On his appointment Cotton said: “I am delighted to be joining a young, dynamic team at Splash, which has I believe, a real understanding of the communications issues relating to the hospitality industry.”
He left his position at the BHA in July 2010 after 10 years in the role. As chief executive he doubled the BHA membership to include large hotel groups as well as major contract caterers, restaurant chains and independent operators.
Under his leadership the BHA developed links with Whitehall, and succeeded in lobbying campaigns such as the pub and restaurant smoking ban and London’s successful Olympic bid.
He graduated from the University of Surrey with a BSc in hotel and catering management in 1970 before starting his career at contract caterer Gardner Merchant (now Sodexo UK).
In 1979 he became the personal assistant to the chief executive Garry Hawkes, a position he held for 20 years, expanding his experience in corporate strategy and communication. In 1995 he became a member of the national executive of the BHA, before being appointed chief executive in 1999.
In 2003 Cotton was awarded an OBE (Order of the British Empire) in the 2003 New Years Honours List for services to the tourism and hospitality industry. In 2006 he became chairman of Hospitality Action, the industry’s benevolent charity.
The Splash Partnership is one of the UK’s leading agencies specialising in food retail, hospitality and foodservice, with a range of clients that includes Nestle Professional, Apetito Group, The Spice Tailor, and The University Caterers Organisation (TUCO).
It has bases in Bath, London and Sydney, Australia offering a portfolio of services in addition to PR including reputation management, specialist media relations, public affairs, trade media buying, issues management and media training.