Almost 2 years ago to the day, I was lucky enough to get the industry legend that is Danny Pecorelli on the show to tell his story. Within that story we got talking about a very special event that was about to happen called Back to the Floor and he kindly invited me to join his table.

What unfolded at that event was what undoubtedly makes Back to the Floor one of the most celebrated events on the hospitality calendar. Fun and Carnage in equal measure, all whilst raising some much needed funds for those legends over at Hospitality Action.

2 years on, and it's nearly time for 2024's version to take centre stage, this time hosted at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge. With all that in mind, I thought it'd be great to shine a light on the event again through the GM of that very hotel, James Clarke.

In this special we talk about

• James' Story
• Park Plaza Westminster Bridge
• The history of Back to the Floor
• What to expect on the night
• The auction prizes
• What it’s like as a waiter or sommelier at the event
• Stories of the Carnage
• How to support the event

No doubt James has his work cut out for him keeping scores of our industry's finest under control for the evening but 2024's Back to the floor promises to be quite magnificent.

Enjoy!

To get behind this quite magnificent event, head to https://www.hospitalityaction.org.uk/events/2024/april/back-to-the-floor/

Today marks the end of season 5 of the show and we are signing off with a bang. I welcomed Hamish Anderson to the show, CEO of Tate Enterprises. This episode was a totally joyous education from the outset and represents another wonderful corner of the industry, where art and hospitality collide, in glorious fashion (Have I just inadvertently written a tagline for next years fashion week?).

Hamish is brilliant, he oozes effortless passion for hospitality all the way through and with some cracking stories too.

We cover:-

• January
• The many enterprises of Tate
• Early career
• Getting into wine
• Stock taking evolution
• Bibendum
• Writing a book about wine
• Climbing the ranks at Tate
• Deep thinking
• Leadership Lessons
• Finding a bottle of Dubonnet for the queen
• Magnums of Bollinger
• The evolution of Tate

And so much more.

I can't sign off season 5 without thanking you all for listening, this has been the most incredible season of the show, climbing into the top 1% of all podcasts and more of you are listening than ever before which I'll be forever grateful for. A huge thank you also goes to our Headline Sponsor, RotaCloud. Without the support of sponsors, it makes it very difficult to run the show.

I'll be back in the summer with more fun and shenanigans from the world of hospitality.

Enjoy!

The Guest

Hamish Anderson is the CEO of Tate Enterprises, a diverse business running Tate's commercial activity - Events, F&B, Retail, E Commerce, Publishing, Merchandise, Product & Image Licensing, a coffee roasting business (Coffee by Tate)

The Sponsor

Today’s episode comes to you in partnership with RotaCloud, the people management platform for shift-based teams.

RotaCloud lets managers create and share rotas, record attendance, and manage annual leave in minutes — all from a single, web-based app.

It makes work simple for your team, too, allowing them to check their rotas, request holiday, and even pick up extra shifts straight from their phones.

Try RotaCloud’s time-saving tools today by heading to https://rotacloud.com/phil

Another treat for you this week as I got some time with the wonderful Zoe Watts, Managing Director of Bennett Hay

Zoe's rise to MD has seen her take in some quite amazing places to work. In addition to her journey we also get through:-

• Exploring being a nurse
• The BHS Coffee Shop
• Off to Uni
• Beefeater Restaurants
• Savill garden Restaurant
• Becoming a GM
• The people who see something in you
• The Royal Society of Arts
• Tate
• Events
• The Adaptability of Hospitality
• Meetings with Royalty
• The move to contract catering
• Bennett Hay

And a whole lot more. Zoe's got some great stories up her sleeves which she recounts with us and in amongst all of that is a just wonderful career journey so far.

Enjoy!

The Guest

Zoe Watts is the Managing Director of Bennett Hay, an independent contract caterer specialising in workplace catering.

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/zo%C3%AB-watts-fih-96613615/

The Sponsor

Today’s episode comes to you in partnership with RotaCloud, the people management platform for shift-based teams.

RotaCloud lets managers create and share rotas, record attendance, and manage annual leave in minutes — all from a single, web-based app.

It makes work simple for your team, too, allowing them to check their rotas, request holiday, and even pick up extra shifts straight from their phones.

Try RotaCloud’s time-saving tools today by heading to https://rotacloud.com/phil