20: Creating a Civic Gathering Space | Manny Yekutiel, Manny’s

“The least understood thing about opening a public facing business is the feeling of it, the emotional journey you have to go on”

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Manny Yekutiel is the owner of Manny’s, a civic and political event space with a bookshop, coffee shop, bar, and restaurant, located in San Francisco.

As you’ll quickly find out, Manny is not your traditional business owner, and this is far from a traditional interview. Having worked in the world of fundraising for political campaigns, Manny is charismatic and persuasive, with a knack for convincing people to go along with his ideas… like asking me to take my shirt off during the interview – you’ll have to listen on to find out what happens there.

After burning out from his career in politics, Manny set out to use his skills to create a gathering space for the civic-minded, using food and drink as the great equalizer to bring people together. 

We discuss his journey to make a reality out of his vision, touching on topics like his unconventional approach to fundraising, the business’s four primary revenue streams, the pros and cons of partnering with a culinary nonprofit to run the kitchen early on, loneliness as the number one hurdle he had to overcome, and the least understood aspect of opening a brick-and-mortar business.

Please enjoy this fun, quirky, and informative interview with Manny Yekutiel.

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Where to find Manny’s:

• Website: https://welcometomannys.com/
• IG: @welcometomannys
• FB: @welcometomannys
• Twitter: @welcometomannys
• YouTube: @welcometomannys

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Where to find Manny:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manny-yekutiel-2523b843/
• IG: @emanuelseth
• FB: https://www.facebook.com/emanuel.seth.9
• Twitter: @manny_yekutiel

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Where to find Bryan:

• Website: https://www.myfirstrestaurant.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryan-tublin-03548910/
• Twitter: @btublin 

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Where to find Kitava:

• Website: https://www.kitava.com/
• Instagram: @kitavakitchen

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Referenced:

• Farming Hope
• Manny’s Op Ed in the SF Chronicle
• Civic Joy Fund

In this episode, we cover:

• Manny’s path from political campaign fundraiser to opening a restaurant & event space
• How getting one investor to commit early helped him raise all the money he needed, and how he would have structured the investment differently
• Manny’s four revenue streams
• Why Manny purposely doesn’t maximize revenue
• How partnering with a culinary nonprofit helped Manny get the space up and running
• Loneliness as the top hurdle Manny had to overcome after opening
• The least understood aspect of opening a brick-and-mortar business
• How Manny’s role in the business has changed
• On The Fly Segment