I can't quite believe it took me as long as it did to reach out to todays guest, CEO of AES and The Residence Apartments, none other than Stephen Lowy. Being a 3rd generation Hospitalitarian might lead you into believing that Stephen's route was always mapped out for him but how wrong you would be. There are wonderful lessons all the way through this chat and we get across:- Struggling at school Finding hospitality Finding out about Dyslexia Salford University Black Eyes Travelling Anthony Bourdain Hostels Umi AES & The Residence Apartments The Klopp Effect The lessons of others The Savoy ..read more

What a total thrill it was this week to open my little black book of old work mates and get one of the nicest gents on the planet onto the show in the form of Marc Thompson. He also has a wonderful job title, Manager - Enrichment Programming which he does for the quite marvelous Seabourn Cruise Line. You can learn all about what enrichment programming covers in this episode as well as:- Marc's awesome job The cruise industry Indirect Marketing Taglines Thomson Holiday Repping Jobs on a Cruise Ship Moving to P&O The (Not so) Friendly Fours The stuff that happens at sea Harvey Nichols Futur ..read more

We wouldn't have had todays conversation had our guest not reached out and asked if she could come on the show. And I'm so glad that she did. I chat to Clare Coghill, Chef & Owner of Café Cùil on the Isle of Skye. And what a chat it is, it's got everything, a great story, so many lessons and some cracking anecdotes. We get through:- Island life and weather Positive Social Media Being born into the industry Formative years Going into TV London and the Spark for food Moving into the kitchen The first business The deep end Opening your first business in a pandemic Forced return to Skye Recon ..read more

You'll most likely know today's guest as Co-Founder of Honest Burgers but he's been working away on something transformative and has also Co-Founded another business in the form of Pineapple described as "future proofing hospitality through people data and research". I am of course talking about Philip Eeles. Philip is high on energy from the outset and to the backdrop of his balcony in Brighton, and a Gin & Tonic, we set to getting through his rather wonderful story. There's so much to love, including:- The 2023 Philip Eeles Journalism aspiration Starting in hospitality to pay the bills ..read more

Hospitality is awesome isn't it? And as if to prove that theory, In was on the receiving end of top class hospitality as I was welcomed to Pan Pacific London to chat to their amazing Director of Marketing Communications, Michelle Whittemore. Michelle oozes hospitality and our chat is packed full of stories and learning from someone who has forged a superb career so far. We get through:- Welcomes - Pan Pacific Style Starting in medicine Moving into Marketing Dictation Experiencing Agency Marketing & PR Visas & Travel arrangements Belgium & Marriott Settling in the UK Luxury Joining ..read more

On a sunny Monday morning, a few minutes out of a busy lunch service, I somehow managed to get some time with legendary chef and restaurateur Phil Howard, Chef Patron of the Michelin Starred Elystan Street and co founder of Notto. From the off, it's easy to see why Phil is described as the "Chef's Chef", just get him talking about food and the conversation is easy. He has had one hell of a journey to this point and we cover:- Who is Phil Howard? The changing face of the London food scene Getting into cooking Travel Getting a start with the Roux Brothers Harveys & Marco Pierre White Bibend ..read more

Goodness, have I got a beast of a chat for you this week. After much "toing and froing" of diaries, I finally got some time with one of the Pre-Eminent Hoteliers of our time, all round legend David Taylor, CEO of Lore Group. And I really don't know where to begin with this chat as there were so many wonderful takeaways both in story terms and some general career and business learning. It's an epic chat and we get through loads including:- Boarding school A hotel glimpse Being bold Taking it all in Making bad career moves "Mr Smith" Nights Working through various disciplines New openings Autho ..read more

You can't beat a good old chat about all things leadership and that's exactly what you get this week as I welcomed the host of the superb Hospitality Leadership Podcast and Leadership coach, Andy Jones to the show. As you can imagine, there's more than a little chat around leadership but we also get through Andy's journey into hospitality and a whole lot more besides, including:- Leadership The Pre-Hospitality Career Experiencing bad leadership Taking on a cafe Covid, Day one Resourcefulness Checklists Dynamism Coaching The Podcast There are so many wonderful takeaways from Andy and what he ..read more

What a total treat I have for you this week. Hot on the heals from an amazing experience at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this year, I thought it was high time we got someone else from this truly world class venue on the show. Enter in the absolute live wire that is Patricia Dickie, Director of Customer Experience at The Goodwood Estate. We get through a mountain of stuff:- The Goodwood Estate Festival of Speed Starting in Bars London's Gold Paved Streets The early life Down Mexico Way The University of hospitality The Hospitality Community Restaurant Reception Events Accidentally working at ..read more

A little sneaky bonus for you all this week as I wanted to showcase one of the wonderful highlights of the Hospitality Calendar, that being The Walk for Wellbeing. So what better way to showcase that than get its founder on the show, Craig Prentice. We also chat through Craigs journey to figure out where this idea came from and cover off:- Starting at a Money brokers Moving to a theatre &  Music venues Finding Hospitality Neglecting self care Recruitment Ennismore Mental struggles Starting business All things Walk for Wellbeing Togetherness And so much more. I was lucky enough to t ..read more