Stir up Sunday

Stir up Sunday

Jules Heckman Hughes – Creative Manager

Jules Heckman Hughes – Creative Manager

How would you describe your role?

I have a wide and varied role within H&J which covers helping out with site openings, on-going marketing and merchandising as well as keeping an eye on the style element of hospitality.  I am also involved in general management support.

What’s your typical day?

Is there such a thing? I often find that my plans change throughout the day to reflect needs within the business.  I tend to start the day at one of our units, just checking on the merchandising and seeing what’s needed in terms of new products and promotions.  I then try to focus on my marketing plans before moving somewhere else to see the lunch service where I again check merchandising, signage and products and give feedback on the food.  The afternoon is then usually spent on current projects such as the mobilisation of a new site, or helping out with the summer party.

What is the best part of your job?

I have a work hard, play hard attitude (I’m not called the Duracell bunny for nothing!) & have the best of both worlds as I can have a host of different creative and marketing projects on the go at the same time as being operational support for our sites.

I love being in the thick of things!

And the worst part?

Sometimes there are not enough hours in the day to do all that I want to do plus I have to battle people’s perception that all I do is shop as part of my openings and merchandising role!

Life before H & J

I have always worked in a front facing role and my first “proper” job was as a bank clerk with what is now HSBC when I left school.

During my wanderlust years I worked within the hospitality industry as a bartender, waitress, hostess and chef, all which helped to persuade me to swap professions.  I gained several years valuable experience within event catering working “the season”; from Chelsea Flower Show to Cartier Polo with garden parties, airshows and a host of large scale private events and launch parties in between.

After a spell at the Hurlingham Club as Banqueting and then F & B manager I moved into the contract catering sector and have never looked back.  I successfully ran the Royal & SunAlliance catering operation in Berkeley Square (where I met Patrick and Nathan) and the rest, as they say, is history!

There is one little known fact about my previous life which until now I have kept quiet……..I used to be a tax officer for the Inland Revenue!

Why H & J?

I joined H & J because I wanted to work with Patrick and Nathan again and felt totally straight-jacketed working for a large catering company with very little opportunity to make a true difference & “do the right thing”. 

Why still H & J?

As a company we thrive on being different without losing focus on what good food is really about.  Passion for life, for what we do within our roles and for our industry makes a strongly knit team and it keeps getting better.

What about when you’re old & grey?

Hmm. Either owning a coastal boutique hotel or an upmarket café/food emporium with set evening menu – of course either would be extremely successful!

When you’re not at work?

Eating out with friends and having glass or two.  I don’t know many true foodie caterers who don’t savour the pleasures of food and drink.  I also enjoy trying new things; burlesque and pole dancing have featured in the past year and I am about to enrol in salsa dancing course.

I love being outside; walking & trekking – be it coastal paths or Nepal (where I’m going in October) with the odd jog and cycle thrown in for good measure as well as pottering around in my small garden. Although I made a conscious decision many moons ago not to have a TV, I am very much into my movies – Lovefilm.com could have been invented for me!

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