FEATURE | The Big Interview
The drawing room at Hound Lodge
Although optimistic about the estate’ s future, Williamson does have concerns about the world at large.“ I’ m pretty depressed by how much fear is being wrapped around the changes we are going through at the moment,” he says.“ Whether you agree with Trump or Brexit to my mind the greatest risk is to dominate the political agenda with the spin of fear. It is bad news. What it does from a corporate perspective is give people the excuse not to do anything and that slows things down for everybody. I worry that over the next six or seven months as the Brexit agenda builds, we might all put our foot on the brake as we wait to see what happens. It takes a long time to rev the whole thing back up again. If the political agenda is constantly to terrify everybody, that has got to be wrong.”
Back to the present and Williamson is clearly passionate about the estate and the people who work there.“ We have 12,000 acres and if we don’ t look after it properly it will become tarmac and houses,” he warns.“ We have to run the business successfully to protect it otherwise it won’ t be here and that would be the ultimate failure. This can’ t become a housing estate. It must be maintained and improved for generations to come, not only for the family who own it, but also for the team who work here and for
the community who live around us.”
Time is ticking by and Williamson has, as usual, a busy schedule ahead of him, so time for one final question. In, say, five or ten years’ time, in what state would you like the business to be? What would signify success?
“ It would be amazing for Lord March’ s son Charlie to inherit an estate that has good liquidity and a strong balance sheet.
All good businesses have options and for him to have them would be significant success for me.”
As I drive away from Goodwood House, past those stunning cedar trees and along the road outside the house which has seen the best drivers in the world race up it during the Festival of Speed, I get the feeling that young Charlie will not be disappointed. Q
The hallway at Hound Lodge
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