In conversation with Kate Nicholls

From Prawn Cocktail Crisps to AI: The Future of Hospitality

In this wide-ranging conversation, Kate Nicholls, Chair of UKHospitality, joins Paul Watson from Sona for a discussion facilitated by Mark Stretton, CEO at Fleet Street. Together, they reflect on the forces shaping hospitality today and what’s coming next.

From the unlikely story of saving prawn cocktail crisps and the rise of bao buns, to the biggest shifts in technology and AI over the past 12 months, Kate shares candid insights from a career spent at the heart of the industry. She discusses her new role as Chair of UKHospitality, the realities of representing hospitality at the highest levels, and why people, careers and progression remain the sector’s greatest opportunity — and its greatest challenge.

The conversation also explores the pressures operators face around recruitment, retention and rising costs, alongside the role technology and AI can play in freeing up time, improving decision-making, and helping teams deliver better experiences for guests.

Watch the full discussion for an honest, thought-provoking look at hospitality’s past, present and future — and why the next chapter will be defined as much by people as by technology.