This week Nick Portillo speaks with Jaclyn Glatzer. Managing Partner of JKG Food Services, President and CEO of World Select Cuts, Founder of the Maize Conference, and VP of Client Services for the Summit Group, Jaclyn brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table. Nick and Jaclyn dive deep into the world of entrepreneurship, marketing, and food service. Jaclyn and Nick explore the ins and outs of building and managing successful businesses in the food industry and discuss the unique challenges and opportunities that come with working in this ever-evolving field.

This week Nick Portillo welcomes Javier Vasquez, CEO of Miguel’s Jr. Restaurants. Born into the restaurant industry, Javier shares his experiences of working in a family-owned business for over 50 years. Javier talks about the importance of finding a company that aligns with your values and the value of communication Nick and Javier discuss the value of having an advisory board to guide entrepreneurs, how to scale up your business, and the importance of being willing to make changes as a leader.

This week Nick Portillo welcomes Danny Klein, Editorial Director at FSR and QSR Magazine to the podcast. Danny shares how he got into the business, the challenges he has faced and overcome, and how he has successfully leveraged an existing brand and made it his own by being himself. He also discusses how the pandemic had both positive and negative effects on the foodservice industry.

Nick Portillo welcomes Maeve Webster, President and Founder of Menu Matters, on this episode of the Titans of Food Service Podcast. Maeve and Nick discuss the impact of the pandemic on the food service industry and how it has forced people to become more entrepreneurial. Maeve talks about her background in the food service industry and shares her passion for innovation and efficiency. She also discusses how the pandemic has led to a healthy reset for the industry, allowing for new ideas and decisions to be made.

This week Nick Portillo talks with Scott Embringham. Scott is the CEO and owner of Embringham Media Group, a company that specializes in leveraging artificial intelligence to help food service businesses. He joins Nick to discuss how AI can be used to improve the success of a food service business. Scott shares his story of how he had a successful agency in 2018, bringing in 10 million in sales from the automotive industry before it all came crashing down.

This week Nick Portillo talks with Andrea Todd, Culinary Business Development Director of Foodservice for Dessert Holdings. Andrea explains how she fell into the food industry and developed her skills in baking and running a business. She talks about the importance of organization and efficiency in mass production and shares valuable insights from her nine years as a culinary salesperson. QUOTES “One of the biggest learnings is just ensuring that you can sell your product for what will be meaningful to you from the amount of work you’re putting into it, as well as making sure that it covers your cost of goods and gives you some money in the end as well.” -Andrea Todd [08:34] “I think a lot of sales are built around how you are at networking and relationship building. When you come from somewhere where you know everyone, I would say it sets you up to know how important a network is. My parents were entrepreneurs, so you realize how much those relationships matter. That’s a big part of how the sales side of it became successful is just through the relationship building side of it.” -Andrea Todd

Ever wondered what it takes to run a thriving restaurant? Greg Graber, CEO of Heritage Food Brands, discusses the three pillars of a successful restaurant this week on the Titans of Foodservice podcast. He shares why restaurant guests need to be able to connect with the people serving them and the challenges of maintaining that standard consistently. Listen as Nick and Greg have an insightful conversation on the value of hard work and perseverance in the foodservice industry today.

In this week’s episode, host Nick Portillo talks with Alicia Paliuca, National Director of Foodservice Sales for Just Egg. Alicia shares stories from her global professional journey and talks about why she loves the technology, the people and the products in the foodservice industry. She discusses the importance of learning from your peers and finding leaders that will help you grow and teach you how to pivot.

In this week’s episode, host Nick Portillo talks with Barbara Powell, Vice President of Food Service Sales for Mount Franklin Foods. Barbara talks about the importance of taking risks and shares why taking risks can lead to amazing success. Nick and Barbara have a valuable discussion about the accomplishments and contributions of women in the food service industry over the past decade and talk about the character trait they feel is the most vital in food service representatives today.

In this week’s episode, host Nick Portillo talks with Paul Bresenden, President and Creative Director at 454 Creative, a sales and marketing agency located in Irvine, California.

Paul discusses the importance of understanding what your company controls in the growth process, and how to diversify it, achieve growth, and preserve its profits. He also talks about the need to focus on brand positioning, brand messaging, and your target audience to create a competitive advantage.