Ben Everson, 20, is a Restaurant Supervisor for the

Swan Hotel in Southwold.

He has been in the hospitality business since his early teenage years and hopes to progress his career through to a senior rank.

Ben says:

“ I’ve always enjoyed working in hospitality and the buzz of meeting so manydifferent people through my job. After my A Levels, I didn’t really think about going on to university to do any kind of formal hospitality qualification. I simply wanted to find a hands-on route and learn as I went along. Fortunately for me, I’d had a good deal of experience by that point. My parents had owned a restaurant and I had worked in one since the age of about 13 in some capacity or other – so it wasn’t exactly new to me.

While I was doing my A Levels I was working part-time as a waiter for one particular hotel, and then that turned into a full-time post after my exams. I eventually moved to join the Adnams group because I felt it would give me a lot more scope to progress. It’s been a good move and I really enjoy the day-to-day tasks within my role at The Swan Hotel. I love meeting people and being part of a great team.

It can be long and unsociable hours, but I knew what to expect and would never complain about it. I also like the fact that the job is enabling me to get more qualifications and skills.

 I’m currently doing my advanced wine course to get more knowledge about the varieties we serve. In addition to that, I’ve done courses in hygiene and first aid – which are all great things to have on your CV.

Longer term, I would also like to look into doing a day-release college course so that I can build up my qualifications further and develop my career.