Nick Kokonas - Know What You Are Selling – [Founder’s Field Guide, Forever Episode]

Today, we are running a special episode from our show Founder's Field Guide. In this conversation, Nick Kokonas shares his experience of bringing a business mindset to the restaurant industry. It is one of our favorites at Colossus and there is something for everyone in this timeless conversation. Nick is the co-founder of 3 of the best restaurants and bars in America - Alinea, Next, and The Aviary as well as the co-founder and CEO of Tock, a comprehensive booking system for restaurants. He majored in philosophy before becoming a derivatives trader and is now one of the most well-known names in the hospitality industry.

Listen to Founders Podcast

Founders Episode 311: James Cameron

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

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Show Notes

(3:02) – (First question) – Why he thinks it’s so important to own something

(4:35) – Make decisions that have outcomes

(7:00) – His interest in the restaurant business

(8:54) – Why restaurants are so tough 

(12:05) – How their business mindset changed their running of the restaurant

(14:35) – Words they would avoid in the restaurant 

(16:19) – Asking the right questions in the restaurant business

(20:40) – Importance in taking the right risks

(22:02) – Coming up with innovative strategies for ticketing, selling meals ahead of time, and dynamic pricing

(30:08) – Can dynamic pricing be extended to other businesses

(31:20) – Origin of Tock

(36:17) – Early days of Tock and identifying the right customers/challenges

(41:33) – Importance of the first customer 

(44:22) – The typical restaurant business model

(49:23) – Lessons from Tock and the importance of knowing what your selling

(53:47) – Lessons from publishing

(55:44) – Other aspects of business that people know but do nothing about 

(1:00:19) – Their response to Covid and lessons learned

(1:07:43) – The real impact to the food delivery companies

(1:09:24) – How businesses communicate their end processes to their customers

(1:14:07) – Kindest thing anyone has done for him