Two hospitality business owners will jointly lead the Jersey Hospitality Association as Co-CEOs.
Ana and Marcus Calvani are taking over from Claire Boscq who announced she was stepping down as Chief Executive Officer in July.
Claire who joined the team in September last year is spending the next few weeks with Ana and Marcus to ensure a smooth transition takes place before moving to Dubai to pursue other interests.
The husband and wife team will split their time leading the industry body that represents over 300 businesses and continuing to run their hospitality businesses.
Tim Hubert, Chair of the JHA Committee, said: “Ana and Marcus have been in hospitality for most of their adult lives, working in Jersey and overseas. Their years of experience, including working together, will strengthen the JHA and boost support for our members.
“The Co-CEO model might be new to the JHA, but it has worked well in organisations around the world which have embraced the ‘two heads are better than one’ approach. I am really excited about how Ana and Marcus are planning to combine their ability and experience, taking the JHA forward by building relationships and providing support to our members.
“The industry is continuing to face difficulties from a lack of staff to rising costs and I am sure they will welcome Ana and Marcus who are eager to work with them and represent their interests when working with Government and other bodies.”
In careers that have involved working in business planning for large scale hospitality developments around the world, Ana and Marcus co-own the Beserved Group which runs JBs Brewhouse and the Lido at Havre des Pas.
Ana said: “If you work in hospitality, you are part of a vast network of people who have dedicated their lives to providing excellence. It’s one of the reasons that I love working in this industry. We have fantastic businesses here who support our community through the huge number of attractions, food, experiences, events and venues. Jersey is so fortunate to have such a vibrant hospitality sector, but it is facing some tough challenges. Hospitality touches the lives of everyone in our community and it needs islanders to fall in love with it again.”
Marcus added: “We believe the industry needs to come together as one voice and it’s our job to translate their desires and work with the new Government and other bodies to deliver the changes that are needed. As industry professionals, we are excited about working with all our members and providing the support that they need. As Ana said, it is a large sector and its members have varying opinions and needs. We will do our best to listen to them, bringing our members together so that the JHA acts effectively on behalf of a united hospitality industry.”
Main picture credit Max Burnett.
