James Horler
Overall ranking: 48
Restaurateur ranking: 14
Snapshot
James Horler is chief executive of La Tasca Group plc, which currently operates 48 authentic Spanish tapas bars and restaurants (including two in the US) under the La Tasca brand and two Spanish restaurants called La Viňa.
Horler and John Barnes (the former managing director of Harry Ramsden's) bought La Tasca in 2001 from Neil Gatt, who founded the chain in 1993.
Career guide
Horler, who was born in 1965, started his career at 16 as a kitchen porter and waiter for Trusthouse Forte. He progressed to conference and banqueting manager and food and beverage manager before transferring to the group's roadside business. Here, he quickly rose from unit manager to become Little Chef's youngest regional director at the age of 24.
He moved to Granada to oversee nine motorway service areas with an annual turnover of £210m and 2,900 staff. From 1996, Horler was operations director at City Centre Restaurants (now The Restaurant Group) where he expanded its Frankie & Benny's brand from five to 65 outlets over five years.
In September 2001 he bought La Tasca for £28.2m with backing from private equity firm Penta Capital. Early 2005 saw the group float for £54m on the Alternative Investment Market, with Penta retaining a 23% stake.
What we think
When Horler bought La Tasca in 2001, the northern-based chain comprised 16 outlets with 800 staff and annual sales and operating profit of £22.3m and £3m respectively.
Three years later, Horler had more than doubled the chain into a national player with more than 1,600 employees, annual sales of £39.7m and operating profit of £5.1m. By the end of 2004 he had opened two US sites (in Washington DC and Virginia) and opened the first La Viňa in Liverpool and Manchester.
His inspirational leadership skills and unconventional management approach have attracted as much praise as his ability to manage, market and develop a restaurant brand. "We think big and act small," Horler told Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine in 2004. La Tasca has no flashy head office - Horler works from home and senior managers are based at the sharp end in the restaurants.
With La Tasca positioned in the middle of the casual dining market, Horler has set up La Viňa to target an older, more sophisticated clientele with dishes from inland Spain rather than the costas. He plans to open four more branches by April 2006.
La Tasca is growing at a rate of 10 venues a year and Horler's goal is to expand to 150 restaurants. Growth will be funded from cash generated by the business, while the proceeds of the flotation will be used to reduce group debt.
New La Tascas are planned for Maidstone in Kent, the City of London, Brentwood in Essex, Swansea and Oxford, along with a third US restaurant in Baltimore. Longer term, Horler also wants to move into Europe with franchise partners.
