Details of the 10 investors chosen for The Power List: Restaurant magazine's 100 most powerful people in the restaurant industry.
Richard Caring. Richard Caring is widely regarded as one of the most respected restaurant investors of his generation thanks to his building of Caprice Holdings, owner of TheIvy and Scott’s, his backing of high street champions Côte and Bill’s, his involvement in a number of highly respected clubs and his significant shareholding in Soho House. The current rollout of The Ivy brand into a more informal café and brasserie model is seen by many as a masterstroke, while the opening of the new smash-hit Sexy Fish proves that he hasn’t lost his magic touch after all his years in the trade.
Luke Johnson. It’s hard to think of an investor with a more diverse portfolio of business interests than Luke Johnson. He owns big stakes in and is chairman of a bewilderingly large number of hospitality businesses including Patisserie Holdings, Bread Ltd (behind the Gail’s Artisan Bakery chain), Feng Sushi, 3Sixty Restaurants, The Draft House, Grand Union and Small Batch Coffee. How he keeps track of it all is anybody’s guess.
Charles Dunstone. This billionaire mobile-phone mogul backed US burger chain Five Guys’ extremely successful entry into the UK. His faith was well placed, with the premium patty seller now up to 41 sites. Dunstone will soon bring US fast casual concept MOD Pizza to these shores too.
David Page. The Fulham Shore founder has interests in Franco Manca, The Real Greek and Bukowski Grill as well as in MEATliquor, so he knows a thing or two about backing brands that are going places. There are big plans for Bukowski, which opened a flagship restaurant in Soho last month, and Franco Manca, which could grow to at least 40 restaurants in the UK over the next five years.
Paul Campbell. Paul Campbell launched private investment and advisory vehicle Hill Capital Partners in 2010 and hasinvested in a number of rapidly developing restaurant businesses including Tortilla, Hawksmoor and Vinoteca. The former chief executive of Clapham House Group is also a non-executive director of the fast-growing all-day restaurant brand The Breakfast Club.
Arjun Waney. Through his creation and backing of La Petite Maison, Zuma and The Arts Club, Arjun Waney has been responsible for a hugely successful restaurant empire that spans a number of continents. Famously hands off in his management approach, Waney’s skill is in employing brilliant staff and keeping a close eye on the financials.
The Sethi Family. As well as running their own restaurants Trishna, Gymkhana and the recently opened Hoppers, Karam, Sunaina and Jyotin Sethi have put money into a number of up and coming chefs and restaurant concepts. The JKS Restaurants portfolio includes Lyles, Bao, Bubbledogs and Kitchen Table.
Ajith Jaya-Wickrema. The Sri Lankan-born co-founder of Las Iguanas and more recently the founder of fast-expanding Caribbean concept Turtle Bay also invests in a number of other restaurants businesses including Tampopo and Aqua, a largely south-west-based Italian restaurant chain.
Ian Neill. Ian Neill is a hugely important figure in the casual-dining scene having been involved with some of the sector’s most influential brands, including Wagamama, PizzaExpress and Jamie’s Italian. His current business interests include K10, Red’s True Barbecue and Cabana.
Steve Hill. The former chief executive of Wagamama and Las Iguanas remains an active player in the market. He is chairman of Vietnamese chain Pho and last year joined the board of the Salt Yard Group as a non-executive director.
