1. You’ve worked your way from London’s restaurant and bar scene to leading some of the world’s most celebrated hospitality businesses. Looking back, what have been the defining moments in your career?
I’ve been incredibly fortunate to spend my career working alongside brilliant people in some truly spectacular properties. Every step of my journey has been shaped by exciting opportunities, motivating challenges, and the incredible teams who supported me along the way.
Starting out in London’s restaurant scene taught me pace, standards and resilience. Moving to Dubai with Hyatt broadened my thinking and showed me what world-class hospitality looked like on a global stage, and on a larger scale.
Returning to Gleneagles marked a major milestone and a defining moment in my career. I was privileged to navigate one of the most exciting eras in the hotel’s history, partnering with a visionary owner through a major transformation and refurbishment. This journey led to the successful launch of Gleneagles Townhouse, and I am now focused on evolving the exceptional Estelle Manor.
2. As Group Managing Director of Gleneagles, Gleneagles Townhouse and Estelle Manor, what excites you most about leading these iconic properties, and what makes each one unique?
What excites me most is that none of them stand still. They’re all ambitious businesses with incredibly talented teams, and every day we’re trying to make something exceptional even better.
Each property has its own distinct personality. Gleneagles is one of the world’s great country hotels and has this incredible ability to appeal to everyone from families, to couples, to golfers and international travellers. Gleneagles Townhouse has brought a completely different energy to Edinburgh, combining hospitality, wellness and membership in a really modern way. Estelle Manor is unlike anything else in the UK, blending extraordinary design, wellness, dining and membership into one destination.
They’re all different, but they share one thing: an absolute commitment to quality and creating experiences people genuinely remember.
3. People often talk about great service, but what does exceptional service actually mean to you? Is there a moment or experience that perfectly captures it?
Exceptional service is making someone feel special. It’s not about scripts or perfect technical delivery. It’s about reading people, anticipating what matters to them and creating moments that feel effortless.
The experiences I remember most aren’t necessarily the most luxurious. They’re the occasions where someone noticed something small that made a big difference. That’s what stays with our guests.
The very best hospitality professionals have an incredible intuition. They know when to engage, when to step back, and how to make every guest feel like the most important person in the room.
4. You’ve built a reputation for developing high-performing teams. What qualities do you look for when identifying future hospitality leaders?
Attitude comes first, every time. Skills can be taught, experience comes with time, but curiosity, humility, resilience and genuine care for other people are much harder to develop.
I also look for people who ask great questions, who are prepared to challenge themselves and who never stop learning. The best leaders in hospitality aren’t the loudest people in the room. They’re the ones who create environments where everyone else can succeed.
5. The Gold Service Scholarship exists to champion front-of-house excellence. Why do you believe organisations like the Scholarship are so important for the future of British hospitality?
Organisations like GSS, and others, shine a light on a wonderful profession that deserves far greater recognition. Hospitality changes lives. It creates careers, develops incredible people and delivers experiences that people remember forever.
The Gold Service Scholarship celebrates excellence, but it also creates aspiration. It encourages people to push themselves, to learn from the very best and to build lifelong networks across the industry. Anything that raises standards and inspires the next generation is enormously valuable.
6. What made you want to become a trustee of the Gold Service Scholarship?
I’ve been incredibly fortunate throughout my own career to learn from people who gave me opportunities, challenged me and invested time in my development. Becoming a trustee felt like an opportunity to give something back.
The Scholarship has an extraordinary legacy and an important role to play in shaping the future of our industry. If I can help develop even a handful of future hospitality leaders, then that’s something I’m incredibly proud to contribute towards. However I truly believe we can continue to grow the scholarship to reach more and more each year.
7. Hospitality has evolved enormously over the past decade. What skills do you think today’s young professionals need if they’re going to thrive in the industry over the next ten years?
The fundamentals haven’t changed, we are still a service industry, where people still remember how you made them feel. Today’s young professionals still need to be flexible in their work life expectations, the role can be different every day, that is what makes it so exciting.
Technology and AI will continue to transform how we operate, making businesses more efficient and allowing us to personalise experiences in ways we couldn’t before. But that only makes the human side of hospitality even more important. The future belongs to people who combine emotional intelligence with commercial thinking, who embrace technology without losing empathy, and who stay endlessly curious.
8. Throughout your career, you’ve overseen award-winning hotels, major transformations and world-class guest experiences. What’s the biggest leadership lesson you’ve learned along the way?
I learned quickly that leadership isn’t about having all the answers, or knowing everything. It’s about building brilliant teams, creating clarity and giving people the confidence and support to do extraordinary things. Culture beats strategy every time. When people genuinely enjoy coming to work, understand what you’re trying to achieve and feel empowered to make decisions, incredible things happen.
9. If you could give one piece of advice to someone considering entering the Gold Service Scholarship this year, what would it be?
Do it, don’t think twice. Whether you win or not is secondary. The experience, the preparation, the feedback, the people you’ll meet and the confidence you’ll gain will stay with you throughout your career. Be yourself, be curious, embrace every opportunity to learn and don’t worry about trying to impress people. Authenticity is always far more memorable.
10. Finally, what continues to inspire you about hospitality, and what are you most excited about for the future – both for the industry and for the businesses you lead?
Hospitality is one of the few industries where every single day you have the opportunity to make someone’s day better. Whether that is a colleague or a guest. We are genuinely committed to getting better every single day. That constant drive to improve is incredibly exciting, not just for me personally, but for every single one of our teams.
At Gleneagles, our purpose is to ‘create lasting connections through unrivalled adventures’, how could you not be inspired by that every day?
Looking ahead, I’m excited by the combination of technology and humanity. AI will help us become more efficient and more personalised than ever before, but genuine human connection will become even more valuable.
For Gleneagles and Estelle, we’re only just getting started. We have exceptional teams, iconic brands and huge ambition. That’s a really exciting place to be.
