Nathan Wrigley interviews Elliott Richmond from WP Tavern about Elliott’s 20+ year relationship with WordPress, his content work, and a surprising community pizza operation that runs on WordPress and WooCommerce.
Background
Elliott got started before WordPress existed, working with b2 and teaching himself how to build websites for bands and agencies. Over two decades he moved into freelancing, contributed developer-focused resources (including a 2013 advent calendar of code snippets), and now splits his time between development, YouTube content, and making pizza.
A local pizza business built on WordPress
During COVID lockdowns, Elliott and his wife Rachel began a small village pizza delivery service. What started as a temporary community effort became a five-person business that’s still operating years later. The core of the operation is WordPress plus WooCommerce: the site handles orders, payments, availability slots, delivery radius checks, and collection-only options.
To support this model, Elliott created Pizza Pilot, a plugin that integrates with WordPress/WooCommerce to manage time-slot ordering, postcode-based delivery radius restrictions, and collection-only settings. Pizza Pilot follows a freemium model with a Pro tier; a Pro license is bundled for operators who adopt Elliott’s licensed pizza model. Rather than a franchise, the model is a licensed, repeatable package: training, recipes, marketing, and the bundled plugin allow others to copy the local-delivery approach for their communities.
Working with Automattic and wordpress.com
Automattic (via Michelle Frechette and Stacey Carlson) invited Elliott to produce educational videos about wordpress.com, offering early access to features and light editorial briefs. That collaboration expanded his contacts inside Automattic, including people like Brit Solata and Jamie Marsland, who are active in the WordPress educational space.
Content strategy and goals
Elliott creates content primarily for his own YouTube audience (elliottrichmondwp) while also publishing material that supports wordpress.com users. The briefs from Automattic are flexible: guidance on audiences and topics rather than scripted messaging. Elliott’s aim is educational clarity—teaching real workflows and implementations rather than producing thin product promos.
Typical topics include block editor concepts, templates and template parts, templating patterns, debugging tools like Xdebug in Studio, and broader changes driven by WordPress core and emerging tech such as AI. He produces long-form tutorials and repurposes shorter clips for social platforms, always chasing practical, usable explanations.
Community feedback and the value of video
Elliott values the feedback loop from YouTube comments and the WordPress community. Comments guide future videos, reveal documentation gaps, and help refine explanations. He sees creators as an important bridge when core WordPress moves quickly and official docs lag behind—video can make complex changes approachable.
How he produces content
Elliott’s process mixes planning and improvisation. He now uses loose scripts or prompts rather than full ad-lib, records and edits iteratively, and sometimes rehearses by explaining the topic aloud to his wife to find clearer framing.
His kit is simple and practical:
– Camera: iPhone for talking-head footage
– Lighting: DIY diffused LED setups
– Audio and monitoring: studio monitors from his music gear
– Editing and motion graphics: DaVinci Resolve (paid for advanced features)
– Notes: phone Notes with voice-to-text for first drafts, then AI to help polish
He emphasizes that a clear structure and modest gear matter more than expensive equipment. Elliott enjoys editing and creating motion graphics, using visuals to make tricky concepts easier to follow.
Teaching approach
Elliott writes for both developers and non-developers. Developer videos dive into tools and workflows; broader pieces explain templates, blocks, and content patterns in plain language. He believes teaching improves his own understanding and that community interaction accelerates learning for everyone.
wordpress.com vs self-hosted WordPress
Elliott clarifies that wordpress.com and the self-hosted WordPress software are closely related: wordpress.com runs the same core software but adds hosting, performance, and security conveniences. That platform still supports advanced developer workflows—local development and Studio app integrations—so it can suit both typical users and technical teams.
Motivation and outlook
Curiosity drives Elliott. He enjoys uncovering small improvements, teaching them, and seeing how people react. The Automattic collaboration through 2026 expands his audience and gives him early exposure to new features, which he uses to create clear, practical guidance as WordPress evolves, including the integration of AI-driven tools.
Availability and contacts
Elliott will continue producing both independent and commissioned content through December 2026 while maintaining his pizza business. He also builds tools like a dough calculator that connect his pizza and WordPress work.
Find Elliott:
YouTube: elliottrichmondwp
Site: elliottrichmond.co.uk
Nathan notes that episode resources, a transcript, and links are on wptavern.com/podcast. The interview ends with thanks and best wishes for Elliott’s upcoming content and pizza projects in 2026.