How to Turn Your Restaurant Experience Into a Business You Own

Something big is happening at Columbine Hospitality... and we've been waiting for the right moment to share it.

We are honored to announce that Columbine Hospitality is taking over The Blueprint, a coaching program built by Jim Taylor of Benchmark Sixty for hospitality professionals who are ready to turn their operator experience into a consulting business of their own.

Here's why this matters to us personally.

The restaurant industry creates some of the most capable, resilient, and battle-tested leaders we've ever met.

People who have built teams from scratch, navigated chaos, solved problems most industries never face, and carried entire businesses on their backs... often with no roadmap for what comes next.

The Blueprint was created to change that.

Jim built something rare. A real, honest space where hospitality professionals could explore what life beyond operations looks like and actually get support building it.

I was a member of this program when I was launching Columbine Hospitality, and over the past couple years have had the privilege of coaching members through their own journeys.

Watching operators step into their expertise and build something of their own... that never gets old.

Taking over The Blueprint isn't just a business decision. It's an opportunity to pay forward everything this program gave us, and to keep building on what Jim started with the same integrity and intention he brought to it from day one.

This is also a natural expansion of what we do at Columbine Hospitality.

We've always been in the business of helping people build something meaningful. Until now, that meant working exclusively with independent multi-unit restaurant operators who are ready to scale without losing their culture or their minds.

The Blueprint allows us to serve a second group we deeply believe in... former operators who are done with the grind of running restaurants and are ready to build a new career on their own terms. One that gives them freedom, flexibility, and the ability to give back everything they've learned during their years in the industry.

Two different paths. The same commitment to people-first growth.

Jim isn't going anywhere. He'll continue contributing to The Blueprint over the next two years as we grow and evolve it together. His fingerprints will always be on this thing, and we are grateful for that.

What stays the same is the mission.

Helping hospitality professionals build meaningful careers and businesses... rooted in real experience, not theory.

If you're a former operator who's been quietly wondering what's next, we'd love to talk. Reach out at christinmarvin.com/contact and let's figure out together if The Blueprint is the right next step for you.

The best is still ahead.

Christin