Pizza Expo Recap, Relationships, Tech, and Community

In this episode of the Pizza King Podcast, I’m recapping my trip to Pizza Expo in Las Vegas and sharing what really stood out to me. 

Yes, there was plenty of new equipment, pizza tech, AI, and tools worth checking out. I talk about what caught my attention with Thrive POS, Wook AI, Pizza Cloud, and more. But the biggest takeaway had nothing to do with booths or product demos. 

The real value of Pizza Expo was the people. The conversations. The handshakes. The relationships. That’s what sticks with you. That’s what pushes this industry forward. 

I also share why the competition floor means so much to me, what it’s like getting around people who take the craft seriously, and why events like this can raise your standard as an operator and leader. 

If you own, operate, or manage a pizzeria, this episode will remind you that growth is not only about tools and tactics. It is also about community, connection, and getting around the right people. 

Get 3 Months Free With ThrivePOS
Pizza Driven Point of Sale. Schedule your free demo today! Tell em' the Pizza King sent you.

Join the SPM Pro Owner Group
SPM Pro is a curated group of independent pizzeria owners. Monthly call and private group access.

Streamline Your Inventory Process!
📝 Track stock levels: No more guesswork! Discover the future of restaurant management: WookAI

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

This expo experience is it's just something that's that's super special. It's not about, you know, what I saw or what I learned or you know what what we were there to buy. It was really because of the people that we got to see, the people that we got to meet, the folks that we got to spend time with and have conversations with, because this industry is built on people. You know what I mean? And you know, spending that time in Vegas was a was just a great reminder of that. I'm your host, Tyrell Reed, and this is a very special edition. And you know, normally we try to try to get us a good guest episode on Tuesdays, but I wanted to take this week um just to give uh a full recap of my experience over in Las Vegas at the uh at the Pizza Expo last week. So that's where we are, and that's what we wanted we wanted to hope go ahead and get into. This one, this one actually really meant a lot to me. It really meant a lot to me because, you know, this this this expo experience is it's just something that's that's super special. And you know, it's not it's not about you know what I saw or what I learned or you know what what we were there to buy. It was really because of the people that we got to to see, the people that we got to meet, the folks that we got to spend time with and have conversations with, because this this industry is built on people. You know what I mean? And it it was it was a great reminder of that. And you know, it's a reminder of the real the real value of having these these experiences like Pizza Expo. You know, you can you can walk the expo, you know, walk the the show floor, you can see all the new cool equipment, and you know, you can you can you know check check out the new toppings or you know, check out this cheese, this company's cheese versus that company's cheese, or this POS system versus that POS system. You can do all that. You can you can sit in on on the sessions which are great and you can take notes. But that's not what sticks with you. You know what I mean? Like what sticks with you are the conversations that you have with people that you are only connected with through social media or you've never met or you you've you've seen and you you admire what they do from a distance. But then being able to sit down and have a conversation with somebody. It's the handshake, the handshakes, you know, that turn into real relationships. You know what I mean? Like those are the things that matter. It's the the time you spend talking with people who really care about pushing this business and this industry and this community forward. You know what I mean? And that's what I'll remember the most from the time that we spent. And this one was unlike any other for us because we've never, we've never gone to expo for the purpose of just, you know, just connecting with folks. I've always, and I've gone to plenty of expos. Like this is not, this is not my first, surely won't be my last. I've probably gone to 10 expos, right? Maybe, maybe more. But I was always one to just go, you know, we always went as a team, as as you know, the West Shore guys. Was always one to go. I put I would always sit in on sessions, I would always try to get some learning, get some education in, and, you know, try to get what I could to take back to our business and get better. But I was never one to really focus in on, you know, getting to meet people, getting to know, getting to know folks from a distance that I've connected with. Because, you know, before there was no, I wasn't online, I wasn't making content and I wasn't, you know, connected with connecting with folks. But this year that was that was, you know, what I was intent on. And it was it was just incredible, you know what I mean? So I just wanted to come back, kind of give a recap on what I saw, who I talked to, really what I'm excited about, what stood out to me, you know, in the in the couple of days that we were there. And all those things are great. And and you know, I actually want to touch on some of that because there is a lot happening right now. There's a lot of things that are changing. We're we're obviously in the middle of this this uh this rise in in AI and you know, whether it be order takers or you know, AI, AI, I've seen Pizza Robox, shout out to to um to Igor and the team from X-Robotics or what what they're doing. Like there's so much happening that it is