Sarah Willingham

Sarah Willingham
Born
Sarah Louise Willingham

(1973-12-21) 21 December 1973 (age 50)
Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England
Alma mater
Occupation(s)Entrepreneur, serial investor and founder of Nightcap PLC
TelevisionThe Restaurant
Dragons' Den
SpouseMichael Willingham-Toxvaerd (m. 2008)
Children4
Websitewww.sarahwillingham.com

Sarah Louise Willingham (born 20 December 1973) is a British entrepreneur, serial investor, founder and CEO of Nightcap PLC, with extensive experience in the hospitality industry.

Education

Willingham has two business degrees from Oxford Brookes University[1] and the École supérieure de commerce de La Rochelle. In 2004 she completed an MBA at the Cranfield University School of Management. Willingham attended Newcastle-under-Lyme School during high school located in her home town of Newcastle under Lyme, Staffordshire.

Career

Businesses

Willingham spent the early years of her career managing some restaurants including Chessageed Delights,[2] Planet Hollywood and Pizza Express.

In partnership with The Clapham House Group, she bought The Bombay Bicycle Club in 2004,[3] and expanded the company, making it the largest Indian restaurant chain in the United Kingdom.[4] Willingham sold her share back to The Clapham House Group in 2007[5] where she continued as a main board director responsible for three of their four brands (Tootsies, The Real Greek and The Bombay Bicycle Club) with over 50 restaurants and more than 1,500 employees.[5]

In 2004, Willingham co-established an AIM-listed company, Neutrahealth plc,[6] which acquired six businesses in the vitamin and mineral supplements industry and was sold to Indian company Elder Pharmaceuticals Ltd in 2011.[7]

In April 2008, she co-established a private equity platform in the UK.[8]

In 2010, Willingham invested in the London Cocktail Club. The first cocktail bar opened in 2011 on Goodge Street, London.[9] In February 2012 the London Cocktail Club added their second cocktail bar on Shaftesbury Avenue, Their third opened in Great Portland Street, London in 2013.[10]

Management Today named her as one of the "35 most successful women under 35" in the UK.[11] In January 2016, Willingham was named one of The Sunday Times' 500 Most Influential people in Britain.[12] In 2017 Willingham received an honorary doctorate from Staffordshire University[13] and in 2018 she received honorary doctorates from Cranfield University[14] and Oxford Brookes University[15] in recognition of her contribution to business and entrepreneurship.

In 2021 Willingham, with husband Michael, founded bar group Nightcap PLC.[16] The company is listed on AIM and was a "one to watch" in 2021.[17] In 2023 Sarah won Business Leader of the Year at the Publican Awards.[18]

Television

Willingham was a restaurant inspector and investor on three series of Raymond Blanc's The Restaurant and as an independent investor on the Sky television series Cooks to Market.[19][20]

She has appeared on various TV programmes, including Daybreak, This Morning, The Wright Stuff and Sky News.

In March 2015, Willingham was named as one of the new "Dragons" on the BBC television programme Dragons' Den from the thirteenth series which began airing in July 2015.[21] She returned to Dragons' Den for the fourteenth series, beginning in July 2016.

In September 2016, Willingham took part in a celebrity episode of The Chase.

Personal life

Willingham and her husband Michael live in Brighton and London with their four children.[22]

References

  1. ^ Willingham, Sarah. "Alumna returns to BBC Two for third series of The Restaurant". Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  2. ^ "The Restaurant – The Inspectors". BBC. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  3. ^ "Clapham House Grp – Acquisition – FE InvestEgate". investegate.co.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  4. ^ Nikkhah, Roya (11 October 2008). "Sarah Willingham: People need to change the way they eat". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  5. ^ a b "FE Investegate -Clapham House Grp Announcements – Clapham House Grp: Trading Update and Placing". investegate.co.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  6. ^ "FE Investegate -AIM Announcements – AIM: Sch 1 – NeutraHealth plc". investegate.co.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  7. ^ "NeutraHealth bought by Elder". growthbusiness.co.uk. 17 September 2010. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  8. ^ Jacobs, Emma (4 December 2011). "Interview: Chain reaction". Financial Times. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  9. ^ "London Cocktail Club". Time Out London.
  10. ^ "Oxford Circus". London Cocktail Club. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  11. ^ Emma De Vita (1 July 2007). "MT's 35 Women Under 35 2007: Bright young things – Management Today". managementtoday.co.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  12. ^ "Britain's 500 most influential". The Sunday Times. 24 January 2016.[dead link](subscription required)
  13. ^ University, Staffordshire. "Sarah Willingham". Staffordshire University.
  14. ^ "Former Dragon and entrepreneur receives honorary degree". www.cranfield.ac.uk.
  15. ^ "Inspirational Honorary Graduates for 2018 graduation ceremonies announced – Oxford Brookes University". www.brookes.ac.uk.
  16. ^ https://nightcapplc.com/
  17. ^ https://www.standard.co.uk/business/london-stock-exchange-ipos-2021-deliveroo-nightcap-oxford-nanopore-b973383.html
  18. ^ https://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Article/2023/04/12/business-leader-of-the-year-winner-at-2023-publican-awards
  19. ^ "Cooks to Market". Sky Living HD. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  20. ^ Willingham, Sarah (16 August 2012). "Kitchen commerce for Sky Living HD this September". Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  21. ^ "Three new Dragons enter The Den for Series 13 – Media Centre". BBC. 18 March 2015. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  22. ^ "Biography |". Retrieved 20 November 2023.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sarah Willingham.
  • Official website
  • Sarah Willingham at IMDb 
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