Steve Jordan interviews Simon Hood from John Mason International as the dust from a crazy year settles.
It’s been a bit of a crazy year for John Mason International in the UK, and its owner, Simon Hood, who took over the company four years ago from the Mason family. It was just after the buyout that I last interviewed Simon. Back then he was full of anticipation, pumped up with adrenaline and probably a little anxious about what the future would hold. But it seems he had no cause for concern. As if to applaud his achievements in the driving seat of this 140-year-old icon of the British moving industry, 2024 brought a string of awards, both personal and corporate, most significantly the King’s Award, recognised as a knighthood for businesses.
In the last four years Simon has been a busy chap. As well as putting his energy into the company, he serves on the BAR Overseas Group Council, works with the IAM Leadership Alliance and is very close to taking on a new role with FIDI. On top of that the lease on the old premises in Liverpool is ending so he’s just purchased a plot of land to build a new facility in the city. He’s also planning moving his premises in Hemel Hempstead, in the south of the country, this year. If that’s not enough, Simon is a director of Wimbledon Football Club and has two young children to raise. “I’m getting to the point now where I think I've got my hands in too many places,” he admitted.
Trusting people
“When I first took the business over I thought that I had to be an expert in everything,” he explained. “I tried to do it but couldn't.” So now he has come to rely upon and trust the people around him. He would like to be a ‘hands off’ owner, but knows that’s difficult. Now, for example, he’s having to be an expert on property, of which he freely admits he knows nothing. He would also like to buy in the south as well, when the opportunity arises.
Making changes
Over the last four years Simon has made changes at John Mason. “As a marketing person I have a strategy and goals,” he said ...
Photo: Simon Hood.
Click here to read the full story in The Mover magazine.