About Simon

First working in theatre, rock shows and television, Simon fell into a depression after his divorce from the mother of his daughter, Charlotte Woodroffe. Feeling “desperation” he returned to his childhood aim to become a millionaire. He conceived and created YO! Sushi, opening the first restaurant on Poland Street, Soho, in 1997. The venture succeeded, creating a chain of restaurants and popularising conveyor belt sushi in Britain.

YO! Sushi and YOTEL have become global brands and Simon continues, through the YO! Company, to conceive of new YO! ventures.

In 1999 Simon won the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. In recognition of his contribution to hospitality, Simon was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list 2006. As a result of his entrepreneurial success, Simon has developed a strong
reputation on the worldwide public speaking circuit. It’s reported that Simon “Speaks openly, avoiding business cliché and audiences find his story extremely inspiring and a catalyst for their own endeavours, be they in a large corporate setting or working at a start-up level.”

Read Simon’s BiYO!