Mon 14th Nov 2022 - Exclusive: Big Fang Collective appoints former The New World Trading company COO as CEO Exclusive – Big Fang Collective appoints former The New World Trading company COO as CEO: Big Fang Collective, the Imbiba-backed, Liverpool-based entertainment venue operator that owns the Ghetto Golf and Golf Fang brands, has appointed former The New World Trading company chief operating officer Natasha Waterfield as chief executive, Propel has learned. In eight years at The New World Trading company, Waterfield also served as HR director, a role she started in 2015. This led to her leading and building the department to a nine-strong team, and sitting as part of the senior leadership team as the business grew from five to 26 sites. She also led, innovated and developed both the team and the company to tenth (2017), seventh (2018) and fifth (2019) in the Sunday Times Top 100 Best Companies. In 2020, she took on the role of chief operating officer, navigating the business as it emerged from the covid-19 pandemic through negotiation and strategic planning with all stakeholders, as well as delivering new, strong and highly profitable sites. Big Fang Collective, which was founded by Kip Piper and Daniel Bolger in 2016, own and operate five sites across the UK and is looking to acquire new venues across the UK, with seven already planned to launch across the next two years. Waterfield’s remit will see her focus on building on the already strong culture within the brand. She will also develop a strategy to enable the business to roll out the Golf Fang brand, and different concepts within The Big Fang Collective’s portfolio, both in the UK and internationally. “I am so excited to be joining the Big Fang Collective as their CEO. I’ve long admired the group’s gutsy ethos, and I’m looking forward to overseeing its growth as we roll Golf Fang and Birdies Bar, while developing new concepts, out across the UK,” she said. Piper added: “We’re thrilled to welcome Natasha to the Big Fang Collective team. Natasha brings a wealth of experience to the role as well as plenty of passion for what we do. We are all looking forward to Natasha joining us in January as we head into a busy year, kicking off with the launch of our Cardiff site in Q1.” Big Fang Collective secured £5m in investment from Imbiba earlier this year, to aid its growth in the UK and internationally. Andrew Stones, partner and head of portfolio at Imbiba, added: “In Natasha, we’ve found the perfect partner to deliver our domestic and international vision for The Big Fang Collective. We’re confident that the group will flourish under her guidance and look forward to welcoming her into the role of CEO in the new year.”