In this episode of the Titans of Foodservice podcast, host Nick Portillo speaks with Patrick Day, Vice President and General Manager at Giordano's Food Service. Patrick shares his journey from owning and running restaurants to becoming a top sales rep at Cisco and eventually landing his current role at Giordano's. He emphasizes the importance of understanding how things work in the food service industry and building relationships with customers. Patrick also discusses the trends of sustainability and organic food, as well as the qualities he looks for when hiring sales professionals.

Quotes

• "You can't do it all, even though you want to pay the bills, hire the people get the vendors, the whole nine yards. As an owner-operator, it's very difficult to do everything, and you have to figure out how to delegate some of that stuff to other people that you trust." -Patrick Day [17:10]

• “Years ago when I first got into the business, I drove down to San Diego, and I was visiting the Hard Rock Cafe. I was showing a canned tuna product. I remember I put on my gloves to do a cutting with the chef, and I had a little hand can opener, started opening it up, and cut my thumb. Blood went all into the tuna. I remember looking at the chef and saying: I'm probably not getting the sale today. And she said: No, not today.” -Nick Portillo [22:28]

TIMESTAMPS

|00:02] Patrick Day and his experience in the food service industry

[2:01] Fiery Five Food Service Questions 

[07:03] Food trends in Southern California: sustainability and organic 

[10:08] Characteristics to look for in food service sales professionals 

[12:30] Consultative selling and being a partner to customers 

[15:44] Learning the importance of delegation 

[20:37] Jordano's history and transition from grocery stores to distribution 

[23:09] Patrick Day's management style 

[24:31] Advice for success in the food service industry

[26:41] Building relationships and earning trust in sales

RESOURCES

Portillo Sales

CONTACT 

Nick: nick.portillo@portillosales.com

Patrick: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-day-0886162b/