All in the Industry

Host Shari Bayer: “So you’ve worked with some of the greatest chefs on the planet. How are you able to find the soul of each project? Is there a secret sauce?”

Jimi Yui: “Is there a secret sauce? One of the things that I believe firmly is that we’re here to serve. All of us. 

All of us just have a slightly different talent and a different way we can express that to serve people around us. 

We just happen to deliver drawings as the deliverable, but in truth, we’re really here to serve. 

I think the secret sauce is you truly engage in listening, trying to understand what it is that is being asked of you. I think that’s a universal truth, whether you’re a waiter, a cook, a designer, or a front door clerk. If we believe that our mission in life is to serve you, then we listen. 

The secret sauce, as you put it, has everything to do with understanding where people want to land. 

We’re so fortunate in that we work for, I think, the best practitioners of the business on the planet. I adore every one of them for what they do. 
It’s such a thrill and an amazing experience to be able to sit with somebody and really talk about their aspirations, their goals, what they’re trying to do, their creativity. This stuff is just bubbling out of them. That’s why they are taking all this risk. 

They have a story and an attitude, you know, they are selling something, they’re bringing something forward. They have a vision. My job is to understand…”

Listen to full episode here