Hospitality marketing, Social media in hospitali, Word-of-mouth marketing
Cassie Davison
Why Your Social Media Strategy Isn't Working ...

Social media was once a game-changer for hospitality businesses, but today it’s noisy, crowded, and exhausting. Chasing likes, shares, and followers has replaced real connection with customers. Algorithms decide who sees your posts, while businesses compete against global brands and endless content. The solution? Go back to basics. Focus on your purpose, serve your community, and deliver exceptional experiences worth talking about. Word of mouth is still the most powerful marketing tool—when customers feel valued and cared for, they’ll spread the word. Stop chasing trends and start building a purpose-driven business that people love, remember, and choose every time.

Why Your Social Media Strategy Isn't Working and Won't Work
Cassie Davison
Hospitality Business Made Easy

Hospitality Business Made Easy

Most of us started in this industry young, learning from the ground up. The formula for success used to be simple: deliver five-star service, train your staff, and stay one step ahead of the competition. But today, the industry is tougher than ever—rising costs, shrinking markets, and increasing competition are relentless.

What if there was an easier way? By ignoring your competition, rediscovering your purpose, and aligning everything—your team, customers, and operations—to serve that purpose, you can simplify your business, build a high-performing team, and attract loyal customers who market your business for you.

Join us for the Hospitality Made Easy Masterclass, where we’ll help you reconnect with your purpose and unlock the next breakthrough for your business. This proven approach will transform how you work, freeing you from overwhelm and reigniting your passion for hospitality.

Purpose makes hospitality easy. Hospitality Made Easy Masterclass.

Hospitality Business Made Easy
Cassie Davison
Why Hospitality Feels Like Home

Hospitality is more than just an industry; it’s where many of us first learned to thrive. It’s a place where every role matters, from entry-level to leadership, and where teamwork is key to delivering exceptional customer experiences. For young people, it’s often the first taste of belonging—a family that values effort and care. It teaches responsibility, discipline, and the joy of serving others. Hospitality gives us purpose: knowing a simple act, like a smile or kind word, can transform someone’s day. Yes, it’s challenging, but for those who love it, the rewards—connection, growth, and purpose—make it all worthwhile.

Why Hospitality Feels Like Home
Cassie Davison
The Reality of COVID’s Impact on Pubs and the ...

The COVID-19 pandemic hit the pub industry with unprecedented force, turning once-thriving community hubs into shuttered spaces and leaving publicans scrambling to survive. The sudden closures left many with significant overheads, from rent to perishable stock, and limited cash reserves. Even as pubs reopened, they faced a different world, contending with limited capacities, health restrictions, and shifting customer habits.

The impact didn’t end with lockdowns. The energy crisis sent bills skyrocketing, while inflation made everyday operations increasingly expensive. Combined with severe staff shortages, the challenges for pubs remain steep. Yet, the industry has shown resilience, pivoting to new services and strengthening ties with their communities. Pubs now stand at a crucial juncture, needing continued support from patrons, government aid, and industry collaboration to fully recover. Their survival underscores a legacy of resilience, community, and tradition that remains integral to British culture.

The Reality of COVID’s Impact on Pubs and the Ongoing Struggle for Survival
Cassie Davison
Stop Underestimating Small Businesses: What ...

As a small business owner in the hospitality industry for over 25 years, there's one thing that still makes my blood boil—the assumption that small businesses need the expertise of big corporate CEOs to succeed. While larger companies have their strengths, small business owners are constantly innovating, learning on the job, and building deep customer relationships. We don’t have vast resources or teams of specialists, but we do have creativity, resilience, and a sense of purpose that drives us forward. Small business entrepreneurs are scrappy because we have to be, finding solutions with limited resources and pushing boundaries through experimentation. It’s time to recognize that the real innovation and exciting talent in the hospitality industry often come from these small operators, not the corporate boardroom. At Kith & Kin, we celebrate this scrappiness and provide a space where hospitality professionals can come together, share ideas, and support each other.

Stop Underestimating Small Businesses: What Really Makes My Blood Boil

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Burnt Chefs, Invisible Chips and Mental Health in Hospitality

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Burnt Chefs, Invisible Chips and Mental Health in Hospitality

It is reported that in the general population 1 in 4 people will experience a period of poor mental health within their lifetime. The Burnt Chef Project has conducted studies that suggest that within hospitality the numbers are more like 4 out of 5 due to the stress and pressures that working within this industry can cause. With 3.2 million people in the UK that work in the industry, this is not a small problem.

This is an industry where no matter what level you are working the pressure is always full on. From the moment you work through the door every day, expectations are high, from customers, colleagues, and for the best of us even ourselves. Delivering a ‘perfect’ service to everyone is what we are all about.

I learnt early on in my role as a leader in the industry that I needed skills to be able to support the mental health of those in my care and certainly developing an empathetic approach, influencing mindset, and building cultures to support this has been the greatest unseen challenge that I have had in my career.

Let’s hope in years to come that as an industry we can find a way to continue to look after each other and change our culture so that the jobs that we all love doing so much, providing exceptional services to the public, can be one which no longer risks our mental health and that when we do need help that we’ve developed a culture where there is no stigma.

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What next after Eat Out to Help Out?

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What next after Eat Out to Help Out?

After all the uncertainty of lockdown the heartache and worry what a rush! …

There will be fewer customers spending less money but if we provide for them what they need it will be the best of us that they choose.

Congratulations to all the venues that have ridden this wave so far - there is a long way to go but this uncertain future could be really exciting.

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When is magnanimity no longer appropriate?

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When is magnanimity no longer appropriate?

I take risks and I know that some of those are bigger and more ambitious than the average. But my personality type means that even after the usual risk assessments I have underlying confidence that I can cope with any worst-case scenario, particularly regarding business decisions. This allows me to take in a wider set of considerations, to take on projects that are not just beneficial to me but which I know others aspire to and projects that have wider implications for my community and ‘tribe’.

When things go wrong I always know that even losing what I had and the requirement to start from, perhaps even a negative position is, whilst uncomfortable, inconvenient and potentially even traumatic, something I will be able to bear and a position from which I can rebuild and grow.

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Should pubs and bars be opening on 4th July?

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Should pubs and bars be opening on 4th July?

What do our customers really value? What is the purpose of the visit to the pub or restaurant?

Whatever it is it is certainly not to satisfy a need for hunger or thirst. It is to be part of something, to be in a space that feels comfortable, to be part of a community, and to be free to relax, to be yourself, and connect with others. To be part of the hustle and bustle, to be where things happen and fond memories are made. It is about creating stories to be shared…

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The Future of pubs & bars post Covid-19

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The Future of pubs & bars post Covid-19

The environment within which we are operating was changing anyway. Covid-19 had just accelerated things. There is going to be a sudden and potentially dramatic change but customers will still exist.

Businesses that are going to thrive in the future are going to be those who really understand their customers and work on how they incorporate all that understanding into their business.

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Are you prepared to fail?

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Are you prepared to fail?

“If we are brave enough often enough we will fail” Brene Brown

When things go wrong of course there are regrets, days when you are consumed with thoughts of how you could have done differently and if only you’d been able to see around corners (or known what information you didn’t have) you could have perhaps made different decisions that would have resulted in different outcomes. But if creating and running businesses was easy then everyone would be doing it.