Captive Conversations, The Hospitality Podcast

In Episode 97 of Captive Conversations, Adam speaks with Will, Director of Fanatic, about hospitality marketing, digital guest journeys and the growing influence of AI. Will shares how his early career at McDonald’s and as a relief pub manager shaped his understanding of people, teams and service. The conversation then moves through publishing, agency life and financial services before exploring t...

Opening a restaurant is one thing. Opening a restaurant with no hospitality experience, carrying every pressure yourself and then using that failure to shape a career in hospitality technology is something else entirely. In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam sits down with Aaron from ePosaibility and Hops for a deeply practical conversation about restaurant ownership, operational pressure...

Most hospitality operators think about packaging as something functional. Max Shipman thinks about it differently. In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam sits down with Max Shipman from Brand Your to explore how packaging has evolved from a simple operational necessity into a powerful part of the guest experience. Max shares his journey through hospitality technology, delivery, Just Eat an...

The 15-Second Moment Mention loyalty in hospitality and many operators immediately think discounts, points cards, and race-to-the-bottom promotions. But what if we’ve been thinking about loyalty all wrong? In this solo episode, Georgina explores why loyalty has a branding problem, why true loyalty has nothing to do with vouchers, and what actually makes guests want to come back.   The conversation...

Building a restaurant is one thing. Building a restaurant while learning hospitality, marketing, technology and guest engagement at the same time is something else entirely. In this episode of Captive Conversations , Adam sits down with Charlie Wood-Jones, owner of Cawsburger and Sales Consultant at Popmenu, for a conversation that bridges both sides of the hospitality world. Charlie shares the jo...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam sits down with Pete Hurley from Well Seasoned for a wide-ranging conversation about hospitality careers, operator pressure, fragmented tech and the rise of fractional talent. Pete shares how his journey moved from washing dishes in a country pub to building an early meal kit business, pivoting into outside catering, taking on a modern art gallery café...

This episode almost didn’t happen. Adam had a client call he had to jump onto, the podcast still needed to go out, and Georgina stepped in last minute to record what was originally written as Adam’s second solo episode. And honestly… she absolutely smashed it. In this episode of Captive Conversations, Georgina explores one of the biggest missed opportunities in hospitality: what happens after the...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam sits down with Claire Reid, a marketing consultant with a career that spans hospitality, charity communications, brand building, feedback, data, internal culture and coffee. Claire shares how her early experiences in cafés, retail, charity communications and Wood Street Coffee shaped the way she thinks about hospitality. The conversation explores why...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam sits down with Kevin to explore what it really takes to turn data into meaningful hospitality experiences. From his early career in consulting to leading digital transformation at one of the largest restaurant groups in the US, Kevin shares a rare behind-the-scenes look at how systems, data, and people come together in real operations. From fragmented...

The journey into content does not always start with a strategy. Sometimes it starts with curiosity. In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam Forman sits down with Thomas, founder of Fearless Media, to explore how starting young and learning through doing can shape a career in content and business. From making videos at 12 to building a creative agency, this is a conversation about consistenc...

Big things just dropped at CaptiveWiFi. In this episode Adam Forman walks through the most significant platform update in CaptiveWiFi's history. No guests, no interviews — just a straight-talking rundown of everything that has just shipped and what is coming next. Covered in this episode: the Live Guest Dashboard, built after a conversation with Ben Heppell from Aqua Restaurant Group, now pull...

What does it actually take to bring a guest back? Not through aggressive re-targeting or bulk email sends, but in a way that fits inside a premium hospitality experience and makes the guest feel genuinely valued? In this episode, recorded live on stage at HT360 at ExCeL London, Adam Forman sits down with Ben Heppell, Global Digital Marketing Director at Aqua Restaurant Group. They talk about the r...

