Management
The Executive Committee comprises of the Whitbread PLC Executive Directors and a number of Senior Executives.
Dominic Paul Chief Executive
Career
Dominic is an experienced senior executive, with a very strong operational and commercial record in the travel, leisure, and hospitality sector, with a track record of growing and transforming brands both in the UK and internationally.
Dominic was previously a member of the Whitbread Executive Committee and Managing Director of Costa Coffee for three years, before serving as CEO of Domino’s Pizza Group Plc where he led the business through the COVID pandemic and has delivered a strong period of sales growth and value creation and aligned all stakeholders behind a growth strategy for the future.
Previously Dominic was Senior Vice President of International with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line where he led the business through a period of strong growth. His extensive experience in the travel and leisure industry also includes senior roles at easyJet, British Midland and British Airways.
Leadership tenure
Appointed January 2023
Nationality
British
Clare Thomas General Counsel
Career
Clare joined Whitbread as General Counsel and Company Secretary in June 2023, having previously held a similar position at Britvic from 2013 to 2023. Prior to this, she was a corporate/M&A partner at law firm Addleshaw Goddard LLP, where she had a particular focus on working with consumer-facing businesses in retail, consumer brands, leisure and hospitality.
As well as being General Counsel & Company Secretary, Clare is also the Executive Committee member responsible for Whitbread’s sustainability programme, Force for Good.
Leadership tenure
Appointed June 2023
Nationality
British
Erik Friemuth Chief Executive Officer, Premier Inn Germany
Career
Erik joined Whitbread in January 2024 as Chief Executive for Premier Inn Germany.
Erik has more than 20 years’ experience in marketing. Erik served for nine years as Group Chief Marketing Officer at TUI AG, one of the world’s leading tourism businesses. His responsibilities included brand strategy and communication. Prior to that, Erik held a number of senior positions at Vodafone Deutschland.
Leadership Tenure
Appointed January 2024
Nationality
German
Hemant Patel Chief Financial Officer
Career
Hemant joined Whitbread in 2018 as UK Finance Director, having previously been Finance Director of Greene King Pub Co. He also worked at Asda-Walmart for 11 years, carrying out various management roles including Commercial Finance Director, Director of Own Label and Director of Strategy. He also had several finance roles over six years at Mars, Inc.
He was Chair of the Royal Armouries Museum and was awarded an MBE for services to museums and heritage in the 2020 birthday honours list. Hemant also received the Arts and Business Individual of the Year award in 2007 for his work with Interplay Theatre. He was nonexecutive Director and Audit Chair at the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from 2020 to 2023 as well as being on the board of the Cultural Recovery Fund.
Leadership tenure
Appointed March 2022
Nationality
British
External appointments
- 3i Group PLC (Non-executive Director
Joe Garrood Chief Commercial Officer
Career
Joe joined Whitbread in December 2023 as Chief Commercial Officer. He is responsible for the Group’s commercial strategy including revenue management, brand development and marketing across the UK and Germany.
Before joining Whitbread, Joe was the Chief Commercial Officer at Pure Gym, the second largest gym operator in Europe with operations in six countries. His responsibilities included commercial management, marketing, insight and analytics for the Group. He also has 20 years’ experience in private equity, executive management and consulting.
Leadership tenure
Appointment December 2023
Nationality
British
Mark Anderson Managing Director, Property and International
Career
Mark Anderson joined Whitbread in January 2006 and was appointed to his current role in September 2016.
Mark is responsible for the acquisition, development and management of Whitbread’s substantial property portfolio. He also leads Whitbread’s International businesses, overseeing development and operations in Germany and the Middle East, including management of food & beverages overseas and mergers & acquisitions.
Before joining Whitbread, Mark spent 16 years at J Sainsbury PLC in a variety of senior positions, finally managing all aspects of the property estate.
Mark is a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and has a Masters in Business Administration from Henley Business School.
Leadership tenure
Appointed September 2016
Nationality
British
External appointments
- Great Portland Estates PLC (Non-executive director)
- Tourism For All UK (Trustee)
Mark Smith Chief Technology Officer
Career
Mark joined Whitbread in August 2024 as Chief Technology Officer.
Mark has 25 years’ worth of experience working in hospitality and retail, implementing large scale technology change programmes and delivering value for customers, colleagues and shareholders.
Mark joined Whitbread from SSP Group, a global food & beverage operator, where he managed the digital and technology strategy for over 3000 food, beverage and retail outlets in travel locations across 38 countries. Prior to this, Mark served as Chief Information Officer, Asia at Tesco for five years and prior to that worked with Accenture and Mark & Spencer.
Leadership tenure
Appointed August 2024
Nationality
British
Rachel Howarth Chief People Officer
Career
Rachel was the Group HR Director with SSP Group PLC for six years, and the Managing Director of the Netherlands division alongside her HR role. During this time, Rachel led a global team delivering people strategy for 40,000 employees across six continents, in 35 countries – including Germany.
Prior to SSP, Rachel spent sixteen years with Tesco Plc, in operational and human resource capacities. Prior to Tesco, Rachel served as an officer in the Royal Air Force, specialising in logistics and supply chain.
Leadership tenure
Appointed July 2021
Nationality
British
Simon Ewins Managing Director UK Hotels & Restaurants
Career
Simon is responsible for all Hotel and Restaurants portfolio operations across the UK and Ireland and has worked for Whitbread in multiple senior executive roles for 17 years including :
- Operations Director, Restaurants Division
- Business Development Director, Premier Inn & Restaurants
- Corporate Social Responsibility Director, Whitbread Plc
- Chief Operating Officer, Premier Inn
A hospitality sector veteran of 30 years, prior to joining Whitbread, he spent time in other large scale hospitality companies, both Plc and Private Equity backed.
Leadership tenure
Appointed October 2018
Nationality
British
External appointments
- Connexus – Social Housing sector (Non-executive director)
- Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity – Corporate Board (Board member)
