Episode Details

James "Jimmy" Hurlston was studying intellectual property law when he decided he'd had enough.

So he quit, ate over 800 burgers in a year, wrote The Burger Book, and three years later opened Easey's — the now-iconic Collingwood burger joint with a train carriage on the roof, graffiti walls, and a rotating cast of Melbourne's hospitality and street art scene.

Eleven years on, Easey's is still standing. But James says he wouldn't open a burger shop today.

In this episode, he sits down with Tim to talk about how Easey's actually survived, the failed Sydney expansion that nearly broke him, the ego he had to lose to grow, and why the train carriage on the roof has been both his biggest strength and his most expensive lease.

He's also brutally honest about what he got wrong, why the next venue wouldn't be in Victoria or Sydney, and the one achievement he's most proud of after 11 years.

This is the kind of conversation you only get from someone who's been in the trenches long enough to tell the truth.

You'll hear:

00:00 – From law school to 800 burgers a year 

08:30 – How Easey's actually survived the early years 

14:30 – The Sydney expansion that failed (and the ego that caused it) 

30:00 – Why he wouldn't open a burger shop today 

50:00 – Building a community in burgers and what 11 years has really taught him

Key takeaways:

• Passion is the only thing that gets you through 11 years in hospo — every operator who opened a burger shop chasing the trend is gone
• A unique venue can hide a lot of mistakes early on — but it also locks you into a rent you can't escape from
• Expansion needs full control of the venue. Sub-letting your brand into someone else's pub is a fast way to lose it.
• Once you upset the locals in a tight community, you can't come back. Doesn't matter what your product is.
• Your greatest achievement as an owner isn't your venues. It's the team members who go on to open their own.

If you're serious about building a hospo business that lasts — without burning yourself out chasing a trend — book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac

Follow James and Easey's: @jimmysburgers @easeysburgers

Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld

New episodes every Wednesday.