Board of directors

Emma has extensive experience at Board level in multi-site leisure businesses. She is currently a non-executive director (Senior Independent Director and the Chair of the Remuneration Committee) for The Gym Group plc and has been on the company’s Board since its IPO in 2016.

Her hospitality experience includes being the CEO of Wagamama from December 2018 to June 2021, during which time she navigated the acquisition by TRG plc and the Covid-19 pandemic. Prior to this she was Wagamama’s Chief Growth Officer and before that was Group Marketing Director for PizzaExpress.

Emma is trained as a global marketer and has previously held Global Marketing Director roles at Merlin Entertainments and Unilever.

Andy joined Tortilla in July 2017 as CFO and subsequently was announced as CEO in February 2024.

Andy joined Tortilla from Gaucho, where he was Head of Finance, a role which included overseeing the sale of the business to Equistone Partners. Andy started his career at Deloitte and holds an ACA qualification.

Andy’s commercial expertise and growth mindset have seen him play a critical role in shaping Tortilla’s multi-channel and franchise business strategy over the past 7 years.

Maria Denny joined the business in 2024, as Chief Financial Officer.

With 15 years experience within the food and retail sector – including roles at Muller UK and Ireland, Dairy Crest Limited and most recently as CFO – UK and Ireland at Signify.

Brandon founded Tortilla in 2007 and led as CEO until 2014.

Brandon has also been Founder/CEO of REVL, Chairman of Red’s True Barbecue, and Interim Director of e-commerce for Arcadia Group. He currently advises TriSpan’s Rising Stars fund, a dedicated restaurant private equity programme, and is a NED for Thunderbird Fried Chicken Ltd and Mamma Roma Group.

Brandon started his career in Silicon Valley and has also worked as a consultant at Accenture and Booz Allen Hamilton. He holds an Electrical Engineering degree from Princeton and an MBA from London Business School.

Usman represents the interests of Auctor Group, Tortilla’s largest shareholder.

Usman is Managing Partner at Auctor, a holding company that builds and supports companies at the forefront of emerging technology. Auctor owns and operates strategic assets where there are long-term opportunities to disrupt and transform legacy industries by leveraging technologies such as robotics and artificial intelligence.

Usman serves on the Board of Kaikaku, a company reinventing the quick-service restaurant industry with proprietary hardware and software. Prior to joining Auctor, Usman was a Partner at emerging markets investment firm Mobius Capital Partners and an Investment Analyst at New York based equity fund Caravel Management.

Francesca brings a wealth of business development, franchise, finance and M&A experience and she has been involved in the successful expansion of many branded businesses across the European QSR market, in both advisory and senior finance positions.

Francesca is currently a Partner and Co-Founder of Kikkirossi, a European boutique advisory firm specialising in international franchise and brand development.

Previously, she has held a number of director and CFO roles in European hospitality businesses, including eight years at Yum! Brands Inc., the owner and operator of household names including KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, where she held European CFO and Commercial Director positions.

Keith brings a wealth of leadership experience gained across a broad range of consumer-focused businesses.

He has held senior positions at companies operating across a wide range of sectors including retail, leisure, and hospitality. He was previously Finance Director and Company Secretary at JD Wetherspoon plc, Group Finance Director at Go-Ahead plc, Chief Financial Officer at Dunelm plc and, most recently, Finance Director of Selfridges Group. He is currently the Senior Independent Director and Audit Committee Chair of Topps Tiles plc.

Keith has the role of Tortilla’s Senior Independent Director (SID) and Chair of the Audit Committee.