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A Hospitality Hack
Friends of Branded!
Happy Saturday and I hope you had a great week.
I love quotes and drawing inspiration from words of wisdom of others. This is particularly true when I have a personal relationship with the individual I’m quoting.
On Thursday this week, I was having lunch with a new friend that I’m looking forward to working with in connection with his fund’s mission to advance glioblastoma research and therapies. We covered a lot of ground at this lunch, but one of the things that stuck with me all afternoon and remained on my mind as I sat down at my desk to write this week’s Top of the Fold (after my girls went to bed) was a quote my new friend shared with me attributed to one of the fund’s principals, and that was the importance of “treating people with dignity.”
The word “dignity” got me thinking about the many ways people can choose to treat and engage with one another.
We all know the common phrase that “a smile goes a long way,” which highlights how a tiny, effortless gesture can create massive positive ripple effects in everyday life.
Let’s level this up a little bit and draw from the saying “kindness goes a long way.” This refers to small, simple acts of compassion, such as a listening ear, a polite gesture, or a helping hand, and how it can create a significant, lasting positive impact on others and foster a more caring community.
Now we’re getting somewhere.
The restaurant business, of course, talks a lot about hospitality. We talk about service, about culture, and about taking care of the guest. I think this all comes down to “making people feel seen.”
But maybe the real secret sauce, the thing that separates the good operators from the great ones, the good brands from the enduring ones, and the good leaders from the unforgettable ones, is something even simpler: Treat people with dignity.
This might be the greatest and most real hospitality hack, but not as a tactic, not as a management strategy, and not b/c it improves retention metrics or online reviews.
No, no, no!!!
Do it b/c people deserve it.
As I thought about these words, “treat people with dignity,” and our industry which is built entirely around human interactions, dignity might be the single most undervalued asset on the balance sheet.
Think about this for a moment, the hospitality business may be one of the last industries where people from every background, every education level, every income bracket, and every walk of life collide in the same room. CEOs sit next to construction workers. First dates happen next to business dinners. Immigrants, artists, students, parents, and entrepreneurs all work side-by-side behind the same line.
Restaurants are one of the few remaining equalizers in society, which is why dignity matters so much.
You want to know who wants dignity?
The dishwasher wants dignity.
The host wants dignity.
The prep cook wants dignity.
The delivery driver wants dignity.
The bartender wants dignity.
The guest spending $10 on a burger wants dignity just as much as the guest dropping $500 on wine.
"Dignity. Always dignity." Don Lockwood (Singin' in the Rain, 1952)
And here’s the thing the spreadsheets can’t always quantify, people never forget how you made them feel about themselves. Not just whether you were “nice,” but whether you respected them.
And for avoidance of any doubt, there’s a difference.
Hospitality can sometimes (often?) become performative. “Have a great day!” scripted into a POS system. Smiles trained into onboarding manuals. Corporate culture decks filled with words like warmth, empathy, and connection. Respect.
We know these matter and are important, but dignity shows up differently.
Dignity shows up when a manager corrects an employee privately instead of humiliating them publicly.
Dignity shows up when ownership learns the names of the people cleaning the floors after midnight.
Dignity shows up when a guest complaint is handled without making the staff member feel disposable.
Dignity shows up when technology is deployed to support workers instead of squeezing every last ounce out of them.
Dignity shows up when an operator understands that the person washing dishes today may own restaurants tomorrow.
B/c in hospitality, titles change fast.
The busser becomes the GM.
The line cook becomes the chef.
The server becomes the franchisee.
The startup founder pitching you today may become your acquirer tomorrow.
This industry has a long memory, and dignity compounds. That’s right, Albert Einstein’s 8th Wonder of the World, which refers directly to compound interest, and a financial concept that Warren Buffett famously champions as the ultimate engine behind his wealth, can be applied right here and right now.
Just like capital. Just like relationships. Just like trust. Dignity compounds.
Ironically, in an era dominated by AI, automation, kiosks, robotics and algorithmic optimization, dignity may become even more valuable, not less.
Why do you ask? Great question.
B/c technology can do some awesome things for restaurants. It can streamline operations. It can reduce friction. It can personalize marketing. It can optimize labor schedules.
But you know what technology can’t do? It can’t replace genuine respect, and the brands that understand that distinction are the ones that will win the next decade.
The restaurant industry has always been a people business pretending to be a food business (how do you like them apples Dr. Hughes?!?). 😊
The food gets people in the door, but dignity is what makes them come back.
