Focusing on the Small Wins: A Tech Startup Story with PocketTrainer

In this episode of the Tech Startup Stories Podcast, we speak with Janos Laszlo, founder of PocketTrainer, about leaving a stable career in hospitality to build a training platform that grew from a simple idea he tested on the restaurant floor. The conversation follows the unexpected path from hands-on operations to product design, the realities of being a solo founder with no technical background, and how small daily wins helped him push through some of the toughest moments in his entrepreneurial journey.

Listen to the Podcast
Available on Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.

From restaurant floors to tech founder

Janos spent his entire career in hospitality, he started his career working behind the bar, then to running training for global restaurant brands, opening new sites and helping teams perform at their best. His shift into tech began with a simple observation, people were no longer learning from thick training manuals. Everything had moved to phones, short content and quick access. He created a beautifully designed handbook that looked like a magazine, but nobody read it. When he asked why, the answer was clear. It was not practical, it was not portable and it did not match how people consumed information.

This gap became the seed of PocketTrainer, he built the first version as an employee, funding a small prototype himself, hiring one developer and experimenting without any plans to turn it into a company. The early results were immediate. Average checks increased, productivity improved, stock issues dropped and employees engaged with the content. People praised the forward thinking approach, and Janos realised this was a much bigger idea than he first expected.

Taking the leap

It took him 3 years to gather the courage to resign and explore the idea fully. On the day he handed in his notice, someone who had seen the impact of his earlier prototype offered the money he needed, on the condition he started immediately. His first day of unemployment became his first day working on PocketTrainer. He had no technical skills, no co-founder and no roadmap, yet he carried on because he believed deeply in the problem he was solving. He understood the hospitality world inside out and had lived the challenges his platform aimed to solve.

The early strain

The first two years were some of the hardest of his life, he burned through his initial funding quickly because he did not know how much he needed to raise or what development would cost. He worked 14-hour days without a day off and took on every role from sales to onboarding to customer support. He onboarded the first hundred restaurants himself, entering data manually for days at a time. Alongside the operational load, he carried constant financial and emotional pressure. His investor was someone he cared about deeply, and the thought of losing their money weighed heavily on him. Some mornings started with tears and a feeling that he could not continue. He discovered how much a founder’s mental resilience matters. His turning point came when he returned to exercise and found that physical movement helped him cope with the intensity of building a startup.

Knowing the customer

PocketTrainer works because Janos knows his customer better than most. He spent decades running restaurants and understands the limitations of generic training systems. Hospitality teams need tools that match their reality. They use phones, not laptops. They need short bursts of content, not long modules. They need support that feels relevant to their environment. This knowledge shaped every decision, from prioritising mobile experiences to cutting unnecessary features that created friction. He focused on simplicity, self-paced learning and practical content that reflects the real world. That clarity of purpose also helped him stay close to product market fit.

Hiring with intention

It took nearly 3 years before he made his first significant hire, he began by bringing in virtual assistants for low-value tasks, freeing his time for selling and product work. Over time, he invested heavily in customer success rather than pure development. He onboarded clients faster than competitors, offered same-day support and delivered a level of service that restaurants were not used to. He expanded into training content, recognising that most hospitality businesses lacked a training manager or dedicated learning team. Over time, the service grew from a training platform into a full 360 solution that supports creation, implementation and ongoing adoption.

Moving from a platform to a service

Last year brought a shift in strategy. Instead of racing to build new features, the team prioritised making the experience easier. That meant fewer clicks, faster onboarding and handling content creation on behalf of clients, and this was deliberate. He realised that hospitality teams often do not have the time, resources or expertise to create training material internally, so PocketTrainer fills that gap. The business now helps clients design their full training library, and these investments are only just beginning to show commercial impact.

Growing through people

PocketTrainer’s global reach came from people who moved between restaurants and countries, taking the platform with them. He expanded into 20 countries through word of mouth. When his clients joined new companies, they brought PocketTrainer into the conversation. This kind of organic growth strengthened his belief that the best marketing comes from delighted customers who save time, reduce cost and improve performance through the platform.

Looking ahead

The next phase for PocketTrainer includes expanding into complementary areas such as HR tooling and creating a B2C learning experience for individuals. Many people already ask for access to courses to develop skills independently, he sees an opportunity to give more people a path into hospitality roles through high quality content. He also wants to continue giving away a portion of that content for free, allowing people to test the quality and share it widely, knowing that it will drive demand for more tailored services.

Advice for his younger self

Janos shared three pieces of advice he wishes he had known earlier. Hire when you find talent, not when you are desperate. Stay physically active because a healthy mind relies on a healthy body, execute quickly, even if imperfectly, and learn from what does not work. He also reflects on the challenges of starting as a solo founder. If possible, he would tell his younger self to bring a co-founder on board. Building a tech company alone is possible, but it adds a level of pressure that few anticipate.

The long view

PocketTrainer proves that deep industry expertise can shape powerful products when paired with persistence, humility and trust in the problem being solved. Janos built his company from years of lived experience, a commitment to learning from his customers and an ability to push through difficult seasons by focusing on one small win at a time.

Listen to the Podcast
Available on Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.

Connect with Janos Laszlo or learn more about PocketTrainer.