Square has today launched Coolroom Confessional, a new podcast sponsored by American Express, that shares behind the scenes stories from the hospo industry and aims to be a valuable resource and support for the sector as it contends with the current economic environment.
Hosted by Australian food writer, critic, and broadcaster Melissa Leong, and created by award-winning podcaster and Social & Content Lead at Square, Jay Ooi, Coolroom Confessional connects some of Australia’s best known hospo operators with up-and-comers to provide actionable advice on how to navigate and succeed today and into the future.
“Our pubs, cafes, restaurants are the beating hearts of our neighbourhoods. But, it’s obvious that things are really hard right now,” Leong says. “I choose to be optimistic, though. This project taps into hospitality’s best quality: to share. Whether it’s a good meal, or advice, experiences and knowledge, this project is about connecting community and being a catalyst for constructive conversation.”
Coolroom Confessional is created by Jay Ooi, an award-winning podcaster behind Shoes Off, a podcast about Asian Australian identity and You Have Been Told a Lie which followed the story of the Nadesalingam family who were seeking asylum in the community of Biloela in Outback Queensland.
“Square partners with some of the most inspiring and unique hospo venues across Australia, and while they each have different stories, there are a lot of shared challenges,” Ooi says. “It’s been really gratifying to bring these businesses together to help them learn from each other, and hopefully give inspiration to the rest of Australia’s hospo industry.”
Over the course of the first series, Coolroom Confessional features founders to learn their business stories, challenges they’ve faced, and how they’ve overcome them. These operators are then connected with industry experts and other business owners who have succeeded – or failed and learned. Those hospo heavyweights featured on the first season of Coolroom Confessional include the likes of dessert kings Gareth Whitton of Tarts Anon (winner of Dessert Masters) and Reynold Poernomo of KOI (runner up of Dessert Masters); founder of Boost Juice Bars, Janine Allis; and the founder of several Melbourne institutes including Bar Liberty, Falco Bakery and Capitano, Michael Bascetta.
Coolroom Confessional is hosted on Square’s publication The Bottom Line (along with show notes and information about featured guests and bonus extras), and is available on all major podcast platforms.