Game Changers by CS

Alain Ducasse's Secret To Excellence | Alain Ducasse, Celebrated Master Chef

Excellence is easy to admire. But incredibly difficult to keep up with. Today I'm with Alain Ducasse. A man who built one of the most influential culinary empires in the world. A chef who was not content to cook. Alain Ducasse imposed a requirement. A discipline. A constancy at the highest level. Since I was very little I've been curious about what I didn't know. And it's always going on. I always have to, at least once a week, discover something or a taste or a person that I didn't know before. That's the key to my curiosity. I'm never satisfied with what I know. What interests me is what I don't know yet. Everyone sees you as the great chef. But I see you as a creator. An artistic director. Success is rigor. Discipline. Demand. Work harder. Work faster. Work better. 95% work. 5% talent. Not every day. But you have to taste the work. To the point of labor. Beyond labor you still have to taste it. And then after a few days we have talent. Creativity. A vision beyond what we have seen. Excellence is not a moment. It is a decision that we make every day. Are you admiring excellence or building it? Follow WORLD OF CS if you want to master hospitality and leadership

Inside the Mind of a Master Chef Who Built Iconic Hotels | Executive Chef Josef Budde

What does it really take to become a world class chef and develop Michelin level talent In this episode we sit down with Master Chef Josef Budde to break down the mindset discipline and philosophy behind building elite chefs and world class kitchens. He opened and ran iconic hotels as Executive Chef including Grand Hyatt Hong Kong and Grand Hyatt Tokyo. From mentoring young chefs to developing excellence over years of hard work this conversation dives into what separates good from truly exceptional in the culinary world If you are serious about hospitality leadership or becoming the best in your craft this is a must watch Subscribe to THE WORLD OF CS for more insights from the top minds in hospitality and business

How He Built 100 Restaurants Across Asia | Christopher Mark, Black Sheep Restaurants

Most chefs spend their lives chasing one perfect restaurant. Christopher Mark built more than 100 across continents. From Canada to Japan at 18. From chef to businessman. From craft to scale. So here's the question nobody asks: At what point does growth destroy craft? Most chefs think scaling means losing what made them great. They protect their craft so tightly they can't expand. They stay small because they're terrified of what happens when they grow. But Chris proved something different. You can build 100 restaurants and still care about every detail. You can scale without losing soul. You can grow without sacrificing hospitality. The chefs who fail? They don't fail because they scaled. They fail because they were too afraid to try. Growth doesn't kill chefs. Fear of growth does. The real question isn't whether you can scale. It's whether you're willing to build systems that preserve what matters while you grow. Are you protecting your craft or building it to scale? Follow WORLD OF CS if you want to master hospitality and leadership

China's First Master Sommelier | Lu Yang, Wine Culture Pioneer

Lu Yang isn't just China's first Master Sommelier. He's building something bigger. The largest wine school in China. Wine programs for 60 of the country's top restaurants. 20 Michelin stars. 30 Black Pearl diamonds. And a mission to spread wine as a social language. But here's what's different: 85% of his students aren't sommeliers or industry pros. They're doctors, lawyers, engineers, finance workers. People discovering wine as a hobby. As part of life. As something playful and accessible, not technical and dogmatic. Yang Lu is proving that wine isn't about credentials or complexity. It's about memories. Emotion. Connection. He's not teaching wine. He's teaching people how to fall in love with it. This is how you build a wine culture from the ground up. Subscribe for more conversations with the people shaping hospitality and wine

Why This Bakery Has Lines Every Day | Grégoire Michaud, Founder of Bakehouse Hong Kong

There comes a point in every career when talent is no longer the issue. Courage is. In this Game Changers episode, I speak with Grégoire Michaud, founder of Bakehouse in Hong Kong, about craft, discipline, and the mindset behind building a brand people queue for daily. From Swiss apprenticeship to Executive Pastry Chef at Four Seasons Hong Kong, and then stepping out to build his own bakery, Grégoire shares why recognition is a byproduct of mastery, why excellence is everything around the product, and how teaching real skills is the true meaning of sustainability. We discuss clarity in leadership, the shift from chef to entrepreneur, and why money is fuel, not the goal. A conversation about courage, execution, and building something that lasts.