Tom Kerridge has said that everybody else who works at his Michelin-starred pub, The Hand and Flowers, earns a higher salary than he does. The chef made the comments while discussing money in a new interview, as he spoke about the pressures facing the hospitality industry.
Kerridge admitted that he is more of a "spender" than a saver, though he does not view himself as a "materialistic" person. He also shed light on the income he receives from his restaurant empire, which includes The Hand and Flowers and The Coach, in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, where he lives.
Salary and dividends revealed
Asked how much he earned in 2025, Kerridge told The Sunday Times: "I got a salary of £9,000 from the Hand and Flowers. Everybody else in that business earns a higher salary than I do. I took a £15,000 dividend from the Coach, one of our other pubs."
He added: "I was also paid a dividend of £150,000 from the Hand and Flowers. Everything I earn through TV etc, goes through another one of my businesses. We have seven in total. Two operate at a small profit."
Hospitality 'not in a great space'
Despite his success, Kerridge admits that the industry he works in is "not in a great space" at the moment. He said that among his multiple businesses, one of them is running at a sizeable loss.
Kerridge, who jointly operates five restaurants, a TV production company, a consultancy firm and a media company, recently admitted that "we took a massive hit" on a venture that left him and his wife Beth more than a million pounds in the hole.
Losses and M&S partnership
He explained that it came in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic. "Loads, my God, loads. We lost £1.5m on a business. It was an events company and we sold it, but we took a massive hit."
Kerridge continued: "It was post-Covid, so there was nothing we could do. The business was working quite well until then." It would ultimately lead to a partnership with M&S, with which he has a Gastropub food range.
Speaking to The i Paper, the celebrity chef added: "But without that business, I wouldn't have made any connections with M&S, who sell our pies."
Although this has long passed and he is now "financially stable", Kerridge admitted he still feels a "huge pressure" to keep his other enterprises afloat, especially for his friends and co-workers. He noted that although he would likely be alright if they had to sell up, "none of it is paid off (in full)", and he continues to have the "responsibility of over 200 people", both colleagues and friends.