important to see those things and understand how they work and get up close and you know and touch them and feel it and ask questions. So what I'm saying is you got you really need to do both. Go build some relationships with folks because that's what's that's where the the real difference is made. What stood out for me outside of those, the the relationships was, you know, some of the things that are happening with with tools that I use and companies that I work with. I think the the biggest is seeing that Thrive POS, who obviously I work with, and they're big supporters of the show, and we use them in our restaurant, and we've been been, you know, loyal Thrive customers for uh uh a pretty long time at this point. But now they have partnered and integrated with Wook AI, my good friend David DeSantis, who is just just an awesome human being. His company, Wook, is partnering with Thrive to really handle their whole inventory component, which has been a little bit, you know, lackluster over the years. They actually kind of took it away recently just because it wasn't it wasn't performing a way that that the customer needs and probably not performing up to their own personal standards. So they kind of shut that function down, but now they they have a solution through Wook. And if you don't know what Wook is, Wook is uh is an AI tool that helps you with inventory, purchasing, workflows, training. Like it has so much. I probably really need to do a full episode on Wook. I need to get David on to come talk about it, but it is an incredible tool when it comes to understanding your purchase, understanding your purchasing, you know, your pricing, making sure that you're always seeing everything in real time. Prices change. We know prices change all the time. If you're shopping multiple vendors, one person may have, you know, your same pepperoni for$5 a case cheaper and you and you didn't know it for six weeks, you missed out on an opportunity. A software like Wook sees that, sees that change, informs you, alerts you, making sure that you're always paying the best price, getting the best product, always on top of your inventory. Things are looking out of whack. It always finds that it's so good, it's so intelligent. I can't say enough. I can't say enough about it. I'm really excited about it because now it works directly with our POS system. So that's just going to just take our operation to the next level. And I'm so excited about being able to work with those two companies together because I respect both of them a ton. Got to spend a lot of time with the Perfect Crust team because they allowed us the space to come in and record and have some conversations with folks and just you know, just be a part of what they were doing. And I can't thank Eric Bam, Greg, Brian, Holly, like all of the folks that I've met on their team for being just so welcoming and so open to having us there. It was it was incredible. Have some really good conversations with um the folks at Pizza Cloud. And I think that's something that we're probably exploring here in the near, in the very near future. I'm having the ability to probably save some money on our voiceover IP phones, as well as having, you know, a failover solution that ke always keeps us up and running no matter what. If our internet goes down or power goes out, I'm having a having a you know a self a sell backup service that keeps the business going because that that part is important. Or even even if you can't, you know, make food, you can still communicate. So that that's a big one. Talk to the the guys at Mailwise. You know, Kevin and his team spent a lot of time with them at at the uh America's Best Restaurant uh client party. And you know, just some incredible people there, Matt Plapp and what what the old guys are doing for restaurants is incredible. So it was it was a lot of a lot of fun, and I'm really excited about you know some of those things that I was able to, you know, really just see, you know, put my hands on and you know get to know the people behind the brands that I'm interested in. That's that's a big deal for me. So I am I am very excited about that. You know what I mean? So even even small details like you know, how things are packaged, you know, what the presentations look like it all matters. But like I said, it means so much more when you get to see the teams that are behind it and get to talk to the salespeople that are in the support folks that you'll be working with. Um all of those things mean so much. And that's the experience, the experience that you get when you when you're at Expo or you're at, you know, some of the other, you know, the other conventions like like Florida Restaurant Show or the California show. Um those things matter so much. Um the the other thing that I'm really excited about is just you know the time that I spent on the competition floor, which is actually where I spent most of my time this year. And I know I feel like I say it every time because that's literally my favorite part of uh the show is seeing who the best pizza makers are, seeing the seeing their processes. I had a a very unique perspective this time because uh my good friend Neil Vidia from Troy's Italian Kitchen in Virginia, DC area, gave me the opportunity just to join him as he you know, as a first-time competitor, join him, help him, you know, capture the experience on the video and you know, help him make some content with it. That is so much fun. I'm talking about, you see, people who are very proud of what they do, people who work extremely hard at their craft, people who who spend the time you know preparing and and you know, checking every single detail, and you you really get to see how much the craft means to the people who are doing it at the highest level. And you walk away with with so much more