Gerry Ford

Dr Gerry Ford, Chairman and Chief Executive (aged 44) – Dr Ford is the driving force behind Caff Nero and first developed the European coffee house concept in 1996. His concept was applied to the original five Caff Nero units, which began trading in May 1997 and the brand has been subsequently rolled-out throughout the UK. Dr Ford oversees the general management, strategy, growth and branding. Dr Ford holds a BA from Stanford, an MBA from INSEAD and a PhD from Oxford. He began his career at Hewlett-Packard and then spent 3 years with the international venture capital firm APAX Partners where he helped develop a series of small businesses. Subsequently he headed several small and medium-sized companies in the food and consumer goods sector. In 1991 he co-founded Paladin Associates, a venture capital group which both invests in and manages food, consumer brands and media businesses.