Will Beckett: Inspiring Rise Behind Hawksmoor’s Success

Introduction

Will Beckett is an English restaurateur, entrepreneur and hospitality leader best known as the co-founder and chief executive of Hawksmoor.

He started with a small Shoreditch bar alongside his childhood friend Huw Gott. Their early businesses brought valuable lessons, but Hawksmoor became the idea that transformed their professional lives.

He is the business leader who helped turn Hawksmoor from one London restaurant into an internationally recognised steakhouse group.

Will Beckett Quick Facts

Detail	Information
Full name	William James Julius Beckett
Professional name	Will Beckett
Birth month and year	June 1977
Nationality	English
Country of residence	England
Profession	Restaurateur, entrepreneur, executive and author
Education	Postgraduate study in modern history at University College London
Famous for	Co-founding Hawksmoor
Business partner	Huw Gott
First joint business	Redchurch
Hawksmoor founded	2006
Current position	Co-founder and CEO of Hawksmoor
Published work	Hawksmoor at Home
Major recent honour	Trailblazer of the Year 2026

Who Is Will Beckett?

William James Julius Beckett uses the shorter name Will Beckett throughout his professional career.

Public records at Companies House identify him as an English company director born in June 1977. He has held directorships connected with the Underdog group behind Hawksmoor.

His career is closely connected with Huw Gott. The pair met when they were about 11 years old and remained friends before becoming business partners.

Their friendship gave the company a strong foundation. However, the success that followed came from years of experimentation, mistakes, research and gradual improvement.

Early Life and Friendship with Huw Gott

Beckett and Gott became friends during childhood. Food, restaurants and business were not yet part of a detailed career plan, but the friendship eventually developed into a working partnership.

Their different personalities became useful in business. They could challenge each other while sharing responsibility for important decisions.

This type of long-term partnership requires trust. Both founders have openly discussed making mistakes during their early years rather than pretending that every business decision worked immediately.

Their story offers another example of how long professional journeys are often shaped by patience, adaptation and lessons learned away from public attention.

Education at University College London

Before entering hospitality full-time, Beckett studied at University College London.

He was completing postgraduate study in modern history when Gott asked him to help open a bar. His academic interests reportedly focused on modern European and political history.

The opportunity forced him to choose between continuing along an academic path and joining a new hospitality business. He selected the less predictable option and began working with his childhood friend.

His university background was not directly related to restaurant management. However, historical research can develop critical thinking, communication and the ability to understand complex systems.

Readers interested in another example of an academic career and research path can see how education may influence professional thinking in very different industries.

Opening Redchurch in Shoreditch

The partners opened Redchurch in Shoreditch in 2003.

They entered the hospitality industry with enthusiasm but limited operational experience. Beckett later acknowledged that they understood products, atmosphere and customer care better than accounting or business systems.

Redchurch became a popular local bar. It also gave them practical experience with staff, stock, suppliers, rent, customer service and the financial pressure of operating a venue.

The business was important because it taught them how a hospitality company worked from the inside.

Instead of waiting until they felt completely prepared, the founders learned through daily experience.

Green & Red and the Move into Food

After travelling to Mexico, Beckett and Gott struggled to find the style of Mexican food and drink they had enjoyed abroad.

That experience inspired Green & Red, a Mexican restaurant and tequila bar that opened in Shoreditch in 2005.

The venue represented a bigger challenge because it required the pair to manage a full food operation rather than concentrating mainly on drinks.

They also became involved with the Marquess Tavern in Islington. These businesses helped them understand menus, kitchens, food sourcing, service standards and restaurant identity.

Not every early project became a permanent success. However, each one gave them knowledge that later shaped Hawksmoor.

How Hawksmoor Started

In 2005, Beckett and Gott began researching the type of steak restaurant they wanted to visit themselves.

They tasted different beef and studied sourcing, butchery, ageing and cooking methods. Their conclusion was that carefully raised traditional British cattle could provide the flavour and quality they wanted.

The first Hawksmoor opened on Commercial Street in Spitalfields in 2006.

The idea was clear: source excellent ingredients, cook them carefully and serve them in a warm environment without making the experience unnecessarily formal.

According to the official Hawksmoor website, the founders wanted to create the steak restaurant they wished already existed.

That simple idea became the centre of the brand.

The Hawksmoor Breakthrough

The first restaurant did not become a major success overnight.

Beckett and Gott continued improving the beef, cocktails, service and dining-room experience. They listened to criticism and learned which parts of the concept customers valued most.

A major turning point came when Hawksmoor expanded beyond its original Spitalfields location.

The Seven Dials restaurant showed that the concept could work in another area and on a larger scale. Further locations followed in London and other British cities.

Hawksmoor later expanded internationally through restaurants in Dublin, New York and Chicago.

The founders managed to grow the company while protecting its British character, informal service style and focus on carefully sourced ingredients.

Investment and International Expansion

Graphite Capital backed a management buyout of Hawksmoor in 2013.

The investment provided financial support and professional experience for expansion. Beckett and Gott continued to lead the company rather than leaving after the deal.

International growth brought new challenges. A restaurant that succeeds in London cannot simply assume that the same decisions will work in another country.

The New York opening was particularly important. It experienced delays, including disruption linked to the pandemic, before finally opening in 2021.

Hawksmoor later entered Chicago and announced plans for a Boston restaurant.

The group’s expansion demonstrates how the founders combined outside investment with continued personal involvement in the business.

Business Strategy and Leadership Style

Beckett’s public leadership style is less aggressive than the image sometimes associated with company founders.

