James Lohan’s entrepreneurial spirit first came to light in the school dinner queue when he saw the potential for turning a profit on a stack of cheese toasties. A series of successful business ventures followed suit, but it was in 2003 that James and his partner in life and business, Tamara, hit upon the idea for Mr & Mrs Smith. What began as a guidebook for discerning couples seeking more than a perfunctory night away, quickly morphed into an aspirational hotel and holiday booking brand that has earned James an MBE for services to the British travel industry. For the latest episode of Homing In, Matt Gibberd checks in with James to discuss the importance of resilience and how good signage can make or break a minibreak …

“This is the first time we’ve recorded an episode in a hotel suite, and that’s because today’s guest knows more about opening doors to glamorous guesthouses than anyone else. 

“James Lohan co-founded the travel company Mr & Mrs Smith with his wife Tamara back in 2003, and since then he’s visited nearly 4,000 hotels in the name of research.  

“James is a gregarious character with some brilliant tales to tell.We discuss his earliest experiences as an entrepreneur, from selling cheese toasties at school, to setting up a mobile disco called Your Mother Wouldn’t Like It.  

“He tells me about his refurbishment of a Dutch barge on the Thames – complete with flock wallpaper and a freestanding bath – and what he’s learned from hotels that we might apply to our homes.” 

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