respect for it. I mean, that honestly it is the best part because it pushes you to be even, even better. You know what I mean? It raises the standard for everybody in that building. What happens behind those curtains on the competition floor? It is it is truly something special. But not and not just the pizza makers. I'm talking the acrobatics, the dough stretch, the fastest box, the you know, all of those things play a huge part into what drives our business forward and and how we set standards and how we raise the bar every single time. Um shout out to Tara Hatton who came by Perfect Crust and had a quick conversation with us, but we'll have that coming out real soon on an episode. Got me out there spinning dough looking like a clown. It was too fun, though. Too fun. And and you know, I really just appreciate all of those folks that that took their time to come by and talk to me. I talked to you know, Izzy Pizza, I talked to Professor Pizza, I talked to, you know, I had a great conversation with with uh with Vito de Candia from from Angel City Pizza in LA, one of my favorite guys, favorite pizzeria. Uh talked to Neil. We sat down for a conversation after his after his cheese competition before he was going out for the for the the non-dairy uh competition. So much fun. I love the competition, Florida. And it's also like the it's like the family reunion. For me, it's like where the family reunion happens because you see a lot of this sometimes is the only time that you see people. So when I get to see folks like, you know, Fernando, I see Uncle Rico, I see, I see Vito, you know, Reckia from from down from here in Florida, I see just so many folks, Michael and Marco, like all these people that I admire and I respect and the work that they put in, they're not just there for a show. They are there putting in the work and making these things happen and giving a world-class experience for all of us. It's just it's just something special. And uh for that, I just want to take these moments to say, it's just to say thank you and express how how you know how gracious I am to have that experience. Like, you know, to all the folks, everyone who I had a conversation with, or you know, if I shook your hand, or if we took a picture, uh, if you came on and talked to me on camera and shared your story, or if we sat down in the hallway and recorded a podcast, like all of that, I really appreciate you all so very much. And we got great, we got content coming, we got all that. Dude, literally, like I'm talking to to Vito in the hallway and we're recording, and and Scott Wiener comes by and he's like showing love. Like, that only happens at Expo. That only happens in in you know in those in those situations, and it makes it all so much, so much cooler and so much more so much more worth it when you're there and and the people that you admire and respect are showing love and and and coming by and they're open and you have conversations and you know, all of that. All of that. I really just appreciate it. And again to the folks who who were able to make so much of that happen for us, Paul and Keith from West Your Franchising, my my franchise or the company that that I am a that I am a part of, kicked in, kicked in the support for the trip, you know, making it happen for us, getting taking care of the travel. Um again, shout out to the Perfect Crust Pizza Liner team, Incredible Bags, for giving us space to to connect with folks and record. And, you know, again, to to every guest who came through, made some time, shared their story. If I met you, if I hadn't met you, um, all the people that I talked to that we're planning to do something, I I really appreciate I appreciate all of you. You know, this community is is really something else. You know, the industry is is strong and thriving because of all of these people. All of you people in this pizza community who show up every day, who share, you know, share your thoughts, share your practices, you know, people who want to see everybody else win is something special, man. That it really stood out more than anything. It's everybody supporting everything. So, you know, I appreciate you all. I just wanted to give, you know, just a quick formalized recap of what we were able to do in in Vegas for those couple of days. And there's probably so many more people that, you know, I can say that, you know, say thank you to and and shout out, you know, Billy Manzo, oh my God, uh uh Pizza Fellas Podcast, Smart Pizza Marketing, Idrif from What's Good Though, Alice, like all of these guys, man, all of these, all these folks are just it's just a dope community, man. And and and I I appreciate everybody so much. I know I'm forgetting people, and uh, and I apologize for that. But know that from the bottom of my heart, man, I appreciate all of you. You showed me so much love. And look, if I if I saw you out there, I appreciate you. If I missed you, I appreciate you too, and we'll connect soon. I that was the tough part of seeing like getting back on social after and seeing all the people posting and all the people that I didn't get to connect with. Uh, but I'm like making sure we send those messages like, hey, let's let's connect the next time or whatever, if it's the next show, if it's next year, or if it's, you know, we're gonna do a podcast virtually, like whatever, whatever you want to do, let's let's try to make that happen and let's let's stay connected as a community because it's helping to push us all forward. So with that being said, that that's all we have, man. That's that's good. We got takeout tips coming this week. Again, go check out Jake's episode from last week. It was solid, it was a really good conversation. And uh, yeah, man, come join us over in the Pizza Pro Circle on School. That's all we got. Talk to you soon. Peace.