Karen Hanton

Karen Hanton is a British entrepreneur who is the founder and Chairman of toptable, a restaurant booking enterprise in the United Kingdom.

Hanton is a native of northeast Scotland, but moved to London -- with no money -- soon after her Highers. She pursued a career in training and human resources, but at age 29 founded the IT staffing firm Mortimer Spinks. After selling the company, she bought and staffed a restaurant business in Fulham, which in 1998 inspired her to found toptable. [cite web
url = http://www.e-consultancy.com/internetdecade/hi/karen-hanton-86.html
title = Karen Hanton
accessdate = 2007-02-27
year = 2006
work = E-consultancy.com] She currently owns just under half of the company's shares. [cite news
title= A taste for the top
url= http://www.telegraph.co.uk/connected/main.jhtml?xml=/connected/2001/06/07/ecfpro07.xml
work= Telegraph.co.uk
date= 2007-06-07
accessdate= 2007-02-27] The company became profitable in 2005, after surviving years in the red, which Hanton attributes to the rise in consumer broadband accessibility. [cite news
url = http://www.ft.com/cms/s/aded508c-cbc1-11da-a7bf-0000779e2340.html
title = No reservations about the future
author = Jonathon Moules
publisher = Financial Times
date = 2006-04-14
accessdate = 2007-02-27]

At the 2005 Institute of Business Advisers Annual Conference, Hanton presented closing remarks about the four principles of successful of business management to which she ascribes: "keep it simple, have clear objectives, don’t confuse reasons with excuses and be prepared to tweak your ideas." [cite web
url = http://www.peoplespark.co.uk/article.asp?artID=60
title = Future trends in business
accessdate = 2007-02-27
last = Edwards
first = Trevor
date = 2005-11-11
work = People*Spark]

Awards

Karen has received significant public recognition including: [cite web
url = http://www.toptable.co.uk/feature.cfm?fID=6&lid=93
title = Company information
accessdate = 2007-02-27
work = toptable] [cite web
url = http://www.allbusiness.com/finance/1001820-1.html
title = What makes a successful entrepreneur?
accessdate = 2007-02-27
last = Hanks
first = Abby
year = 2004
month = March
work = AllBusiness] [cite web
url = http://www.womeninbusinessseminars.co.uk/speakers.htm
title = Women In Business Seminars
accessdate = 2007-02-27
work = Women In Business]

* "Financial Times"/Moet Hennessy Extraordinary Achievers Award
* Named as one of today's top 30 entrepreneurs in "New Business Magazine"
* Named one of the top 100 most influential people in the first decade of the internet in an NOP/e-consultancy poll

References

External links

* [http://www.toptable.co.uk/ toptable]
* [http://www.e-consultancy.com/internetdecade/hi/karen-hanton-86.html E-consultancy profile]
* [http://www.visitbritain.com/VB3-en/experiences/Taste/food_drink_people/karen_hanton.aspx Interview & Biography]
* [http://www.startups.co.uk/Karen_Hanton.YboJKu0.html Interview with Startups.co.uk]
* [http://www.womenzone.co.uk/interview.htm Interview with Womenzone.com]
* [http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2005300000-2006310204,00.html I'm a dot com success] - interview with The Sun