Meet Lasse ‘G’ Goerlitz | International greasy grub agent

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lasse ‘G’ Goerlitz and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lasse ‘G’, what is the most important factor behind your success?
To achieve success beyond your friends and family authenticity is key, in my opinion. The brand has to fit the experience. For me, ‘The Hotdogjudge’ is a personal brand, so if I didn’t present an honest version of myself, it wouldn’t travel anywhere. That said, it’s still a curated version of my experiences – primarily around food – where I don’t show the two eggs I eat every morning. That would be boring to my audience, in my best estimation. But when I go out I always snap pictures and most often share them with my audience, although most often it’s not in real-time.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
While I have done a lot of events and some commercials, I do consider my alter ego – The Hotdogjudge – as something I enjoy doing on the side, next to my other gigs, which are outside of hospitality – primarily bio- and high-tech.

However, the ability to carve out spaces for brands is essentially how I’ve built my professional career. And the approach is the same – if everyone is going right, let’s explore the left field and see how that dynamic can be employed to the brand’s advantage. The dynamic is also different if you’re promoting a new product category versus a new product in a mature market. However, with a basic understanding of how brands and positioning work, I find that the ‘left field’ works every time, when you’ve done your research well enough – to the point where you understand how the potential customers are thinking, so you can chose the ideal approach which resonates best with them.

It’s also what I did with ‘De Brune Riddere’ – The Brown Knights – back in 2012 when we started rating and selecting the best tasting bøfsandwich in the country of Denmark, where I’m from. This is the greasiest burger on the planet – doused in gravy. And it was a cult phenomenon at best at the time. But our authenticity and quirky approach to judging this greasy bastard, paid off – and now every year we’re on national tv announcing the winner. It’s kinda crazy how something innocent and weird like that has become something that everyone in Denmark now follows.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
The first stop is always a burger at Hodad’s. But then there’s a lot of variety to explore, from lots of great fish tacos to the best bulgogi on Convoy in Kearny Mesa (that’s Tofu House, by the way). I’d certainly swing by Monello in Little Italy to get fresh pasta, and a Swagyu burger in Pacific Beach. To have a good time, I’d make sure to hit Liberty Station – it’s a great location with a lot to offer, but aside from that I’m way more into dive bars than fancy discos, so I’d much rather hang out at Cheswick’s or Pacific Shores in Ocean Beach.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
This shoutout is for Bossman – Rest in Peace – of Hodad’s fame. I had the pleasure of interviewing him before he deceased and it was a fantastic experience, being embraced by a stranger and letting me in on his approach to life, which was very inspiring. Since his passing, it has become even more evident what great positive impact he had on all people he came across. And I think his son, Shane, is doing a phenomenal job in continuing Bossman’s vision and approach to life and people.

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Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwmbdDwz2r-3Dhb2Rfo_HVA