How did chef Atul Kochhar become businessman Atul Kochhar?

Atul Kochhar is the pioneering twice Michelin-starred chef from Jamshedpur in India, who has changed the way people perceive and experience Indian cuisine in the UK, remaining at the forefront of the culinary industry for over 25 years.

Earning his first Michelin star at Tamarind restaurant in 2001, Atul then opened his own restaurant, Benares in London’s Mayfair, in 2002, which earned him a second Michelin star in 2007. Since then the chef has grown his restaurant portfolio, opening several award-winning venues including: Sindhu in Marlow and Hawkyns in Amersham in Buckinghamshire and Indian Essence in Petts Wood, Kent.

When I set up this podcast with Atul, I made clear I wanted to talk to Atul the business man, not Atul the chef – this is The Business Show, not The Cookery Show.

Questions we covered off included….

·       When did you realise you were no longer just a chef, you were a businessman?  

·       Did you have a “proper” business plan before opening Tamarind?  Did you get help?  From what sort of people, in what sort of professional disciplines (eg pa, accountant, marketeer)?

·       Do you have a business plan now?

·       Lockdown was clearly a major issue for the hospitality sector – how did you deal with that, and how have you dealt with the perfect storm of Brexit, recruitment issues and the cost of living crisis (re your costs and your customers costs)?

·       It the Atul of 20 years ago asked you for some business advice, what would you say to him?

For the answers, you’ll have to listen to the show!  But I will share the link to https://www.pchase.co.uk/ as mentioned by Atul.

You can connect with Atul at https://www.linkedin.com/in/atul-kochhar-ab3a495/  and his website is at https://atulkochhar.com/ , with links from there to all of his socials.

If you want to connect with me, to talk about the mentoring and coaching I deliver to small businesses, or if you think you'd be a good guest on the show, please do let me know. You can do that via https://www.linkedin.com/in/enterprisedoctor/ .

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