85. "We were £1.5M in debt": The turnaround strategy that could save your business | Zoe Paskin
James Reed: all about businessSummary
Zoe Paskin, co-founder and managing director of Studio Paskin, shares insights into the challenges and strategies of running a successful restaurant business in London. Known for acclaimed venues like The Palomar, The Barbary, and Evelyn's Table, Paskin discusses the importance of reinvention and adaptability in a rapidly changing hospitality landscape. Despite the current economic pressures affecting consumer spending, she emphasizes the need for restaurants to enhance guest experiences to maintain loyalty.
Paskin reflects on her journey from the nightclub scene to the restaurant industry, highlighting the lessons learned from her early experiences managing The End nightclub alongside her brother Leo. She notes that attention to detail and a strong team are crucial for success, particularly in a sector where margins are tight. As the company expands, she acknowledges the need for consolidation and a potential focus on developing existing brands rather than launching new concepts.
Looking ahead, Paskin expresses a desire to explore opportunities beyond London, including the possibility of opening a restaurant abroad. She believes that while the restaurant industry is resilient, it requires support to navigate ongoing challenges, including rising costs and changing consumer behaviors. Paskin's vision for the future includes a balance between her professional ambitions and personal aspirations, hinting at a possible shift away from the restaurant scene in the coming years.
Show Notes
Financial crises can hit any business- especially in today's economy. Selling might feel like the only option. But is it? What should founders do when things look bleak? How do you rebuild momentum, and give your business the best possible chance of surviving and thriving? When one pair of siblings were running The End nightclub, they found themselves £1.5 million in debt and facing enormous pressure to sell. Instead, they chose a different path, and turned the business around. In this episode of All About Business, James speaks with Zoë Paskin, co-founder and managing director of Studio Paskin. They are the independent powerhouse behind legendary London destinations like The Palomar, The Barbary, and the Michelin-starred Evelyn's Table, celebrated for maintaining flawless standards in a brutal industry. Zoë shares the remarkable story of turning around a legendary 90s nightclub facing massive debt, stepping into leadership when no one expected her to, and the reality of selling a business at its peak. James and Zoë explore how to scale when the broader market is struggling, how to strip down operational expenses to rescue a business, and why the best career advice may be to simply : go wherever the biggest problems are.
Links: Follow James Reed on LinkedIn Follow Zoë Paskin on LinkedIn Find out more Studio Paskin and their work here Submit your application to Reed’s Entrepreneurs Fund for a chance to a £20,000 grant HERE
All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more HERE This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk
More from James Reed: all about business
Stop treating social value as a box-ticking exercise, align community needs with your bottom line and turn operational friction into a superpower. In this episode of All About Business, James sits down with Sarah Stone, founder of the social value consultancy Samtaler. Together they explore how companies can integrate purpose and profitability without falling into the trap of superficial tokenism. Sarah shares the candid realities of scaling a micro-consultancy, the lessons learned from her background in Downing Street, and how helping renewable energy developers solve local community friction turned into an industry-standard blueprint for success. The conversation dives deep into the mechanics of public sector procurement, the hidden costs of operational inflexibility, and why true social value must drive commercial performance rather than distract from it. Sarah also reflects on founding the Military Coworking Network out of personal necessity, the critical importance of cash flow management for founders, and why listening to your gut and focusing on real-world problems is the ultimate foundation for a resilient enterprise. Whether you want to navigate regulated markets, build a purpose-led operating model, or scale an impactful business, this episode delivers essential leadership insights. Timestamps 03:44 Name Meaning Samtaler 11:48 Sweet Spot Business Value 24:01 Mission to Improve Business 28:25 Scaling and Winning Support 31:31 Startup Help and Mentors 33:57 Advice for Impact Businesses 38:11 Future of Social Impact Links Follow James Reed on LinkedIn Follow Sarah Stone on LinkedIn Find out more about Samtaler and their services here Submit your application to Reed’s Entrepreneurs Fund for a chance to a £20,000 grant HERE All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more HERE This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk
