Coffee connoisseur
Of Sicilian parentage, Antonio Motisi, operations development director of Caffé Nero, has a Mediterranean passion for the Italian-style coffee shops he is spreading across the country. About half the group's units are in the London area. The rest are found as far apart as Brighton, Bristol and Livingston in Scotland.
I have a four-year-old son, and that means I am often up by 5.30am and am normally out before 7am. Before that, my project manager and the Caffé Nero designer will come to my house for a cup of tea and then all three of us jump in the car and head off. I spend most of my week on the road, looking for new sites to develop the Caffé Nero brand and checking progress on those being built.
Luckily, I live in Barnet, near Junction 2 of the M1, and this is handy, as most of the places where we are developing sites are north of London. We have 66 units open, and the plan is to have more than 100 by the middle of next summer.
I usually drive, and because the three of us spend a lot of time in the car together, it's a great chance to discuss the detail of the various projects we're working on. We have all the technology available, such as laptops, mobiles, earpieces, and a hands-free phone for me.
We always stop for breakfast at around 9am, usually at a Little Chef. I tend to have the All Day Breakfast. But I never drink coffee outside Caffé Nero. There wouldn't be any point, because of the difference in quality. As you might expect, I'm a real coffee aficionado.
If, for instance, we're visiting a site in Glasgow, we'll drop in to view potential future sites along the way or we'll check on progress at a couple of others in that region.
We'll then probably reach Glasgow around 1pm and have a two-hour lunch meeting.
One of the things that marks us out from our competitors is that my colleagues and I handle all the details of a project. That means we deal with design, legal, planning, supplies, recruitment - everything. So we have an overall view of what's going on. It heads off a lot of problems. It's also necessary, because usually I have to deal with more than 30 contractors and subcontractors.
If I'm in a meeting with these people, I'll call, for instance, the local authority there and then to sort out an outstanding problem while we're all in the same room. It's how I like to do things. I expect those I work with to be honest and straightforward, because if we succeed and the project is done in time, everyone gets paid and we're all winners. It's that simple.
Normally, we'll try to get back to London on the same day, because this allows us to put the relevant details of the meetings on our computers next day while it's still fresh. But, of course, that means we often don't arrive home until about 10pm.
I'm usually in bed between 11pm and midnight and survive on about six hours' sleep most nights. But I've been doing this job for a long time and I don't do 17-hour days all the time. I do pace myself and make sure I put in a few eight-hour days, too. But I work on a real buzz and am one of those people who thrive on pressure.
interview by David Tarpey
Caffé Nero Group
3 Neal Street, London WC2
Tel: 020 7520 5150
Turnover in the 12 months to May 2001: £16m
Staff: 700
Chairman and chief executive: Dr Gerry Ford
Just a minute…
What message do you have for Tony Blair? I'd love him to help small businesses by providing a guide on how to deal with local authorities.
Who would be your ideal dinner partner? Charles Forte.
What is your favourite restaurant? Italian Graffiti, Wardour Street.