And please don’ think I’m only referring to guests with that last comment. Not even close!!!
I’m talking about employees, investors, partners, communities and my favorite, the villagers!
Everybody wants to feel valued. Everybody wants to feel respected. Everybody wants to feel like they matter.
That’s not softness. That’s leadership.
And maybe that’s the real arbitrage opportunity in hospitality right now b/c in a world increasingly optimized for efficiency, dignity has become a competitive advantage.
The operators who understand that won’t just build successful businesses. They’ll build places people actually want to belong to.
As so many in the industry are heading to the National Restaurant Association’s Big Show 2026 in the great city of Chicago starting this weekend, I want to share how much I‘m looking forward to catching-up with old friends, making new ones and not losing sight of how lucky I am to be working in an industry I love.
It takes a village.
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Neel Patel, CEO of Quiznos and Rego Restaurant Group, unpacks one of the restaurant industry’s most notable comeback stories. He shares how Quiznos is rebuilding momentum through franchise innovation, modular restaurant development, loyalty-driven growth, and a renewed focus on the toasted sandwiches that made the brand iconic in the first place.
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Every year at the National Restaurant Association Show, the restaurant industry gathers to talk about the future of hospitality including new technology, new trends, new concepts, and new capital. But one of the most important events happening in Chicago this year won’t take place on the trade show floor. It’ll happen on a spin bike.
Sizzle & Spin, supporting GLEAM Network and LEAD, is a reminder that the future of this industry is still about people first. The event raises money for mentorship, networking, leadership development and hands-on education for emerging hospitality leaders, the kind of investment that doesn’t show up on a balance sheet but compounds over decades.
And that matters.
B/c while the industry loves talking about innovation, the truth is the restaurant business has always been an apprenticeship business. Careers are built through relationships, exposure, guidance, and somebody opening a door for the next generation. Hospitality has always been a “pull up another chair” industry.
That’s why events like Sizzle & Spin hit differently.
It’s not just another networking event during NRA week. It’s operators, executives, founders, investors, and industry leaders literally sweating alongside the next wave of talent to help create access, opportunity, and community. And in an industry built on long hours, high pressure, and constant turnover, building future leaders isn’t a “nice to have,” it’s survival.
The hospitality industry talks a lot about labor challenges. Maybe the better conversation is leadership pipelines.
B/c the brands that win long term won’t just have the best tech stack or the best menu innovation. They’ll have the best people. The best mentors. The strongest culture. The deepest bench.
That’s the real flywheel (GA & JZ: see what I did there with the word “flywheel” you spinning beats). 😊
Huge shoutout to everyone behind Sizzle & Spin, LEAD and the GLEAM Network for investing in the next generation of hospitality leadership, and proving once again that this industry’s greatest asset isn’t AI, automation, or analytics.
It’s people willing to show up for other people.
If you're heading to Chicago for the Show, make Sizzle & Spin a priority on your dance card.
The RSVP page is live at sizzleandspin2026.rsvpify.com, go register, grab a ticket, bring a colleague, or just show up ready to support the next generation of our industry.
If you can't make it to Chicago, you can still support the mission.
Visit gleamnetwork.net to learn about their mentorship programs, sign up as a volunteer mentor, or donate. The need for mentors in our industry far exceeds the supply, and if you've been in the business long enough to have something to teach, GLEAM will gladly find you a mentee.
So, if you see us in Chicago, come say hi. And if you're at Sizzle & Spin, even better, that means you get it.
Click here to share this week’s Shout Out with your network!
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DEAL ROOM: The Smartest Screen in the Restaurant Might Finally Be the Menu
The restaurant industry spent the better part of the last decade chasing “digital transformation.” Apps. Rewards programs. Push notifications. CRM platforms. CDPs. Email automation. SMS campaigns. More dashboards than a Bloomberg terminal (it took me years to get over the loss of access to my Bloomberg terminal).
And yet, most restaurant loyalty programs still feel like a punch card wearing a Patagonia vest.
That’s why the team at Branded Hospitality is excited about our newest partner company, Hang.com, the first AI platform built specifically for marketers and what we believe represents the next major evolution of restaurant loyalty.
This isn’t just another “earn 10 points, get a free cookie” platform (although I do love myself a free cookie).
Hang is building an AI-native loyalty and customer engagement system designed for the realities of modern hospitality: fragmented guest data, rising customer acquisition costs, declining engagement with traditional rewards programs, and operators desperate to turn guest data into actual guest relationships.
