Take A Peek Inside Backhouse with Our Founder & CEO, Max Mandell

Hospitality isn’t just about creating unforgettable experiences. It’s about connection.

And yet, we’ve heard too many stories about hospitality tech solutions that lose that connection to their customers as soon as a contract is signed. 

They send generic emails sent without soul, offer support from bots who’ve never worked a day on the line, and deprioritize features that could make your kitchen run even better.

At Backhouse, we stay true to our roots. The hospitality our customers give their guests should be offered to our customers, too!

So, we’re taking the spotlight off of Backhouse and putting it on the person behind it: our Founder and CEO, Max Mandell. In this Q&A, Max reveals why he launched Backhouse, how it works, who it’s helping, and why it’s so important to him.

What, exactly, inspired you to start Backhouse?

I spent my nights after school working shifts at my mom’s restaurant, Grazie. I got a front-row seat to both the artistry and chaos of a well-run operation in the many hours I was working or just hanging out there.

Over time, I noticed that buying and selling equipment was an area where chaos could become more controlled. Operators like my mom, who were already tight on cash and time, didn’t have the luxury of calling every potential vendor and waiting for them to reach back out with quotes.

As a single-unit operator, she didn’t have negotiation power for better rates, and she definitely didn’t have any insight into how much that equipment should actually cost. When she needed new equipment, she took the first deal she was offered and hoped she was getting a deal.

I grew frustrated because everything else in the restaurant seemed to be modernized except for equipment procurement. My mom and her peers could offer special deals to their customers based on past purchases, or even update the prices on their menus based on the fluctuating costs of their ingredients.

None of that matters without equipment to actually make food! I wanted to create a marketplace for operators that could give them more negotiation power and transparency into what they were buying without taking up all their time on research.

It sounds like you have an extensive history with the industry. Can you tell us a little more about that?

For sure—you could say hospitality runs in my blood. My family has run many restaurants, but the two you might be familiar with are Mimi’s Pizza (ed note: seen at the top of this article), opened in the Upper East Side in 1959, and Grazie, which operated until the pandemic forced it to close in 2020. We had our hands in the industry for about six decades. I guess with Backhouse you could call it seven!

How does your family feel about what you’re building? Do they get a say in any development?

I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t some skepticism or nerves from my family when I first decided to build Backhouse…after all, there’s a reason this industry has remained opaque and under-developed for so long! But after seeing the response from our first customers, those concerns were gone. Now, they’re a constant sounding board and a large part of how Backhouse has gotten this far.

What about other people in the industry? How are your foodservice customers responding to Backhouse so far?

Feedback from the industry has been overwhelmingly positive, and our customers are already seeing value. From what they tell me, they’re getting a lot of time back in addition to the cost savings, which is exactly what I want to hear. We want Backhouse to feel like an always-on purchasing assistant that provides peace of mind in moments of stress. Beyond that, I’m proud that our data shows they’re saving an average of 27% on their equipment purchases, too.

I take the responsibility of being trusted by brands like TimeOut Market, Hilton, and CoolSips very seriously. I’m extremely proud of what we’re building and who we’re supporting, and I’ll continue to work tirelessly to continue adding value for them.

How do equipment suppliers feel about your marketplace? Is this disrupting their business?

Our marketplace actually helps suppliers! Inclusion in our network means more exposure, offering business opportunities with high-intent buyers. We match vendors with buyers within their service area, opening up revenue streams from operators they would’ve never met otherwise without the hassle of cold calls or digital advertising. We’re an extension of their sales team.

So what you’re saying is that Backhouse is really designed to support both foodservice equipment buyers and sellers?

I truly believe that to change the infrastructure behind the food service industry, we must have a solution that serves both operators and vendors. And I feel like we’ve achieved it. I’m very grateful to the vendors who have been excited by Backhouse’s modern approach since our early days. We’ve built a transparent platform where everybody wins.

It almost seems too good to be true. What’s the catch?

No catch, I swear! Operators join Backhouse for free, and Backhouse earns a small percentage off of all the equipment purchased on our marketplace.

My goal was always to give back to the industry that gave so much to me and my family. Backhouse will never lose its operator lens.

I think that’s an important note to end on. But before I let you go, I have to know—what spots have you been to recently that are too good? I need some suggestions for the next time I’m in New York.

Cate (ed note: Max’s fiancée) and I are obsessed with Raf’s at the moment for both lunch and dinner—super intimate, open kitchen, incredible home-made bread. Also, Gjelinia, whose Venice location I’ve loved for a long time, has finally brought their excellence to NYC!