| Darren Meltz | |
| I consider the future of the business when making decisions | Consistently |
| I have ideas for improving the business or our solutions | Consistently |
| I respectfully question how we do things to make improvements | Consistently |
| I speak to colleagues to obtain their expertise and perspectives | Consistently |
| I use my initiative and am not afraid to get involved in solving issues | Consistently |
| I am a pioneer and encourage others to find new and better ways of working | Consistently |
| I invite people with different views to co-develop solutions to problems | Consistently |
| I recognise and reward creativity | Consistently |
| I work with others to turn my best ideas into reality | Consistently |
| I look for ways to use technology to improve the business | Consistently |
Please provide examples of how you have shown vision and the ability to innovate in your career (Approx 100-300 words) | |
| Vision and innovation have defined how I have built and scaled SecretEATS from a single dinner into an internationally expanding hospitality platform. I recognised early that the future of hospitality would be driven by experience rather than location. I developed a secret-location model that removes the fixed costs and limitations of traditional restaurants, allowing chefs to create immersive, narrative-driven dining experiences in unconventional spaces. This unlocked new commercial opportunities, enabled emerging chefs to showcase their talent and created a scalable, asset-light business model. During the COVID-19 lockdown, I rapidly transformed the business into a fully digital experience through “Dining From A Distance” and global #CookingForACause collaborations. This preserved income for chefs, wineries and suppliers at a time when the hospitality sector was severely impacted. It also expanded our reach internationally and introduced hybrid digital experiences that remain part of our operating model. I have continued to innovate by developing new platforms including Secret Cinema in partnership with United International Pictures, integrating exclusive film premieres with curated dining. I also established international expansion in a variety of regions, validating the concept’s global scalability and secured strategic partnerships with organisations including American Express to create exclusive culinary experiences for premium clients. Beyond events, I have designed future-facing concepts including Intimate Dining, Secret Wine Tours, Secret Dinner Meanders, SecretEATS : The Reserve Restaurant Series and the soon to launch Secret Soirées immersive dining and entertainment offering, all structured to scale across global cities. My innovation has focused on anticipating shifts in consumer behaviour, leveraging technology and partnerships and building adaptable systems that create sustainable economic opportunities while positioning SecretEATS as a globally relevant South African-born hospitality brand. |
