IWD 2025 - an interview with: Berangere Bragard

Tell us a little about your career journey leading to where you are now.

Having studied Business and Engineering in Belgium, I began my career as a management consultant with McKinsey & Co., first in Brussels and later in London, following an MBA at Harvard Business School, which they generously sponsored.Eager to transition from strategy to execution, I joined Costa Coffee in 2010, where I led International Strategic Planning, drove Costa Express’s expansion into Retail and Forecourts, and became Managing Director of Costa’s first fully owned equity market in France.

After the birth of my daughter, I took a new direction within Whitbread, joining Premier Inn as Head of Propositions. When my son arrived, I stepped into the role of Commercial Director, Restaurants at Just Eat Takeaway - just two months before the pandemic hit. It was an intense but transformative period that deepened my appreciation for the power of digital in reshaping retail and hospitality. This curiosity led me back to consulting, where I collaborated with the talented e-commerce practitioners at Zebra Associates.

In 2022, my passion for travel and hospitality drew me to SSP, where I helped establish the Customer Team and led the Insights and Category functions as Director of Group Category Strategy. Today, I’m looking forward to my next opportunity to work with a brilliant team and drive meaningful and lasting commercial success. 

What does the International Women’s Day slogan “accelerate action” mean for you?

In today’s context, where DEI progress faces growing challenges, particularly across the Atlantic, “accelerate action” holds a dual meaning for me: “don’t hold back… and don’t take anything for granted.”

Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In was a revelation, reminding me how much we can achieve when we aren’t afraid. But today, even among progressive companies, the hard-won efforts to bring half the world’s population to the table remain fragile - at risk of crumbling under shifting political tides.

Now, more than ever, accelerating action means staying relentless, not just in making progress, but in safeguarding the gains we have already made.

How important is it for women to lift each other up and what does that mean to you?

Madeleine Albright’s words - “There is a special place in hell for women who don’t help other women” - have always resonated with me. While I wouldn’t go as far as wishing such a fate on anyone, my team at Costa France used to tease me for having the opposite tendency - consistently appointing women to new roles.

Over the years, I have met countless brilliant women with impeccable work ethics, sharp intellects, and exceptional emotional intelligence—yet many hesitate to take credit for their achievements, only put themselves forward when they tick every box, and judge themselves harshly when things don’t go to plan.

I’ve learned to be kinder to myself and, in turn, make it a priority to uplift the women around me - whether by offering encouragement, advocating for their contributions, or simply reminding them of their worth when self-doubt creeps in. 

How important is diversity across senior leadership teams? 

Diversity—across gender, generations, ethnicity, beliefs, and preferences—is essential at every level of an organisation, and senior leadership is no exception. Critical decisions must be considered from multiple perspectives, and diverse leadership helps challenge groupthink and mitigate confirmation bias.

For organisations that aspire to be truly customer-centric - particularly in hospitality, retail, and consumer industries, where the customer base is inherently diverse - having a leadership team that reflects that diversity is a business imperative. The most successful companies recognise that a broad range of experiences and viewpoints drives better decision-making, more meaningful innovation in customer experience, and a more inclusive workplace culture.

As a successful leader, how do you think (business) leaders can accelerate action toward closing the gender gap and ensuring equal opportunities in the workplace? 

Throughout my career at McKinsey, Whitbread, Just Eat, and SSP, I have benefited from multiple initiatives designed to help women maximise their potential. For talent to be recognised, nurtured, and given equal opportunities to thrive, here are some of the lessons I took away, broken down in 4 areas:Attraction: Cast a wide net when recruiting at all levels, ensuring job descriptions are gender-neutral and free from unconscious bias. Strive for balance in hiring and appointments to build a truly diverse talent pipeline.Promotion: Create structured career progression pathways, actively encourage female candidates to step into leadership roles, and ensure the presence of visible female role models who can mentor and inspire others.Retention: Offer competitive maternity leave, flexible working arrangements for returning parents, and ensure women have meaningful, high-impact roles to return to. Establishing strong internal women’s networks can foster a supportive and empowering workplace culture. Additionally, engagement surveys provide valuable insights into the root causes of gender disparities in job satisfaction, career progression perceptions, and retention. Data: Ultimately, what gets measured gets done. To accelerate meaningful change towards true gender equity, drive accountability, track progress, identify gaps and inform targeted action plans to close them.

Can you share your top tips for entrepreneurial/managerial/leadership success? 

Be authentic. Stay true to your values and allow yourself to be vulnerable at times - it’s a powerful way to build report and trust.Focus on a tight set of priorities. Writing strategies is easier thangetting things done. Focusing your efforts and team on a tight set of priorities that will shift the dial commercially is the surest way to build credibility and followership.Recognise your blind spots. Generalist skills are precious to progress in organisations as long as we know when we don’t know and quickly figure out who and how to ask to find out. Keep your stakeholders on board and don’t be afraid to ask for feedback. Share your/your team’s progress, celebrate success, speak up when you disagree, ask for support, and embrace feedback as a gift.

What’s the most important piece of advice you’d give to a woman thinking of starting a career at leadership level?

Do what you love. Work doesn’t feel like work when you are enjoying what you.Take risks and embrace a growth mindset. If you never stumble, you’re probably not pushing yourself hard enough. Don’t leave before you leave - borrowed from Sheryl Sandberg: earlier in my career, I actively avoided companies or opportunities which I feared might not be compatible with a family life… yet it took a whole 15 years for my first one to be born. Climbing the ladder quickly is the surest way to have an exciting job to come back to after starting a family - and for workplaces to keep hold of some of their best talent!

Have there been any role models through your life (work or professional) who have helped shape you as a leader?

I have many role models, both men and women, to thank for shaping my leadership journey. At McKinsey, Gesine Holschuh introduced me to the Brussels office after I babysat her children as a student, and Allegra Patrizi stood out for her generosity, sharing career advice and fostering a supportive community for women while rapidly advancing to Partner. Michael Birshan kindly proofread my MBA essays, helping open doors to HBS and McKinsey UK&I, while David Sinclair (now at OC&C) remains an invaluable mentor and a consummate expert in Retail & Hospitality.

At Costa Coffee, I was lucky to be surrounded by leaders who believed in me before I did: collectively, Andy Marshall, Helen Hardy, Suzie Welsh, Jim Slater, Jason Cotta and John Derkach offered me my first P&L and country leadership opportunities and helped me thrive in the roles. At Premier Inn, Andy Harrison and Louise Smalley have been equally supportive, whilst Mark Fells - who later invited me to collaborate with Zebra Associates - encouraged me to stretch my skillset to Proposition Development, Digital Marketing and E-commerce Growth.

Most recently, at SSP, I’ve been inspired by the professionalism, drive and resilience of leaders such as Leanne Knight, Angela Moores, Mark Angela, Jeremy Fennel and Patrick Coveney.