He has challenged the idea that business leaders must always appear intense, dominant or fearless. His approach places greater importance on optimism, communication and employing capable people.

He also believes that a growing company cannot depend on its founders controlling every small decision.

Strong systems and experienced employees become essential as a restaurant group expands across cities and countries.

His interest in employee development connects naturally with wider leadership and workplace research about how organisational culture affects performance, motivation and retention.

Work Culture and Staff Development

Hawksmoor has built much of its reputation around both customer service and employee experience.

Beckett has spoken about teaching useful skills rather than training people to repeat narrow techniques without understanding them.

He believes entry-level workers can become the managers and leaders a company will need in the future.

This view has also influenced his public comments about artificial intelligence and employment. He has questioned what happens to future leadership pipelines when businesses remove too many junior roles.

His general philosophy is practical: work hard, treat people well and create a company where talented employees can develop.

Public Values and Responsible Business

Beckett has regularly connected business success with responsibility.

He does not present sustainability only as a marketing opportunity. Hawksmoor’s sourcing policies, environmental work and impact reporting have become visible parts of the company’s identity.

The company became a certified B Corporation in September 2022.

B Corp certification examines areas including governance, employees, community impact, environmental performance and customers.

His approach also reflects the importance of ethical thinking and public values when leaders make decisions affecting staff, suppliers and communities.

Charity Work

Hawksmoor has maintained a long relationship with Action Against Hunger UK.

In 2022, the restaurant group’s tenth annual charity dinner raised £187,000. The charity reported that the dinners had raised £987,000 across ten years.

Beckett and Gott have also supported other fundraising campaigns through their restaurants, employees and customers.

Beckett has explained that making a positive difference is part of the reason the company exists.

This work shows that his public values are connected with organised fundraising rather than being limited to promotional statements.

Books and Food Writing

Beckett is also a published cookbook author.

He co-authored Hawksmoor at Home with Huw Gott and chef Richard Turner. The book was published in 2011.

It explains how to choose and cook steak and seafood while also covering cocktails, wine, side dishes, breakfasts and desserts.

The book helped take the Hawksmoor style beyond its restaurants. Readers could understand the sourcing, cooking and hospitality ideas behind the brand.

He later worked with Gott on another collection connected with Hawksmoor’s restaurants and recipes.

Writing these books allowed the founders to document the knowledge they had developed through practical experience.

Awards and Industry Recognition

In April 2026, Beckett received the Trailblazer of the Year honour at the Casual Dining Awards.

The award recognised his influence on the restaurant and hospitality sector.

It arrived during Hawksmoor’s twentieth-anniversary year, two decades after the first restaurant opened in Spitalfields.

The honour belonged to Beckett personally, while many other awards connected with Hawksmoor recognise the work of its chefs, managers, bartenders and wider restaurant teams.

His career shows that education-led career development does not always follow the subject originally studied at university.

Public Image

Beckett is generally known as a thoughtful and approachable business leader.

His interviews often include humour, honest discussion of mistakes and recognition of the people working around him.

He does not describe Hawksmoor as the result of one perfect business plan.

Instead, he presents its growth as a long learning process shaped by unsuccessful ideas, difficult decisions, customer feedback and talented employees.

This openness makes his public story useful for new entrepreneurs who may believe successful founders always understood everything from the beginning.

Current Status in June 2026

As of June 2026, Beckett remains active as the co-founder and CEO of Hawksmoor.

He continues to represent the company in hospitality events, interviews and discussions about employment, sustainability and restaurant growth.

Hawksmoor now operates across the United Kingdom, Ireland and the United States.

The company is also preparing for its planned Boston opening, which will become another important stage in its American expansion.

His 2026 Trailblazer of the Year award confirms that he remains an influential figure in the British restaurant industry.

8 Interesting Facts About Will Beckett

1. His complete registered name is William James Julius Beckett.
2. He was born in June 1977.
3. He met Huw Gott when they were around 11 years old.
4. He studied modern history at University College London.
5. His first joint venue with Gott was Redchurch in Shoreditch.
6. The first Hawksmoor restaurant opened in 2006.
7. He co-authored the cookbook Hawksmoor at Home.
8. He won the 2026 Trailblazer of the Year award.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Will Beckett’s full name?

His full registered name is William James Julius Beckett.

When was he born?

He was born in June 1977.

What is he famous for?

He is famous for co-founding and leading the Hawksmoor restaurant group.

Who founded Hawksmoor with him?

He founded Hawksmoor with his childhood friend and business partner Huw Gott.

Where did he study?

He studied at University College London and pursued postgraduate work in modern history.

When did the first Hawksmoor open?

The first restaurant opened in Spitalfields, London, in 2006.

Is he a published author?

Yes. He co-authored Hawksmoor at Home with Huw Gott and Richard Turner.

What does he do now?

He continues to work as the co-founder and CEO of Hawksmoor.

Conclusion

Will Beckett moved from postgraduate history studies into a small Shoreditch bar without extensive experience in hospitality management.

Redchurch, Green & Red and the founders’ other early ventures taught him important lessons about products, customers, staff and financial pressure.

Hawksmoor became successful because Beckett and Huw Gott continued improving a clear idea rather than attempting to follow every restaurant trend.

Their focus on British ingredients, friendly service, employee development and responsible growth helped turn one London restaurant into an international group.

His story is not only about steak or restaurant expansion. It is about friendship, learning from unsuccessful ideas and building a company around values that can survive growth.