Episode 3:
The Art of Blueprinting Service With Professor Simon Bell

In this episode of the PAX Hospitality Podcast, host Leon Kennedy challenges the pervasive industry narrative that hospitality is completely broken. Joining the conversation is Simon Bell, a distinguished Professor of Marketing at the University of Melbourne who specialises in services and marketing strategy. Drawing from decades of academic research and frameworks like Michael Porter’s Five Forces, Simon provides a refreshing analysis of Melbourne's hyper-competitive food landscape, illustrating why the experience economy remains in a powerful ascendancy.

The discussion dives deep into the strategic advantages of customer education, revealing how transparency and "delighters"- such as sharing proprietary recipes - actually cultivate unshakeable customer loyalty. Leon and Simon unpack actionable methodologies for operators, detailing how profound internal employee experience directly underpins external brand equity. The episode concludes with a preview of a structured customer experience course centred around the vital concept of "service blueprinting".