 He was educated at Brighton College and then apprenticed to J. Calvet "et cie", Bordeaux wine "négociants", after which he trained in the hotel industry.By 1893 he was manager of the Berkeley Hotel, Piccadilly, and four years later he led a management buy-out, with himself as principal shareholder and managing director.At the same time, Richard D'Oyly Carte, founder of the Savoy Hotel, dismissed his manager, César Ritz, for financial irregularities, and was looking for a suitable replacement.