luxury locations issue 21

to understand Antigua and all our teams. I don’t regard myself purely as Antiguan but I’m definitely a better Brit for living in Antigua. As a company philosophy, we’re not trying to make any of our West Indian teams European and, likewise, we’re not trying to be strictly European restaurants in the West Indies, but we try to find the best of both worlds, meet in the middle and I think that’s been the secret to our success. Your restaurants boast very high standards for quality and overall experience. How do you manage the practical challenges of running a large company on a small island, such as getting supplies in? It’s not necessarily hard to get equipment. You can buy nearly anything and bring it in, but if it costs say $1,000 dollars in the US, it’ll cost you $2,000 dollars by the time you bring it here and clear customs and duty - and that’s if you’re lucky. If something breaks and you need it replacing quickly, parts are often not available here. It could simply be a small part for a fridge or stove so you’re constantly juggling bringing things in and trying to have a stockpile of spares. As for ingredients, we don’t want to just be flying in ingredients from around the world. Though very easy, it is expensive. We definitely always work with local farmers and suppliers, buying everything that they grow, and trying to find the best ways to preserve it all, as quantities and consistency are a challenge.

What’s the most important lesson you’re learned along the way? Is there anything you’d have done differently with hindsight? Gosh! I’m sure if I really thought about it there’s probably many things I would’ve done differently. Wouldn’t we all? I’m not full of regret by any means and I think all those things that we’ve done have led to where I’m sitting today and what I’ve learnt. I’ve regretted maybe losing my temper in the early days at Sheer Rocks but team members that are still with us tell the stories as hilarious memories - I’m much calmer now and more mature I suppose. I think the most important lesson is probably just to be prepared for the unexpected. The minute your expectation is that everything should be a certain way, that’s when you set yourself up for failure. You’ll be angry that it isn’t how you expected, disappointed and you’ll instantly be battling the fact that you feel like things are unfair. When you realise that circumstances change very quickly and accept that, yes, things are unfair, you learn to adapt and that’s the best lesson you can have. What do you know now that you wish you’d known when you opened Sheer Rocks? If I could go back in time and tell my younger self anything, it would be that no matter how hard it is, keep going, because it will all work out. There were definitely days when the

challenges were so tough that I felt like I was never going to get past them and the world felt like it was ending. You just have to remember that all those obstacles that seemed like they were the biggest challenges are now insignificant. I must say though, if I’d known some of the costs that were going to be attached to the business in the future, like the amount of money spent on payroll or repairs, it probably would have scared me off, so there are certain things I’m glad I didn’t know! What are your future plans for the company? Great question! I still have plans for a beach club; I’m trying to find the best spot for that. I’m thinking somewhere on the west coast of Antigua. I still have half an eye on doing something exciting in Barbuda, and definitely in the future we’d love to have a Rocks Group boutique hotel. When I travel, there’s very specific things that I look for when I book a hotel and I believe, amongst all the amazing hotels we have in Antigua, there’s still a gap for the place I’m looking for, so I very much look forward to adding that to Antigua’s tourism product at some point. n Reservations at any Rocks Group restaurant can be made by calling +1 268 463-6161, WhatsApping +1 268 464-5283 or emailing reservations@itsrocksgroup.com.

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