Race for success has many winners
When some 32,000 people start the London Marathon on Sunday, many will wonder whether they are capable of running 26.2 miles. A minority will be professionals and know that they will succeed. But the vast majority will be amateurs, some first-time participants. Sunday may be the first time they will run the full distance, and they might not make it.
What drives them towards an uncertain outcome is likely to be a combination of personal ambition, the need for a challenge, or simply the desire for a previously unfelt high from the adrenalin levels that such a gargantuan task produces.
The runners are likely to experience similar anxieties to people who have considered setting up their own business, maybe of opening a hotel or a restaurant. At the outset they are not sure whether they will succeed, whether they have the ability to go the distance. Will they become millionaires? Or will they fail in their challenge, losing money and self-esteem in the process?
There are dropouts, of course, but fortunately many do make it. This year's Sunday Times Rich List once again highlights financial success, listing the nation's 1,000 wealthiest people.
Representatives from the world of hospitality do not dominate - they account for only about 6% of the total - but they are there. Punch Pub Company boss Hugh Osmond, Prêt à Manger founders Julian Metcalfe and Sinclair Beecham, Signature Restaurants' Luke Johnson, Fish! founder Tony Allan and JD Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin all feature.
All these people must at some time have wondered whether they would succeed. They must have had moments of doubt, of wanting to give up the race. But they didn't. They set a fine example for others to follow, raising the profile of the hospitality industry and proving that the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and kicking in the sector.
In making the Sunday Times list, they also rub shoulders with illustrious company, such as Virgin boss Richard Branson, Easyjet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou and Harry Potter author JK Rowling, all of whom have had a good idea at the right time and from small beginnings have seen their empires grow.
It's also good to see people like Sir Terry Matthews so high on the list. True, Matthews made his money in other areas, but he saw the potential that the hospitality industry has to offer and ploughed his fortune back into the award-winning Celtic Manor hotel.
Of course, it's not just the big names who will raise the profile of the industry. All over the country there are plenty of good hospitality businesses, and these people should continue to shout about their success. But there is room for more innovation. It's a race that is not for the faint-hearted.
The economic outlook remains uncertain. Interest rates may rise, and with pressure to increase public spending in the forthcoming Budget, businesses may take a hammering if the Chancellor chooses to increase taxes. Generally, there's no such thing as making a fast buck, either. Those who set out on their own are likely to have a few years of hard work ahead before they see any return on their investment.
From the starting line, all this may, indeed, seem a marathon task. But, as many have discovered, from a challenging race a big outcome is possible.
Jenny Webster
Deputy Editor
Caterer & Hotelkeeper
