With such knowledge, Richard is able to deliver motivational keynote speeches suitable for a range of businesses. His speeches are articulate and intriguing, covering several topics from corporate responsibility to entrepreneurship.
Iceland Food was established by Richard’s parents in 1970, with Richard joining the company back in 2013 primarily working as a cashier and shelf stacker. With hard work and patience, Richard was able to progress through the ranks at Iceland, moving from cashier to store manager to Director of The Food Warehouse in 2015. Progressing through ranks allowed Richard to accumulate a wide range of skills from customer service to business management and taking on responsibilities. As of 2018, Richard was promoted to the role of Managing Director of Iceland Foods. With this role comes huge responsibility, overseeing an incredible 25,000 members of staff, nearly 1000 stores and an immense five million customers per week.
A key motivator of Richards is pushing the sustainable food agenda, something that he hopes to inspire other supermarkets and food retailers to move towards. Within his role as Managing Director, Richard has successfully championed the removal of palm oil from all foods at Iceland and he has pledged that by 2023 Iceland own-brand products are aiming to have 13000 tons of plastic removed from them.
The environment and sustainability have always been a passion of Richards, having received a BA Hons in Economic and Social Geography from Durham University. Richard has also been fortunate to travel the world, exploring the four corners of the globe and building valuable life experience on the way. Before he was concerned with Iceland, Richard proved himself to be quite the savvy and diligent businessman himself, working in property and establishing ByWater Properties.
A philanthropist at heart, Richard is a proud member of a number of charitable causes. He is a trustee of Iceland Foods Charitable Foundation and also lends his time to the conservation groups Surfers Against Sewage and Fauna & Flora. Additionally, Richard sits on several boards and councils such as DEFRA’s Council for Sustainable Business, Greenpeace’s Ocean Advisory Board and No.10’s Small Business Council. Displaying incredible diligence throughout his career, Richard was rewarded with being selected as Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2019. With an impeccable skill set and a plethora of business knowledge, Richard provides an invaluable insight into the business world and a keynote that cannot be missed.
