Month: May 2024

From running underground event spaces to virtual happy hours, Matt Landes has lived on the bleeding edge of what’s next within our industry. Today he shares the ups, downs and lessons learned on his journey to creating, running and now saving a million dollar events company.

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SHOW NOTES

• Starting Apartment A
• Creating a name brand
• Entering the world of events
• Was called by other brands to create concepts and parties for them
• Commitment to becoming the premier cocktail caterer in the world
• Trying to do everything in the beginning
• Create a cocktail magazine
• Pop up bars
• Help brands accelerate
• Focusing on doing one thing really well
• Creating a premium drink experience
• Businesses do better when they niche
• Cocktail academy has niched into events and consulting
• Core values of Cocktail Academy
• Focus enables an entrepreneur
• Make money
• Attract talent
• Retain loyal clients
• Changing plans for 2020
• 2019 was the best year of growth for Cocktail Academy
• Plans were to expand consulting
• Fully leveraging in-person experiences
• First reactions to Covid 19
• South by Southwest event was canceled
• Hague Club event was postponed
• Steps to pivoting during the pandemic
• Successful pivots to the online space
• Hosting bartenders on their Instagram account
• Bartenders give a cocktail recipe and receive tips via Venmo from followers
• Cocktail nightschool hosted every Thursday
• Custom cocktail experience boxes for brands
• Digital streaming events
• CARE (Cocktail Academy Ready-made Experiences)
• Virtual experiences give retail bought alcohol more story
• How to manage fear
• Oscillating between excitement in problem-solving and total exhaustion
• You can be scared of your own ideas
• Having a great idea means you have to follow through
• Make it happen or die trying
• Questions to ask to feel more in control
• Will I feel better if I tried?
• What is urgent to do today?
• What tasks am I responsible for related to clients and my team?
• Managing work-life balance
• Wellness Wednesdays
• Wednesdays off
• We can only be efficient 3.5 days a week during the pandemic
• Mental toll of the pandemic environment
• Entrepreneurial disorder in the hospitality industry
• Responsibility to become a creative leader within the industry
• Oversimplifying what it takes to action new ideas
• Feeling exhausted after thinking of new innovations
• Opportunities in cocktails to go
• Lost Parrot concept
• Tiki Tuesday delivery with tiki cocktail mugs
• Bar in a bag
• At home experience
• Eventually opening a pop-up bar called Parrot to connect with customers who have had the at-home Lost Parrot experience

I want to talk about tomorrow. What do we need to know today that could benefit us tomorrow?

Chris Hemmeter is playing an active role in financing our future. He’s an independent restaurateur, a venture capitalist and a thought leader within our industry. His company is financing the solutions that will change the face of our industry.

Today we talk about what’s being built today and how it will support us in the future.

For more on his company visit https://www.thayerventures.com

FULL COMP is brought to you by Yelp for Restaurants: In July 2020, a few hundred employees formed Yelp for Restaurants. Our goal is to build tools that help restaurateurs do more with limited time.

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CLICK HERE to Chat with Josh

Free Download: 5 Steps to Achieve a 15% Net Profit

We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:

FULL COMP

Restaurant Marketing School

The Playbook

Industry Town Halls

For over 30 years, Michael Mina has dominated the restaurant scene and today we sit down with the chef to find out how. In today’s conversation we dive deep into the tactics tools and strategies Michael has developed over decades to acquire talent, develop leaders, scale operations, and ensure profitability. This is a masterclass in restaurant ownership and operations.

For more information on the chef and his restaurant group, visit https://www.michaelmina.net/.

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Full Comp is brought to you by Yelp for Restaurants: In July 2020, a few hundred employees formed Yelp for Restaurants. Our goal is to build tools that help restaurateurs do more with limited time.

We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out our other content:

Yelp for Restaurants Podcasts

Restaurant expert videos & webinars

The hurdles we must overcome to be successful as restaurateurs are daunting at best, but what does it look like in the most extreme cases? Today we chat with Chef Jarad McCaroll of the Ocean Club located in the Caribbean Islands. With stiff competition, high expenses, and scarce resources this is easily one of the most challenging restaurant environments in the world. Jarad sits down to share how they’ve overcome these obstacles and many more to thrive and expand stateside.