For years, this Ros showed up to work as someone she wasn't, and it took her far longer than she'd like to admit to realise it was quietly costing her the thing she needed most. In this episode of All About Business, James sits down with Ros Morgan, chief executive of the Heart of London Business Alliance, the organisation representing over 500 businesses across London's West End. Ros explains why, early in her career, she believed professionalism meant suppressing her personality entirely, dressing to fit in with an all-male board and refusing to discuss anything personal at work, and the moment she decided to deliberately drop that act. She breaks down why being more open with her team, rather than less, ended up making her more credible as a leader, not less. The conversation also unpacks a second lesson from Ros' own career: her habit of saying yes to opportunities before she felt fully ready for them, including taking on her first CEO role in her early twenties with no real knowledge of the industry she was stepping into. She explains why she believes the businesses that succeed are the ones that get out and learn from their peers rather than trying to solve every problem alone. Timestamps 01:41 What Is a BID 09:50 Scenes in the Square 17:53 London Safety Perception 29:53 How London Stays Ahead 36:21 Real Rates Reform Plan 45:46 Japan Resilience Lessons 57:29 Hiring For Culture Fit Links Follow James Reed on LinkedIn Follow Ros Morgan on LinkedIn Find out more about Heart of London Business Alliance and their work here Submit your application to Reed’s Entrepreneurs Fund for a chance to a £20,000 grant HERE All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more HERE This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk
The moment a business starts making real money is exactly when it's most at risk of losing what made it work in the first place. In this special 100th episode of All About Business, James sits down with entrepreneur Cath Kidston MBE, who built a single shop into a globally recognised brand, watched its values slip once investors and private equity got involved, and has spent her second business, C.Atherley, making sure it never happens again. Cath breaks down why she believes founders need to define their brand values early and write them down, long before growth, investment, or pressure to cut costs ever arrives. She explains how her first business began compromising on quality once money and new voices entered the business, and why a gut-instinct decision she couldn't justify on a spreadsheet turned out to be the right call all along. The conversation also unpacks why building slowly and deliberately is better than scaling too early. Cath explains why she spent four to five years getting the foundations right in both of her businesses before pushing for growth, and why she believes it's nearly impossible to fix a business's culture or values once they've already slipped. Timestamps (Audio) 01:46 C.Atherley Origins 08:55 Four Signature Scents 14:59 Building Smarter This Time 26:06 Naming Your Business 32:17 Brand Values No Compromise 38:52 Hiring Ops To Scale 43:09 Modern Marketing And Property Links Follow James Reed on LinkedIn Find out more about C. Atherley and their products here Find out more about Joy of print and their products here Submit your application to Reed’s Entrepreneurs Fund for a chance to a £20,000 grant HERE All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more HERE This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk
Every founder eventually hits a decision that determines whether their company survives them or dies with them. Almost all of them get it wrong. In this episode of All About Business, James sits down with Guy Singh-Watson, founder of Riverford Organic Farmers, who turned three acres and a borrowed tractor into a £120 million business, and found a way to cash out on his terms without ever putting the company up for sale. Guy breaks down why he sold shares to his own staff instead of chasing a trade sale or private equity deal, and the near-£2 million mistake Riverford made along the way. He also shares the moment he walked away from a major retail contract and why no single customer, however large, should ever be allowed to dictate your terms. The conversation unpacks what changed once Guy made the shift to employee ownership. He also gets candid about leading as an intuitive, emotionally-driven founder, and how a genuine apology turned out to be one of the most underrated leadership tools he's used. Timestamps 01:31 From Wheelbarrow to Veg Boxes 10:08 Leading Through Constant Change 17:56 Growth Drivers and Father’s Approval 20:15 Leadership Transformation and Coaching 25:27 Employee Ownership in Action 32:09 Why Employee Ownership 41:27 Greenwash and Trust 48:20 Supermarket Bullying Stories Links Follow James Reed on LinkedIn Follow Guy Singh-Watson on LinkedIn Find out more about Riverford Organic Farmers and their products here Submit your application to Reed’s Entrepreneurs Fund for a chance to a £20,000 grant HERE All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more HERE This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk
What if you could see what your Rolex was actually worth before a dealer made an offer? In this episode, James is joined by Ross Crane to explain how that approach became a business, and what other founders can learn from it. Ross Crane co-founded Subdial to make buying and selling pre-owned luxury watches clearer and faster. Its market data helps customers understand watch prices in an industry where values can be difficult to pin down. They discuss how to recognise when an idea has reached a dead end, how to respond when a market drops, and why selling quickly can matter more than holding out for a bigger margin. Ross also shares a difficult decision from before Subdial: closing an earlier venture after six months and returning £220,000 of unused seed funding to investors. Timestamps 01:40 From Consulting to Startups 07:23 Pivoting Into Watches 10:16 Data Driven Pricing Model 21:43 How Subdial Works 32:54 Watches as Investable Hobby 49:32 Consignment Pricing Tiers Links Follow James Reed on LinkedIn Follow Ross Crane on LinkedIn Find out more about Subdial and their products here Submit your application to Reed’s Entrepreneurs Fund for a chance to a £20,000 grant HERE All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more HERE