Dominic Speakman
A graduate from Nottingham University, Dominic Speakman’s first job was as a management consultant for Price Waterhouse Coopers. After a year in London, Dominic returned to his home town of Bolton and to the heart of his travel industry family, becoming managing director of Travel Counsellors between 2000 – 2003, the hugely successful home based travel agency created by his father, David Speakman.
Realising his ambition to create a successful business of his own making, Dominic spotted a gap in the market for tailor made, luxury, long haul holidays, marketed to consumers online but with a dedicated customer service team providing the best in personal service, and set up Destinology in January 2004. Since 2003, Dominic has grown Destinology from five staff to over 80 in its UK offices and four in the first overseas office, set up in Saddlebrook, New Jersey, in May 2008. Turnover in 2008 is predicted to be £35 million. Awards for Dominic and Destinology include the company being named 14th in the 2007 ‘Sunday Times 100 Best Small Companies to Work For’ and Dominic being named one of 2007’s thirty most successful and ambitious entrepreneurs in the annual ‘Young Guns for 2007’ awards, run by Growing Business magazine. In early 2008, Dominic realised his life ambition of owning a football club, becoming the owner and chairman of Leigh RMI, the club of the town where he was born, currently playing in the Unibond Premier division. Dominic’s vision for the club is to finance the ongoing costs, change the infrastructure of the club and increase the number of spectators, building it from a small club into a larger operation.