For more information on the chef and his restaurant, visit https://oceanclubstbarths.com/.

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Full Comp is brought to you by Yelp for Restaurants: In July 2020, a few hundred employees formed Yelp for Restaurants. Our goal is to build tools that help restaurateurs do more with limited time.

We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out our other content:

Yelp for Restaurants Podcasts

Restaurant expert videos & webinars

Annie & Craig Stoll on the cultural evolution of restaurants

How many of us have had a front row seat to the changing tides of our industry over the last 25 years? Restaurants, our communities, and our guests have all changed dramatically and we’re still feeling the implications of those changes today. That’s why I wanted to sit down with Annie and Craig Stoll of the Delfina restaurant group in San Francisco. Since the late 90’s they’ve weathered the changing tides of our industry evolving, but never deviating from their initial vision of what a restaurant should be. We sit down to discuss culture, accountability, and how a steadfast focus on excellence can provide a consistent return on investment.

For more on them and their restaurants, visit https://www.delfinasf.com/.

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Full Comp is brought to you by Yelp for Restaurants: In July 2020, a few hundred employees formed Yelp for Restaurants. Our goal is to build tools that help restaurateurs do more with limited time.

We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out our other content:

Yelp for Restaurants Podcasts

Restaurant expert videos & webinars

We live in a polite society. We’re taught the importance of asking for permission. But what happens when you don’t. What happens when you decide one day to start a restaurant. No investors, no permit, no publicist, no permission. You just start.

Today we chat with Logan Sandoval who created Zef BBQ, a trendy BBQ joint on the edge of Los Angeles located in his parents garage. We discuss the inspiration behind starting the restaurant and what led to Zef gettingnational media attention despite its humble beginnings.

For more on Zef BBQ visit https://www.zefbbq.com

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Booktime on Josh’s personal calendar

We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:

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The Happy Mouth Morning Show

Restaurant Marketing School

The Playbook

I’m sure everyone ascribes to the philosophy of being the change you want to see in the world, but what does that look like in practical application? As hospitality professional, we have a unique opportunity to shape our neighborhoods by influencing what they consume and how they consume it.

André Hueston Mack is doing exactly that. Never in my life have I seen someone invest so much of themselves into their community and today we talk about the risks and rewards associated on betting on your neighbors to create a better neighborhood.

TIME STAMPED SHOW NOTES

[2:20] Learning the standards of self-expression

[5:00] Leaving Thomas Keller: Where uncertainty meets determination

[7:09] The slow burn of getting rich: “It was hard, but it was mine”.

[9:22] Making the wine was the easy part

[11:02] Knowing who to impress: the key to success in salesmanship

[13:28] Running toward discomfort: Understanding your own strengths

[14:04] Pushing boundaries: Priorities, time management, and opportunity

[16:06] How hard could it be?: Scaling an empire outside your front door

[20:56] Ensuring a profitable ecosystem: The demerits of peaking early

[22:53] It’s all about the neighborhood: Keeping it personal

[24:35] Preparing for the moment you’re in the way

[26:10] What Albert Einstein, distillation, and For Dummies books have in common

[29:00] Choosing from a thousand options

[30:10] Everything you ever wanted is on the other side of your fear.

FULL COMP is brought to you by Yelp for Restaurants: In July 2020, a few hundred employees formed Yelp for Restaurants. Our goal is to build tools that help restaurateurs do more with limited time.

________________________________

CLICK HERE to Chat with Josh

Free Download: 5 Steps to Achieve a 15% Net Profit

We have a lot more content coming your way!

Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:

FULL COMP

Restaurant Marketing School

The Playbook

Industry Town Halls

As you know, I’ve coached hundreds of restaurateurs to scale profitability through effective marketing and optimizing operations. These bonus episodes serve as mini-coaching sessions where I provide you with quick lessons to help you achieve the same amazing results without spending a dollar on marketing and advertising. Enjoy!

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Full Comp is brought to you by Yelp for Restaurants: In July 2020, a few hundred employees formed Yelp for Restaurants. Our goal is to build tools that help restaurateurs do more with limited time.We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out our other content:

⁠Yelp for Restaurants Podcasts⁠

⁠Restaurant expert videos & webinars⁠