What was your first ever job? My first ever job was as a Saturday boy in a butcher shop in Liverpool.

Give us a quick run-down on your career to date. After my short stint as a butcher, I moved to Waitrose where I worked as a buyer for the meat department. I then moved to the US and worked for A&P, also as a buyer, before joining Sainsbury's. I was at Heinz for nine years working in marketing roles and finally joined Renshaw 10 months ago.

How did you get where you are today? Through hard work, bags of support from my family (especially while at university) and a little pinch of luck!

What is the best decision you have made in your career? Joining Sainsbury's on its graduate recruitment programme. The commitment to the training was second to none and we covered a lot of ground with as much focus on job training as studying.

Who do you most admire in the grocery industry? The team behind Innocent - they had a really simple idea, which has been well executed and marketed fantastically. They have also stayed the course of time and have built a brand that no one can get near to.

Do you have a mentor and how have they helped you in your career? I have had two mentors so far. The first was a man called David Couch - a lecturer of food technology at my university. The second is Ron Mellow, my old boss at Heinz. What you saw is what you got and he gave cracking advice when I needed it.

If you could change one thing in the grocery industry what would it be? I think the industry is quite slow when it comes to innovating. A bit more forward thinking wouldn't go amiss..

Do you think you'll always work in grocery? If not, where are you likely to work? I can't see me deviating from the world of grocery but if I had to change it would be for a career in retail.

What advice would you give to someone starting out? Work hard and be passionate about what you do.

What do you like doing when you are not working? I love cooking. I am also interested in history and party politics, too.

Where do you hope to be in five years time? Running my own business in the food industry.

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