Having trained at Sandhurst, John began his career as an officer in the Coldstream Guards. His military career spanned eight years and saw him in a diverse number of leadership roles from public duties in London to emergency tours in Northern Ireland. He also saw postings in Hong Kong, Brunei and Cyprus.
John left the military to start a family with his wife, Emma (founder of the international interior design studio, Sims Hilditch). Soon he combined his love for home and family with his independent spirit and founded Neptune, a furniture and lifestyle brand, in 1996 with his friend, Giles Redman. The company started in the corner of a sitting room with an idea for a hammock. Over the last 23 years Neptune has evolved into a leading home lifestyle brand with its own highly skilled manufacturing serving stores across the UK and into Europe.
John lives in the same Wiltshire village where he and Emma started their life together. He is an avid sailor and is father to artist daughters, Daisy and Betty and son Billy who’s studying languages at university.