James Hacon

Founder & Managing Partner, Think Hospitality

Hospitality Industry Commentator

James Hacon is a leading innovator, strategist, and dealmaker in the restaurant, food, and beverage industry, with over two decades of experience. He has collaborated with more than 80 hospitality brands worldwide, including industry giants such as Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Hilton, Just Eat Takeaway, Sodexo, Compass Group, Krispy Kreme, Costa Coffee, Diageo, AMREST, Four Seasons, Hyatt, Jamie Oliver Group, Wagamama, Sysco, Greene King, Gleneagles, Big Table Group, Greggs, Pret, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), Emirates Leisure Retail and Tashas Group. His extensive work with these renowned companies has solidified his position as a leading figure in the hospitality sector.

James’ expertise spans executive leadership, marketing, operations, and development, providing him with a comprehensive perspective on the industry’s challenges and opportunities. As a passionate advocate for innovation, he is the founder of the Restaurant Marketer & Innovator event series, which brings together top leaders to shape the future of the food and beverage industry. He also serves as a long-time advisor to the Global Restaurant Investment Forum, providing strategic insights and contributing to the development of the global restaurant sector.

In addition to his consulting and advisory roles, James has spoken at more than 100 events worldwide, including moderating high-profile UN Summit Dialogues. He is a sought-after commentator and facilitator, regularly sharing his insights on hospitality trends and innovations. His contributions have been featured in top-tier media outlets, including the BBC, The New York Times, The Guardian and The Wall Street Journal, further cementing his reputation as a thought leader in the industry.

James is deeply committed to social responsibility and hospitality education reform, supporting UK-based charities that help young and vulnerable people enter the hospitality workforce. His passion for hospitality goes beyond business success, as he believes in the sector's potential to drive economic growth and create positive social change. Through his strategic vision, James continues to influence the evolution of the restaurant, food, and beverage industry, helping businesses thrive in an increasingly competitive and dynamic environment.

PROJECT EXPERIENCE

Here are a selection of project highlights James has worked on during his career, as a consultant, with a brand or agency;

Hotel Group

Fairmont Hotels & Resorts

Working with the corporate F&B leadership team of Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, to develop global menu optimisation guidelines and a comprehensive menu development process for their portfolio of over 90 properties, including 30 new openings and numerous restaurants and bars.

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Delivery Aggregator

Just Eat Takeaway

Just Eat Takeaway UK, a leader in the QSR market, struggled to acquire mid-market restaurant partners. We helped identify key challenges, collaborated on a strategy, and supported the company in growing its mid-market offering. This led to substantial growth, onboarding key restaurant partners.

Celebrity Chef

Jamie Oliver

Appointed to undertake a strategic review for the Jamie Oliver Group, guiding workshops to redefine the brand’s direction and portfolio strategy. This work shifted the focus from an exclusive Jamie's Italian franchise model to a dynamic multi-concept approach, resulting in substantial global growth.

Coffee Brand

Costa Coffee

Led a global customer journey enhancement project focused on reducing wait times, improving operational efficiencies, and boosting volume during peak periods. The project leveraged cutting-edge digital twin technologies to accurately map time savings and operational impacts, moving beyond theoretical models to deliver real, measurable improvements.

Pub Company

Greene King

Strategy facilitation for a FTSE250 UK pub group with over 2,500 pubs, driving the development of their 5-year strategy. Services included in-depth marketplace analysis, inspiration tours, targeted development workshops, and effective cross-business communication to ensure alignment and foster engagement across the organisation.

Casual Dining

Pizza Hut

Developed a comprehensive takeaway strategy for Pizza Hut Restaurants, collaborating with key stakeholders to refine the proposition. This included defining product bundles, packaging, marketing strategies and optimal routes to market, driving enhanced customer engagement and sales growth.

QSR Brand

Krispy Kreme

Engaging with the international franchisor to assist the UK division in identifying localisation opportunities across marketing, NPD, and revenue diversification, while ensuring brand integrity is upheld and aligned with US brand standards.

Investor

PSG

Supporting due diligence for two acquisitions in the restaurant technology space and then joining the business on a longer term contact for three years, being central to the acquisition of 7 subsequent companies into the growing MAPAL Group.

Investor

Apollo Global Management

Supporting brand and commercial due diligence for the acquisition of 41 strong Las Iguanas by Apollo Global Management for Casual Dining Group with a transaction size of around £85m.

Hotel Group

IHG

Delivered a major food and beverage marketplace trends report for one of the largest hotel groups in the world, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), which operates over 6,500 hotels globally. This report played a pivotal role in supporting their strategy development and informing subsequent brand partnership deals.

Casual Dining

Thaikhun

Developed an award-winning insight-based children's dining proposition for casual dining, Thaikhun, working with a national parenting journalist, culminating in a brand partnership with National Geographic Kids. Category sales increased by 549% over the next year.

F&B Operator

Emirates Leisure Retail

Developing the new growth strategy with key executives, identifying both the biggest market opportunities and threats, challenging the team define strengths and weaknesses and the implications for future plans.