Name: Alex Edwards
Job title: Head of trading – meat and butchery
Company: Booker
What was your first job? My first job in retail was working in the George clothing section at my local Asda. I’m sure I spent more time telling customers they looked great in the clothes they were trying on, than clearing the rail.
What’s been your worst job interview? I was invited to a group assessment on my birthday – having been asked to bring something from home which spoke to my personality, I decided to bake and decorate a cake. It looked great, but it tasted awful.
Seeing most of the room take a bite and then put their slice down didn’t fill me with confidence, but I got the job.
What was the first music single you bought? ‘My Favourite Game’ by The Cardigans. I grew up obsessed with Formula 1 and having heard it in the build-up to a race, I went to HMV and tried singing the guitar riff to a colleague behind the counter to buy it.
How do you describe your job to your friends? I say I manage a team of buyers and category managers, transforming how we buy, what we sell and how we sell it, to make everything we do a little better than before.
“We have 22 master butchers currently working at Booker – almost 25% of the UK’s total”
What is the most rewarding part of your job? Seeing a concept through from an idea to execution with our customers.
We have a strong team of category experts and skilled butchers who work hard to curate ranges which cater for different dining occasions and dishes. Over the next 12 months we’ll refresh our entire butchery own brand range, so it’s an exciting time to be leading the team through that level of change.
What is the least rewarding part? When managing large-scale change, it’s difficult through the lens of hindsight, not to wish you could’ve done a better job in preventing a “bump in the road”. What’s important is that we learn from the process and celebrate the teams’ efforts, to recognise the scale of what we’re trying to achieve.
What is your motto in life? Life’s a game of perspective and timing.
At one point, you can feel ahead, but in a competitive market like ours the competition responds quickly. It helps ground me to focus on what the customer wants and to try and do a better job.
If you were allowed one dream perk, what would it be? I have a dairy intolerance, which sometimes makes working in the food industry a little difficult – I wish I could click my fingers and be rid of that.
Do you have any phobias? No, I’m probably too rational to fear anything that can’t hurt me. As a dad of two, I naturally worry about great job opportunities for young people.
I guess that’s why I’m so proud of the investment and effort we put into developing our butchery colleagues – we’ve trained more than 1,200 through our award-winning training and development programme over the last 10 years, we’ll support more than 120 colleagues in 2026. We have 22 master butchers currently working at Booker – almost 25% of the UK’s total.
If you could change one thing in grocery, what would it be? I’d like to play a role in enhancing customer service so that those looking for a hedonic experience have the option to receive it. Booker does such a brilliant job in delivering great customer service – including from our butchery department, but no doubt we can do more.
What luxury would you have on a desert island? A tool kit. YouTube makes learning new DIY skills so much easier, and I enjoy the challenge of it at home. With nothing else to do, I’d relish constructing a shelter and making some tools to source food.
What animal most reflects your personality? A bumblebee – purposeful, industrious, appreciates routine, happy to fly from one project or group of stakeholders to another, but at the end of the day reports back to the Queen.
What’s your favourite film and why? ‘Senna’. I must’ve watched it 100 times… He was my hero growing up and despite having never met him, I somehow feel connected to the purpose he represented.
What has been the most embarrassing moment in your life? My uncle asked me to set up a camera and tripod for my cousin’s wedding. Taking my mum with me on the day, I handed her the plug to put in the wall, but she forgot to press the on-switch and so the battery was flat by time the bride walked down the aisle. The look on my uncle’s face when he turned from the altar to take his seat will stay with me forever.
Which celebrity would you most like to work with and why? Sir Lewis Hamilton. I raced go-karts growing up, but never against him. I admire his commitment to greatness and the work he does to support under-represented communities and great causes.
What would your death row meal be? Blackgate sirloin steak (medium rare), with chef’s premium triple cooked chunky chips and a rocket and zesty sorrel leaf salad.
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