Mount Charles Group’s chief strategy officer and outgoing Belfast Chamber of Commerce president Gavin Annon has revealed how he harnessed his passion for music to master the world of business, as well as telling of his confidence in the “unbelievable” potential of the city.
The 41-year-old grew up in Belfast and went to St Malachy’s College, where he spent “the best seven years of my life”.
“I learned so much there, and I think it was part of building me up as a strong individual to take on the business world,” Gavin recalls.
After graduating from Queen’s University with a degree in business information technology, he undertook postgraduate studies accredited by the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
I’m a firm believer that you’ve got to have another outlet in life. Having that in addition to everything else I’m doing helps keep me energised.
While progressing his education, the ambitious Tesco cashier began moving up the ladder into management before choosing a “completely different career path” — working as a professional DJ for a number of years.
“Ironically, it’s not too much different from business,” Gavin adds.
“You’ve got to know what the brief is, and try to solve the problem, which in my case was pulling together an entertaining DJ set and keeping everybody happy and entertained.
“I always had a flair for music. I remember watching a very famous DJ years ago, and thought I’d love to teach myself how to do that.
“I had to watch YouTube videos and print off loads of sheets to learn how to properly DJ. Just after school, I taught myself for hours to the point where I was happy that I was able to do it, and then I went out and started to sell myself to venues and gigs.
“I still continue to do it today, in Revolucion de Cuba, I’m resident DJ. It’s my little outlet to enjoy myself and switch off from a busy business life during the week.
“I’m a firm believer that you’ve got to have another outlet in life. Having that in addition to everything else I’m doing helps keep me energised.”
The musical endeavour led to Gavin setting up an entertainment agency called Atmosphere, which he describes as “a chance for me to pay back to local musicians and DJs”.
But after a few years, he began to contemplate returning to a role in the family business, which specialises in facilities management.
Mount Charles Group was founded in 1988 when Gavin’s father Trevor started a catering company having previously run a cafe, the Copper Kettle.
“At that stage, he was working for some of the corporate multinationals, but he felt it was time for Northern Ireland to have its own giant who could deliver what they were doing,” Gavin explains.
“He had no name, no money, no office, but he thought he would give it a go, and he managed to get some staff, contracts, and got going.
“I always knew I would be part of it one day, not just because it was a family business, but because I believe in what it stood for, and, most importantly, what he created. To see that grow and flourish over the years was incredible.
“My timing for coming into the family business was when I was ready, and they were ready for me.
“I think that’s definitely one piece of advice I’ve stood by, where, if you are coming into a family business, you have to be 100% committed.”
In his role as strategy officer, Gavin looks to the long-term future of Mount Charles.
“My responsibility is to drive strategy, innovation and organisational growth across the island of Ireland. That’s part of my remit as well, to make sure that if people are with us for part-time, full-time or a lifetime, we will be with them every step of the way, and if they want to develop and flourish, we embrace that all the time.”
The role saw Gavin take an interest in the Belfast Chamber of Commerce, where he became a board member in 2018.
“Between that period and now, we’ve had the Primark fire, we’ve had a pandemic, we’ve had the cost-of-living crisis, you name it. It’s just been a really surreal time,” he says.
“Belfast has been part of my life, and something I really cherished in my heart for a very long time. So when the chance of me becoming president came up in 2023, I jumped at it.
“There were two commitments that I was going to make. One was to throw everything at it. And number two was to leave the organisation in a better place than I found it, which I did. It was a transformational change.
“I’m an all-or-nothing type of person, so when I got started, a new strategy was put in place, a new board, a new council, new management team.
“We also put in new brand identity and new digital platforms and websites. We also moved the team over to Custom House, which is the new shared office space that we have.
“A big part of that change also was the appointment of our new CEO, Clare Guinness. Two weeks before I started, the current CEO resigned, so that was something that I had to sort.
“I was keen to get the right individual who could push forward on the strategy that I wanted to deliver, but also was really keen and passionate for the organisation.
“She’s hugely dynamic, focused and forward thinking, and was the perfect fit for what we were trying to do. We haven’t looked back. She has been a great asset to the organisation.”
When the Executive came back, we knew there was a limited opportunity for us to quickly establish ourselves with each of the ministers and departments, and make sure they understood the voice of the business community quickly.
Gavin describes his time as Belfast Chamber president as focusing on different strands, including helping the city to be “clean, safe and welcoming”.
He also maintained a focus on building strong relationships with the Assembly.
“When the Executive came back, we knew there was a limited opportunity for us to quickly establish ourselves with each of the ministers and departments, and make sure they understood the voice of the business community quickly,” he explains.
“At that time, it was also a surreal, difficult period to do business, and we were able to get in front of all of the ministers on a very regular basis, right up to the First Minister and Deputy First Minister, so they knew what the real life challenges were for doing business.”
Gavin also points to the role of the chamber in working to ease traffic congestion in the city at the end of last year by lobbying for changes including the redirection of some traffic, alterations to signal sequencing at crossings and granting taxi drivers access to bus lanes.
He is proud to have worked with government on a range of issues and appreciates that ‘the perfect can be the enemy of the good’ when it comes to policy making.
“Great cities are built on good decisions being made at the right time, not perfect ones made too late,” Gavin says.
“My big ask around all of the complex governance structure we have was just, let’s get around the table, change how we make decisions and just get it done.
“I’m keen that we don’t have any more excuses or delays, because Belfast deserves the chance that it’s got.
“In Belfast, our potential is unbelievable. We have global, world-class talent here, and we have the space and the spirit to push the city on.
“But one thing that I’m keen that we don’t do is to stall or stunt that growth by the complex decisions and the structures that we have to make the right decisions at the right time.”