Chad is the CEO at Fire and Vine Hospitality, a Seattle based company that owns and operates some of the Pacific Northwest’s most iconic properties, including El Gaucho, AQUA by El Gaucho, Aerlume, Yellowhawk Resort, Walla Walla Steak Co., Crossbuck Brewing and their industry leading Revelers Club loyalty program.
Simon is the Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Oracle Food and Beverage Global Business Unit.
In times of crisis, having the presence of mind to think about the future feels like a luxury that many business owners can’t afford. Keeping the lights on and the doors open becomes job one - but one day the crisis will end and what might be worse is finding your business firmly planted behind where everyone else moved.
That’s the theme of today’s episode. How Fire and Vine used their time during the pandemic to invest in and deploy technology that will help them engage their customers in a more meaningful way, removing friction from their operation and lead the restaurant industry in this recovery - and why having the right technology partner is critical to bring it all together.

About Chad
Since joining El Gaucho and his father and founder, Paul Mackay in 2003, the two worked together to build a special place for people to celebrate their lives. Chad took the helm as CEO in 2013 and over the years, developed strategic direction to promote continual growth. In 2017, the company announced the evolution to Fire & Vine Hospitality which provides operational leadership, marketing and technology support for some of the Pacific Northwest’s most iconic properties, and the Revelers Club program which includes El Gaucho Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, Portland and Vancouver (opening in 2021), AQUA by El Gaucho, Aerlume, Yellowhawk Resort, Walla Walla Steak Co., and Crossbuck Brewing. Chad is the outgoing Board Chair of the Washington State Hospitality Association and is the Finance Chair for Visit Seattle. In 2018, he became one of the founding members of Third Door Coalition working to solve chronic homelessness in Seattle and King County through the proven solutions of Housing First and Permanent Supportive Housing.

About Simon
Simon de Montfort Walker is the Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Oracle Food and Beverage Global Business Unit. Tapped for his deep experience in hospitality technology, Walker leads the business unit’s efforts to deliver innovative hardware and cloud solutions, enabling restaurants of all sizes to personalize the guest experience, streamline operations and grow their businesses.
During the past 15 years, de Montfort Walker has built a track record of success in software sales, strategy and execution for both public and private companies. Most recently, he served as the Chief Technology Officer and President of eGate solutions at Gategroup with a focus on hospitality, supply chain and end-customer servicing solutions. He also has served as EVP Operations at Blue Cod Technologies and General Manager for Octavian Inc.
Throughout his career, de Montfort Walker has held leadership roles in multiple technology firms as well as led the operational turnaround efforts for technology companies in travel, banking, insurance and hospitality as an operator and, previously, as a management consultant with Sapient Corp. de Montfort Walker holds a bachelor's degree in economics from The University of Kings College and an master’s degree with honors from The University of Texas at Austin.

Links
Website: https://www.fireandvinehospitality.com
Oracle Food & Beverage: https://www.oracle.com/industries/food-beverage