Toast: Aman Narang. How a Long Wait for the Dinner Check Launched a $2 Billion Business.
Summary
Guy Raz interviews Aman Narang, co-founder of Toast, about how a frustrating dinner bill inspired the creation of a cloud-based restaurant operating system. After an initial mobile payment app failed, Narang pivoted to replace clunky legacy point-of-sale systems, facing skepticism and technical hurdles. The episode covers Toast’s early struggles, the critical role of customer obsession, and how the company survived the pandemic to become a dominant industry player.
Topics discussed
Sponsor ads for Shopify, NetSuite, Framer, and Cleveland Clinic
Introduction to Aman Narang and the founding of Toast
Aman's background at Endeka and the decision to start a company
The failed mobile payment app and the pivot to POS systems
Building the all-in-one restaurant platform and early challenges
Sponsor ads for Square, U.S. Bank, and Vanguard
Early adoption, customer obsession, and scaling support
Bringing in a new CEO and navigating the COVID-19 crisis
Surviving the pandemic and returning to growth
Aman returns as CEO and focuses on AI-driven growth
Reflections on luck, timing, and future expansion into retail
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