Close Brothers MD: I started my career working for Gordon Ramsay
Each week, we dig into the memory bank of the City’s great and good. Today, Chiara Caldwell, managing director of structured finance at Close Brothers, tells us how she went from fine dining to banking in Square Mile and Me
CV
- Name: Chiara Caldwell
- Job title: Managing director of structured finance at Close Brothers
- Previous roles: Senior director at CBRE
- Age: 44
- Born: Milan
- Lives: Cambridgeshire
- Studied: BA Business Studies, MBA, CFA
- Talents: Sourdough baking, upholstery, interior design
- Motto: Nothing worth having comes easy
- Biggest perk of the job? Getting to see the tangible results. Also the free fruit in the morning is a nice touch!
- Coffee order: Decaf soya latte
- Cocktail order: Seedlip Sour
- Currently reading: Follow the Money and How Not to Age
What was your first job?
I started my career in hospitality and was attracted by the glitz of fine dining. I ended up working for Gordon Ramsey for a couple of years.
What was your first role in finance?
I started as a cashier at Lloyds Bank in the Hammersmith Branch.
When did you know you wanted to build a career in finance?
When I was eight years old I went with my mum to the bank to take out a mortgage to refurbish our house. I was fascinated by how she could borrow money to fund the construction costs and by the concept of interest and saving rates. After a brief detour into the hospitality industry, I worked my way up from the Lloyds branch into the RBS corporate real estate team, which was my dream job.
What’s one thing you love about Canada?
It’s the financial engine of the UK and has such a distinct energy. Working there I feel like I am part of something bigger and making a tangible impact.
And one thing you would change?
Definitely easier access for people who don’t have connections in the industry. I feel very fortunate that I got there eventually, but it was hard without knowing anyone who worked in the City.
What’s been your most memorable business lunch?
There have been a few. A coffee at Carluccio’s with a senior member of my team, where I first got the feeling that I had the support for a step up in my career. Sure enough, my promotion followed. Another was the job interview for my current role at Close Brothers Property Finance. I wasn’t really looking to move but one exploratory chat led to another and it opened up this great opportunity.
And any business faux pas?
Probably being slightly too enthusiastic when I was told that I had got the job in the real estate corporate team. I must have said ‘thank you’ a million times to my then boss. He later told me he thought to himself ‘what have I done?’
What’s been your proudest moment?
Delivering for clients and seeing projects being delivered where I have played a role. Also taking my little girl to the City and seeing her being inspired by the tall buildings, the buzz and the office environment. That made me proud to be a role model for her.
And who do you look up to?
I get inspired by people who have built businesses, careers or lives who come from different backgrounds, overcoming their own individual challenges.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever been given?
Slow down and be deliberate about where you invest your time and energy. Less can sometimes be more. That feels more relevant now than ever.
And the worst?
Stick to your knitting. Other people’s views of what constitutes ‘your knitting’ might be very different from yours.
Are you optimistic for the year ahead?
Yes, I am optimistic. We have a fantastic, highly experienced team and we are well set up to support our clients through this more challenging economic cycle.
We’re going for lunch, and you’re picking – where are we going?
With clients, Yauatcha never disappoints. It’s got great food and friendly, efficient service. It’s a real City institution. Broadgate Circle, close to our office, is a symbol of how the City is evolving and is a real testament to the power of real estate to transform places and connect people.
And if we’re grabbing a drink after work?
For the reasons above, Broadgate Circle is generally a good choice (albeit it gets busy on a Thursday!)
Where’s home during the week?
Cambridgeshire.
And where might we find you at the weekend?
Out and about with my little one, doing sports, walking the dog and exploring.
You’ve got a well-deserved two weeks off. Where are you going and who with?
An active holiday somewhere warm by the sea. With a little one we are being slightly less adventurous at the moment and we have been enjoying going to Italy. We are looking forward to going back to Sardinia in the summer.