comedy.Links:‘The Checklist Manifesto’ by Atul Gawande#6: 'Only the Innovative Will Survive' With Joe Cripps, Co-founder and MD at TrailOpsAnalitica Connect with Tommy Yionoulis on LinkedInConnect with the podcast:Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter: https://rb.gy/5rqyeq  A big thank you to our sponsor Bizimply who is helping progressive leaders and operators make every shift

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 Zingerman’s 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 book and their experiences in how they continue to build such a great company.  This conversation will give you great guidance on how to build a great business for the long-term. We also discuss the communities Ari has been formed by, his freewriting process for visioning, and why we need to stop chasing after ‘The One Thing’. Links:‘The Alchemist’ by Paul CoelhoPamphlet – The Story of Visioning at Zingerman'sPamphlet – Twelve Natural Laws Of Building A Great BusinessThe Guide to Good Leading Series -

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 London’s 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 growing delivery sector. In this episode, we reflect on what Peter has learnt since he launched the business seven years ago. We explore what makes the most amazing delivery process, and how Peter is handling the impact of wage inflation and leveraging the power of being a small and nimble business.Links:Hospitality Rising Movement#125 Toby Savill, Co-Founder and CEO at Foodstuff, on Food Delivery with a ConscienceSupper LondonSupper London App for iOSSupper London App for AndroidConnect with the podcast:Join the

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 great source of inspiration for a more balanced, open and human public conversation. In this episode, we explore the need to work with a shared set of beliefs, the role of hospitality in society, plant-forward diets and what we can learn from Mats’ framework of ‘think big, start small, scale fast’.Links:‘Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind’ by Yuval Harari‘Good To Great’ by Jim CollinsJimCollins.com#154 David Dressler, Founder of Quiet Advisory, on Creating a Soulful WorkplaceIn Pursuit of Elevation – NewsletterBe-CauseCo

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 that’s 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 business and make a positive impact on the world. We also explore the B Corp movement, insights from his books, and why we need to stop more and be less ‘productive’  Links:BCorp‘Long Walk to Freedom’ by Nelson Mandela‘Good To Great’ by Jim CollinsPaul Hargreaves’ LinkedInPaulHargreaves.co.uk Hospitality and The Infinite Game #009: Net PositiveConnect with the podcast:Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter: https://rb.gy/5rqyeq  A big thank you to our sponsor Bizimply who are helping progress

What does winning look like for you this year? Today’s 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 from this conversation was the power of clarity from asking the right questions. We also discussed who should invest in leadership training, identifying your goals with leadership development, his 4:30am ‘me-time’ routine, and how to stay relevant. Links:‘You Can’t Do It Alone’ by Matt Rolfe‘Atomic Habits’ by James Clear‘Five Dysfunctions of a Team’ by Patrick Lencioni‘The Advantage’ by Patrick Lencioni‘Think and Grow Rich’ by Napoleon Hill‘Good to Great’ by Jim Collins‘Beyond Entrepreneurship 2.0’ by Jim Collin

Creating a green and equal world needs to be a mission for all companies, not a side project. But it’s 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 challenges—climate change and inequality—and build a thriving business as a result.In this episode, we sat down in the studio to unpack some key insights from the book, as well as how businesses can create positive byproducts, celebrate the mini revolutions, understand your business ecosystem, and the legacy of nurturing great talent… so when they leave they are better off and can continue serving the world.Resources mentioned:‘Net Positive’ by Andrew S. Winston and Paul Polman‘Donut Economics’ by Kate RaworthHospitality and The Infinite Gam

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 a program on this at The Freeman School of Business at Tulane University in New Orleans. Hit ‘play’ to learn more about finding a great mentor, what we can learn from member’s clubs, why James is bullish about the future – why you need to read the world atlas. mentor. Links:‘The Alchemist’ by Peter Coehlo#127 Barry O’Reilly, Co-Founder of Nobody Studios, on How to Unlearn James Geier’s LinkedIn555.comMarvin’s Food and FuelMorgan's on FultonCody SteakhouseThe Freeman School of Business at Tulane Universit

I’m 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 all things pizza. Thom gives us a deep dive into their purpose, leadership philosophy, culture, why pizza and happiness and how they are very connected, their approach to managing and developing people, their philosophy around growth, what they are focusing on as a business right now, the future of hospitality and some many other slices of wisdom.Links:Pizza Pilgrims‘Pizza: History, recipes, stories, people, places, love’ by Thom Elliot and James Elliot‘Pizza Pilgrims: Recipes from the Backstreets of Italy’ by Thom El

Roland Horne’s 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 company’s 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 for you. We discuss how Roland is trying to become a better CEO each day, how WatchHouse has built a loyal customer base – and how they are bringing specialty coffee through their app. Links:WatchHouseWatchHouse FacebookWatchHouse InstagramRoland Horne’s LinkedInConnect with the podcast:Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter: https://rb.gy/5rqyeq  A big thank you to our sponsor Bizimply who is helping progressive leaders and operators make every shift run like clockwork. Head to thier website at www.

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, it’s 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 and Urban Farm. It was great speaking with a fellow podcaster to reflect on the mavericks on hospitality. We explored the solution isn’t always about scaling, how a restaurant can serve the local community, having a ‘Hug Manager’, the plant-based diet and making time for regular mini-adventures.Links:Humans of Hospitality PodcastUrban Guild#151 Will Beckett, CEO of Hawksmoor, on Teaching Skills, Not Techniques#122 Tom Barton, co-founder of Honest Burgers, on Leading by Example‘Setting The Table’ by Danny Meyer‘

What makes a place ‘special’ to work at? I’m 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 why making a hard decision doesn't have to be so hard. We also dive into the pains of growing a business and what it means for you as a founder. Links:‘Ten Year Plan’ by David DresslerThe Sustainable Life Project‘Drive’ by Daniel PinkTender GreensQuiet AdvisoryConnect with the podcast:Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter: https://rb.gy/5rqyeq  A big thank you to our sponsor Bizimply who are helping progressive leaders and operators making every shift run like clockwork. Head to our website at

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 how to make sure that growth does not comprise your purpose and culture, but works hand in hand. We also explore the Great Resignation, the first 90 days, humanizing mistakes, and how no idea is too crazy.Links:Pathfinder HospitalityInstagramFacebookMel’s LinkedIn#56 Heartfelt Hospitality with Neena Jivraj Stevenson, Chief Cultural Officer of Point A HotelsConnect with the podcast:Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter: https://rb.gy/5rqyeq  A big thank you to our sponsor Bizimply who are helping progres

Today’s 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 performance for almost 8 years. Tune in to find out more about the ‘humanisation’ of hospitality, influencing behaviour across a large organisation and empowering creativity.Links:The Deskless Report 2021The Agile Hospitality Report#111 Rob Liddiard, Co-founder of Yapster, on Social LeadershipNudge.coJordan’s LinkedInConnect with the podcast:Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter: https://rb.gy/5rqyeq  A big thank you to our sponsor Bizimply who are helping progressive leaders and operators making every s

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 your staff, his management and leadership philosophies, how he finds balance – and what we can learn from table stakes. Links:‘Eleven Rings’ by Hugh Delehanty and Phil Jackson#122 Tom Barton, co-founder of Honest Burgers, on Leading by ExampleWill’s LinkedInHawksmoor’s InstagramHawksmoorConnect with the podcast:Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter: https://rb.gy/5rqyeq  A big thank you to our sponsor Bizimply who are helping progressive leaders and operators making every shift run like clockwork. Head