The former group commercial director of London venues group EC&O Venues has been appointed Managing Director of the company.
The move follows board restructuring in the wake of the 2 July acquisition of a 50% stake in the EC&O Venues by Capital & Counties (a division of FTSE100 company Liberty International), and the establishment of a joint-venture partnership with the existing shareholders, Anthony Lyons and Simon Conway, of St James Capital.
Many in the industry will consider Nathan’s appointment as fair reward for holding the fort while Lyons and Conway executed their property play with Liberty. Nathan played a key roll in attracting investment by presenting EC&O Venues as an attractive proposition, despite a number of high-profile business losses to Dockland’s-based venue ExCeL, such as the World Travel Market and IFE. Although there has been some movement towards EC&O, such as the Exhibiting Show, which moved to Earls Court this year from ExCeL.
Other related EC&O appointments include Jon Sellins, formerly group venues director, who has been appointed operations director, and Yvonne Denyer, formerly venues finance director, who becomes finance director. All three will sit on the board of the company, which will also include directors from Capital & Counties.
Commenting on the appointments, Gary Yardley, chief investment officer at Capital & Counties, said that promoting from within the company was the best way of ensuring the continued growth and success of the business. “EC&O Venues’ day-to-day business will continue as usual and, therefore, we decided to appoint a managing director from within the existing senior team. In his new role, Nigel will take the lead in representing the business with all its stakeholders as well as in the wider industry arena.”
Nathan, who also recently became chairman of the Events Industry Alliance, said that he was delighted to be taking the helm at such an important time for the company. “EC&O Venues is at the beginning of a new chapter in its history,” he commented. “In Capital & Counties the company has found a long-term partner that is committed to our ongoing success, and the plans are in place to expand and improve our offering in line with the changing demands of the 21st century event marketplace. It is a genuinely exciting time, full of opportunity, and I look forward to guiding the business through the challenges ahead.”
