Best Startup
At Best Startup UK we track over 130,000 UK startups and over 500,000 people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.
This list showcases the top United Kingdom based Managing Director operating in the Restaurants space. If you think a Managing Director is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on editor@beststartup.co.uk.
The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:
- Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
- Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
- Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
- Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.
Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Companies House UK, Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.
Shane Lake
Co-Founder and Managing Director of hungryhouse
Shane Lake is co-founder and managing director at Hungryhouse.
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About hungryhouse: hungryhouse is a U.K.-based online platform for takeaway and food delivery that provides a wide range of cuisines and dishes.
B. Nick Popovici
Co-Founder & Managing Director of Vita Mojo
B. Nick Popovici is the Co Founder and Managing Director of Vita Mojo.
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About Founders Pledge, Vita Mojo: Vita Mojo’s menu allows anyone to eat for anyones’ individualized needs.
Sean Donkin
Managing Director of Inn Collection
With an 18-year career in the hospitality sector, Sean has an outstanding track record in the market. As well as maintaining the high quality, service and facilities for customers that mark out The Inn Collection Group, Sean’s focus is leading the growth and expansion of the company, both within and further afield from its North East heartland. He is responsible for the ongoing operations and investment of the group’s units via the Board. Sean joined the business as general manager of the group’s top-performance unit, The Bamburgh Castle Inn in Seahouses in 2008. A former swimmer, sporting enthusiast Sean enjoys rugby and shooting.
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About Inn Collection: The Inn Collection, a hospitality and pub company, owns and operates a chain of pubs and inns in North England.
Jon Simon
Managing Director & Founder of Pieminister
Taking Pieminister from humble beginnings into a thriving business has been an incredibly enjoyable journey. With Pieminister’s focus in the UK’s vibrant and competitive fast casual dining sector we have had to think differently and be obsessive over our customers. Together with the rest of a team of very talented people, Pieminsiter has become a highly respected, market leader in high quality pies and a unique restaurant operator with exceptional food and service levels.
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About Good Sixty, Pieminister: Pieminister is a Bristol-based family business known for making award winning pies.
Ruth Dronfield
Co-Founder & Managing Director of Atlantic Kitchen
The most common question I am asked as the Managing Director of Atlantic Kitchen is ‘How did you get involved with seaweed?’This is a fair question as for ten years I was an Event Manager running large-scale outdoor events in London and around the UK. I was on the senior management teams that run Field Day, Bestival, Winter Wonderland, BST Hyde Park and I also ran my own little production company for more exclusive private parties and mini-festivals. But the roots of Atlantic Kitchen run far deeper. I was born to hippy alternative parents in London, who took me on marches and dressed me in corduroy dungarees and certainly didn’t cook ready meals. I was brought up on home-cooked food and deprived (to my profound annoyance at the time) of pop-tarts, stringy cheese and shop-bought cakes. I was definitely the only kid in my class who had crumbly wholemeal bread sandwiches instead of nice, neat white ones. My mum is vegetarian so I was exposed to vegetable-based meals of rice, stews, salads, curries, quiches, lasagna and bakes. I grew up with the assumption that a mainly vegetable, pulse and grain diet was healthy, sustainable and normal. So, when my friend Dawn told me about her idea to set up a seaweed business to promote good eating and living, something resonated. That was in December 2012.Since then we launched a range of three dried seaweed products (here), crowd-funded, done deals with brilliant suppliers in France, Spain and Ireland, launched a range of three soups with seaweed (here) and are now stocked in over 150 stores in the UK including Wholefoods, Planet Organic and Ocado. See here for more stockists.It’s a huge challenge and a great honour to run Atlantic Kitchen and share the wonderful word of seaweed and its’ myriad of taste and health benefits with the world.
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About Atlantic Kitchen: Atlantic Kitchen was set up in 2012.
Jack Lapping
Managing Director of Duck House
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About Duck House: Duck House is the restaurant and cocktail bar
Kevin Charity
Managing Director of The Coaching Inn Group Ltd.
Kevin Charity Founded The Coaching Inn Group Ltd. in 1996 and serves as its Managing Director.
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About The Coaching Inn Group Ltd.: The Coaching Inn Group Ltd. owns and operates hotels in Marsh, Oundle, Boston, Market Harborough, Horncastle, Piercebridge.
Chris Hill
Managing Director of New World Trading Company
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About New World Trading Company: New World Trading Company is a fast-growing pub and restaurant business headquartered in Knutsford, Cheshire.