The guest journey doesn’t start at the door anymore. It starts long before that. In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam Forman sits down with Natalie Dunning, CEO and Founder of Kitch, to unpack how hospitality is changing and why brands need to rethink how they attract, understand and retain their guests. From data and CRM to TikTok, discoverability and automation, Natalie shares a clear...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam Forman sits down with Chloe Dodd and Alex O’Reilly, two people I’ve known for a while now and whose journey in hospitality is seriously impressive. From nightclubs and bar floors to national sales roles and multi-site operations, this is a conversation built on real experience. Not theory. Not guesswork. Just years of being in it, figuring it out and...

In this episode of Captive Conversations , Adam Forman sits down with Tom Stanley , founder of Williams Stanley & Co , to explore the financial realities facing hospitality operators today. Tom shares his journey into hospitality finance and explains why understanding the numbers behind a venue is just as important as the guest experience on the floor. The conversation explores the pressure op...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam Forman sits down with Catherine Gwynne, founder of 2G Design and Build, to explore the psychology behind hospitality design. Catherine shares her journey from travelling the world in the drinks industry to building a hospitality design company focused on how spaces truly work. The conversation dives into why the best venues start with people, not aest...

In episode 85 of Captive Conversations, Adam speaks with Yaro Tsyhanenko about the hidden blind spot in modern hospitality: the pickup counter. From building marketplaces in Ukraine to shutting down businesses when the war started, and rebuilding in the US, Yaro shares his journey and the operational problem that caught his attention. The gap between digital ordering systems and real-world pickup....

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam sits down with Gabrielle Goode, hospitality marketing consultant and founder of thehospitalitymarketer.co.ukGabrielle shares her journey from cocktail bartender in Nottingham to leading marketing roles across The Ivy Collection, Langan’s, Rhubarb and global hospitality brands. But this conversation goes deeper than career milestones. It explores what...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, we're sharing a powerful panel discussion from PUB Spotlight 2026: "The Pub Customer Perspective." Featuring Laurence Brown (Head of Insights, Stonegate), Louise Fleming (Head of Guest & Retail Insights, Punch Pubs), and Kiran Quinn (Group Marketing Director, Red Cat Hospitality), moderated by Jo Lynch from KAM Insights. This insightful s...

In this episode of Captive Conversations , Adam Forman sits down with Rosie Lewis-Marsh , the London Hospitality Girl, to talk about sales, booking journeys, and why hospitality overcomplicates the things that should be simple. Rosie breaks down decision-making inside teams, the fear of automation, and the cost of slow response times. From shorter booking windows to conversion and automation, she...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam Forman sits down with Massimo from Restaurant Keys to explore what it really takes to build, grow, and scale hospitality brands without losing their soul. Massimo shares his experience working with operators across the UK and internationally, from opening restaurants from scratch to helping brands expand nationally and abroad. The conversation covers...

The final episode of 2025. What a year it's been. In this one, Adam sits down with Oliver Pugh, founder of Yeti Pay, and Chris Jolliffe, their Sales Director, to explore how a simple observation about tipping behaviour sparked a payments revolution. It started with a question most people never ask. When a guest leaves a tip on a card, why doesn't the waiter feel it? Oliver noticed this disconnect...

As the year comes to a close, Episode 80 of Captive Conversations takes a step back to reflect on how hospitality makes decisions. Adam speaks with Mark from Tenzo about why instinct alone is no longer enough, how operators are overwhelmed by dashboards, and why better data frameworks matter more than more reports. They explore how context, experience, and curiosity still play a critical role, and...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam sits down with Jonatan from All Gravy to explore how frontline technology can feel more human, more supportive and far more connected to the reality of hospitality work. Jonatan shares the story of his early career, the leaders who shaped him, and the moment he realised frontline teams were being asked to juggle seven or eight different apps just to g...

In this episode of Captive Conversations, Adam sits down with Rosie Akenhead to explore one of the biggest challenges facing hospitality today: the covers problem. Rosie describes how changing guest behaviour, home comforts and broader societal pressures have reshaped the way people choose to dine out. She also reflects on the emotional weight this places on teams who are still expected to deliver...