In plain English? Okay, let’s try that again.
Hang wants to help restaurants stop marketing like it’s 2015.
The company combines AI-powered customer data infrastructure, personalized offers, gamification, loyalty mechanics, messaging automation, and real-time segmentation into one unified platform. Instead of operators manually building campaigns and static audience segments, Hang’s AI engine continuously analyzes guest behavior and recommends, or autonomously executes, campaigns designed to drive incremental spend and engagement.
Translation for operators: less guessing, less spray-and-pray marketing, and more precision.
And perhaps most importantly, Hang understands something legacy loyalty platforms forgot: hospitality is supposed to be fun.
The best restaurant brands don’t win b/c customers mathematically optimize points accumulation. They win b/c they create emotional connection, habit formation, entertainment, and belonging. Hang leans into that reality with gamified experiences, personalized rewards, challenges, mystery boxes, and dynamic offers that feel more like modern consumer apps than old-school loyalty software.
That matters b/c the next generation of restaurant guests grew up on TikTok, DraftKings, Duolingo streaks, mobile gaming, and algorithmically personalized feeds. Static loyalty programs increasingly feel like Blockbuster memberships in a Netflix world.
Do you want to learn more? Checkout this podcast episode of Justin Ulrich’s Local Marketing Lab, with Co-Founder and CEO of Hang, Matt Smolin, where he reveals how next-gen loyalty programs are revolutionizing customer engagement. You can watch the episode here: 3X higher customer spend with next-gen loyalty programs
The bigger signal here, though, may not simply be loyalty. It’s that AI is beginning to move from the back office into the guest experience itself.
For years, restaurant technology focused heavily on operational efficiency: labor scheduling, inventory, procurement, delivery logistics, and POS systems. But platforms like Hang are part of a larger shift toward AI-powered revenue generation and customer engagement.
The industry isn’t just asking: “How do we save money with AI?” It’s increasingly asking: “How do we grow guest frequency, improve retention, increase lifetime value, and deepen customer relationships using AI?.”
That’s a fundamentally different conversation.
At Branded, we’ve long believed the winning restaurant technology platforms won’t simply digitize workflows, they’ll help operators create stronger guest relationships and more personalized hospitality at scale.
B/c despite all the technology, hospitality still remains a people business (are you getting theme of what I’m throwing down throughout the newsletter this week). 😊
AI doesn’t replace hospitality. It amplifies it.
And the platforms that understand that distinction? Those are the ones worth paying attention to.
We’re excited to partner with the team at Hang and look forward to introducing this AI-native loyalty platform to restaurant operators, hospitality brands, and our broader industry ecosystem.
To learn more about Hang and opportunities to engage with this company, please click here (or contact me directly).
You can also click here to share The Deal Room with your network!
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So I’ve become friends with the TSA agents at Newark Liberty International Airport. I could attribute this to being kind, patient and friendly. (All true and qualities about myself I take great pride myself in) But my claim to fame at Terminal A is that I am “overnight oats girl.”
My preferred flight time usually corresponds with breakfast and I BYOB (the last B for Breakfast of course). I always make sure my container and liquid size follows all rules and regulations, but even still, my oats always get flagged. After being tested, they get returned. But I’ve clearly made a name for myself. In fact, my last trip, someone asked for the recipe.
Airport dining is not conducive for the health conscious traveler. I said it. I stand by it.
It’s been almost 5 years now that I’ve been a road warrior. I spend more time than I’d like to admit researching food options at local airports ahead of travel. I’ve even been dropped off at a different terminal because there were better food options. (Which honestly says a lot about both me and the current state of airport dining.)
But what is a “better” food option? For me, that means anything not fried, pre packaged, or sitting out for questionable amounts of time. I want protein. Freshness. And no, this isn’t the first time I’ve written about protein.
And while I’m at it, it would be great if I could grab something for a cross country flight during breakfast hours that doubles as a healthy lunch later. Revolutionary concept, I know.
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That’s it for today!
See you next week, same bat-time, same bat-channel.
It takes a village!
Jimmy Frischling
Branded Hospitality
235 Park Ave South, 4th Fl | New York, NY 10003
Branded Hospitality is a foodservice growth platform with three integrated business lines—Ventures, Solutions, and Media. We invest in innovative tech and emerging brands, provide expert advisory and capital strategies, and amplify visibility through podcasts, newsletters, social, and events—creating a powerful flywheel that drives growth, brand strength, and lasting success.
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