Gerry Ford (businessman)
Gerry Ford (born 4 November 1957) is an American businessman,founder and Chief Executive of Caffè Nero. It is the UK's third-largest coffee chain.
Early life
He is the son of an American university Professor of Education. He accompanied his father on sabbaticals to European countries. He grew up in Silicon Valley.
He first attended Stanford University, where he studied Politics and International Relations.[1] He gained an MBA in 1984 from INSEAD at Fontainebleau, south of Paris.[2] He did a PhD in US-European relations at the University of Oxford.
Career
His first job was as a financial analyst for Hewlett-Packard. He cites Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard as role models.
He came to work in the UK for Apax Partners, a private equity company, where he stayed for three years.
He co-founded Paladin Partners, an equity company, in 1991.[3]
Caffè Nero
Caffè Nero had been established as a restaurant in Kensington in 1990 by Ian Semp; it was not a coffee house.
Paladin Partners established Caffè Nero in 1997 in South Kensington, with five branches. At the time most people drank coffee from instant coffee bought in the supermarket. Now the company has around 570 establishments in the UK. The company format was refined over the first eighteen months, and the eighth version of the format is what is now found today.
In March 2001 the company joined the London Stock Exchange. He took the company off the stock exchange in 2007. The company's headquarters are in Covent Garden.
Personal life
He lives in Kensington. He is married to Amanda and has two sons.