Happy anniversary, Top Floor!

Calvin Tilokee is the founder and creative director of RevPAR Media, blending 20+ years of revenue management and marketing with a sharp creative streak. Known for illuminating hospitality brands and roasting industry quirks with his beloved hotel-meme persona, @revparblems, Calvin bridges data, strategy, and humor. On this anniversary episode, he flips the script as guest host, guiding a lively tour through pandemic pivots, podcast production, and personal pet peeves.

What You'll Learn About:

• Where Susan found the nerve to launch a business without a cash cushion or safety net. • Calvin's own origin story: furlough → pandemic pivot → RevPAR Media, full steam ahead. • The birth of Top Floor: from "Going Up" to the brand you know (and why the original name got nixed). • Why the show expanded beyond marketing, and why that makes it more fun (and nosier). • Production secrets: heavy prep, tight edits, and Susan's biggest guest pet peeves. • The fan favorites everyone mentions: the sister episodes (aka laugh tracks with plot). • What's next: more episodes, collabs, maybe a digital magazine, and some video—selectively. • Dream guests: Cindy Gallop and Sara Blakely (manifesting!). • Big swings Susan wants to try: investigative series + hospitality history deep dives. • Legacy goal: helping pros discover dream roles they didn't know existed. • Three Loading Dock stories for the price of one… but you'll have to listen for that.

Our Top Three Takeaways:

1. Entrepreneurship isn't about perfect timing or eliminating all risk.

Susan launched Hive Marketing in 2009 without savings or a safety net, betting that the chaos of the financial crisis made "failure" reputationally safe, and she's never looked back.

2. Top Floor's edge is curiosity + craft.

The show evolved from a marketing niche to a "curiosity cabinet" for the entire hospitality industry, staying audio-first with tight editing and meticulous preparation, and measuring success by growing influence and genuine relationships.

3. The next chapter is expansion and experimentation.

Susan's eyeing more episodes, collaborations, a digital Top Floor magazine, selective video/live moments, and investigative or history-of-hospitality series, aiming to surface hidden career paths and inspire listeners while the industry modernizes to match guest behavior.

Calvin Tilokee on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/calvintilokee/

RevPAR Media https://www.revparmedia.com/

Susan Barry on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/susandbarry/

Hive Marketing https://www.hive-marketing.com/

Top Floor https://www.topfloorpodcast.com/

Female Founders in Hospitality https://femalefoundersinhospitality.com/

Cindy Gallop's Brain-Altering HBR Article https://hbr.org/2022/04/stop-criticizing-women-and-start-questioning-men-instead

Other Episodes You May Like:

03: Dude, Calm Down with Calvin Tilokee https://www.topfloorpodcast.com/episode/03

53: It's Your Birthday 🎂 https://www.topfloorpodcast.com/episode/53

Playlist: Shenanigans https://www.topfloorpodcast.com/episode/category/Shenanigans