Listen to the Podcast Short at: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube Published on January 18, 2026 Persistent global economic uncertainties, characterized by pervasive inflation and consequently tighter household budgets, are catalyzing a profound and measurable transformation in consumer dining behavior. We have identified this strategic shift as the “Cocktail and Appetizer Effect”—a contemporary parallel…
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Listen to the Podcast Short at: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube Published on January 11, 2026 Brad Peters, Founder & CEO of HRBUniversal & The Plate & Pour Collective Equity Partner Program The landscape of modern hospitality is undergoing a revolutionary transformation. The intense battle for the contemporary traveler’s time and wallet has forced…
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Effective January 1, 2026, a new law (known as the “SC Justice Act” or Act 42 / H. 3430) went into effect in South Carolina. While it technically keeps the headline requirement for $1 million in liquor liability insurance, it offers businesses specific ways to lower that coverage requirement significantly—potentially down to $300,000—which is intended…
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Listen to the Podcast Short at: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube Published on January 4, 2026 Brad Peters, Founder & CEO of HRBUniversal & The Plate & Pour Collective Equity Partner Program The hospitality industry, an essential pillar of local economies and the very epitome of “Main Street” commerce, is currently confronting a severe…
Continue readingPublished on January 2, 2026 Brad Peters, Founder & CEO of HRBUniversal & The Plate & Pour Collective Equity Partner Program The continued viability of independent and national dining and drinking establishments is gravely imperiled. After forty years in the hospitality sector, my assessment is that the industry is in a precipitous decline, evidenced by the…
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Listen to the Podcast Short at: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube Published on December 28, 2025 Brad Peters, Founder & CEO of HRBUniversal & The Plate & Pour Collective Equity Partner Program The 2026 outlook for the food service industry is characterized by two essential and complementary strategic shifts, both engineered to enhance profitability,…
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Listen to the Podcast Short at: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube Published on December 21, 2025 Brad Peters, Founder, Director, CEO of HRBUniversal & The Plate & Pour Collective Equity Partner Program The contemporary threat landscape has elevated the urgency for rigorous food defense measures from a suggested best practice to an essential mandate….
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Listen to the Podcast Short at: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube Published on December 14, 2025 Brad Peters, Founder, Director, CEO of HRBUniversal & The Plate & Pour Collective Equity Partner Program The legal resolution involving Panda Express ($1.05 million settlement) concerning a carbon dioxide incident serves as a significant and costly cautionary example…
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Listen to the Podcast Short at: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube Published on December 7, 2025 Brad Peters, Founder, Director, CEO of HRBUniversal & The Plate & Pour Collective Equity Partner Program The quick-service restaurant (QSR) sector stands at the precipice of a year defined by fundamental, tech-driven transformation. To not only sustain a…
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Listen to the Podcast Short at: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube Published on November 23, 2025 Brad Peters, Founder, Director, CEO of HRBUniversal & The Plate & Pour Collective Equity Partner Program Thanksgiving Eve, once merely acknowledged as the high-volume travel day preceding the customary American holiday feast, has decidedly transcended that quotidian status….
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