TESTIMONIALS
Client Results
“Josh came to us at The GPO to run a Venue Performance Review on our business, and what stood out immediately was the depth of it. He didn’t just look at the numbers, he looked at our people structure, our systems, our menu, our POS, everything that actually drives profit.”
“Off the back of that we brought him in to help implement real time KPIs, build out proper job descriptions and accountability for our senior team, and get a forecasting system in place for sales and wages so we could manage costs proactively instead of reacting after the fact. He also helped us benchmark our Cost of Sales and labour against industry standards and identify exactly where we were leaking margin. This resulted in a 3% reduction in food cost and over $55,000 saved in wages.”
“What I valued most was that Josh doesn’t give generic advice. Everything was specific to our business, our menu, our team. If you’re running a hospitality venue and know you could be running tighter without knowing exactly where to start, Josh is who you call.”
Sam Austen, Owner - The GPO
$63,000
saved in reducing food costs by 3%
$55,000
saved in wages in six months
300+
seat venue built & handed over for Crittenden Wines
“We engaged The Ball Group to support the establishment of our new 300+ seat restaurant at Crittenden, and the results have been outstanding. Josh Ball brought genuine expertise across every dimension of the project, guiding the design and renovation of the dining space, managing a complete kitchen refit, and building a strong team through front of house and back of house recruitment.”
“Beyond the physical build, Josh developed employment contracts, worked with our head chef to design a fully costed menu, and created comprehensive operating procedures that have established consistency and efficiency across the business. He also implemented detailed budgets and forecasts that have set a stable platform for our financial planning and decision making.”
“What sets The Ball Group apart is the combination of strategic thinking and genuine hands-on delivery. Josh did not just advise, he rolled up his sleeves and got it done alongside our team. We would highly recommend The Ball Group to any hospitality business looking to establish, elevate, or transform its operations.”
Rollo Crittenden, Managing Director - Crittenden Wines
“I brought Josh into the Continental Sorrento precinct during one of the most demanding periods of its operation. Multiple restaurants, bars, event spaces and a luxury hotel, all needing to work as one.”
“What stood out wasn’t just his operational knowledge, it was his willingness to completely immerse himself in the business. Understanding a complex hospitality ecosystem on paper is one thing. Living it, leading it, and keeping every moving part aligned under pressure is something entirely different.”
“Josh has a rare combination of authentic leadership and commercial acumen, a sharp analytical mind, and the ability to quickly interpret financial performance. He understands that exceptional guest experiences and strong commercial outcomes are not competing priorities. They are intrinsically linked.”
Duncan Tomson, CEO - The Continental Sorrento
$240,000
YOY turnaround, in 9 months
“We were busy. Sales were strong. But money wasn’t sticking to the business, and nobody could tell me exactly why. Josh came in and found it fast: no costed recipes, no order guides, no PARs, prep that ran on guesswork instead of numbers. We were paying for volume without controlling any of it.”
“He rebuilt the structure from the inside out. New org chart, clear position descriptions so everyone knew exactly what their job was, proper lines of communication top to bottom. He worked directly with the chefs to set PARs for ordering and prepping, wrote new SOPs and a sequence of service the team could actually follow, and brought in a costing system across food and beverage so we could see, line by line, where every dollar was going.”
“In nine months we cut food cost by 4% and labour by 8%, and that turned into a swing of just under $240,000 to the bottom line year on year. That’s what turned it around. Not a marketing push, not more covers, just control. The Pier went from a venue with good sales and a profitability problem to a genuinely profitable business, and it stayed that way because the systems Josh put in are still running it.”
Lynne Croft, Owner - The Pier
“The Diner needed more than a refresh, it needed a reason for people to walk back in the door. Josh rebuilt the whole concept from the ground up: the brand, the menu, the room, the way the team greeted a table. He gave us three months to pull it off, and we hit opening night with everything running.”
“What I noticed was how much he cared about the feeling of the place, not just the mechanics. He’d talk about hospitality versus service constantly, and it showed in how he trained the floor team and set the tone for guest interactions. Behind that, the numbers were just as tight, costed menu, wage forecasts, a roster built for a 180 seat room from day one.”
“Most people can fix a P&L or make a room look good. Josh did both, on a timeline most people would have said was impossible. The Diner reopened as a genuinely different venue, not a patched up version of the old one.”
Jodie Rose, Owner - The Diner
OWNER BUILT VENUES
Built From The Ground Up, And Run For The Long Haul
The results above are client engagements. These two are different: venues Josh built from scratch with his own money on the line, full rebuilds from concept, brand, room, menu, and team hire, then owned and operated year after year. Turning a venue around is one skill. Building one that stays profitable for a decade or more is another, and it is the experience behind everything The Ball Group does.
Two Buoys Tapas & Wine Bar
12 years, built, owned, and run: a nationally recognised coastal venue built from the ground up, concept, brand, wine program, and team. Grew to $2.5M revenue and $400K EBITDA, and was named Best Restaurant/Cafe in Australia.
Steam Restaurant
10 years, founded and directed: an award-winning contemporary Asian restaurant created from scratch and run for a decade, named Best New Asian Restaurant in Victoria at the Restaurant & Catering Awards.
