{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Grateful for Hospitality","title":"EP: 03 - From Fintech to Pizzeria Owner - What Tom Harrison Learned Coming Back to Hospitality","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":3786,"description":"Tom Harrison spent nearly three years in fintech before opening Ace Pizza in Victoria Park - one of London's hottest new pizzerias - with his partner Rachel. He joins Mason to unpack what changes when you finally own the place. How he filters the avalanche of hospitality tech pitches, why his staff get 45-hour contracts as policy, and how a 72-hour fermented dough became the pillar everything else runs through.Episode summaryTom Harrison walked away from hospitality burnt out, spent nearly three years in a fintech startup, and came back on his own terms to co-found Ace Pizza in Victoria Park with his partner Rachel. In this episode, Tom tells Mason what actually changes when you own the place. How he filters the cold-email tide of hospitality tech vendors. Why his staff are on capped 45-hour contracts as policy rather than aspiration. And how a 72-hour fermented dough became the pillar everything else hangs off. A candid look at building an independent restaurant in 2026 without selling out the values that brought him back.About the guestTom Harrison is co-founder of Ace Pizza, the Victoria Park pizzeria he opened with his partner Rachel last July. His career spans pubs, bars, breweries and ops roles across UK hospitality, followed by nearly three years at a fintech startup building a customer success team before returning to hospitality on his own terms. Ace Pizza as a brand goes back around eight years, originating as the pizza offer at the Pembury Tavern in Hackney Downs before growing through pop-ups and residencies into a standalone restaurant.Key topics coveredWhat three years in tech actually taught Tom about looking after a hospitality teamWhy most hospitality SaaS pitches deserve to be ignored, and how he filters the noiseUsing technology to give staff more time with the guest, not lessFounding a restaurant with your romantic partner without blowing it upThe 72-hour fermented dough that underpins every Ace pizzaPizza and cocktails as a model, not pizza...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/xH4nKPrp9s17BMyRekwCy-9yS_dodUWH1v2qRiycUGs/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9kN2E1/ZTQxYjE2YTdmYWNh/NjI4YWNhZDc4NWM1/MjU4My5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}