Family Ties, Fast Laps, and Finding My Voice: Will Gubby in Focus
Meet the latest addition to The Ripe Avocado family, Will Gubby, who’s joining us as Operations Manager.
His journey into events is packed with energy, passion and personality, all captured in the stories behind these four photographs.
From a proud professional milestone managing over 170 weddings in a single year to the powerful moment of speaking at his first couples tasting event, Will’s career has been built on dedication and heart.
Beyond the events world, family remains a huge part of his life, with childhood memories rooted in close-knit bonds and long summer evenings spent next door with his grandparents.
Will finds balance through running, whether it is clearing his head after a busy event or showing up every Saturday at Dulwich parkrun. And then there is music, a lifelong love that has taken him from a bedroom recorder to recording Bob Dylan in a Nashville studio.
Let’s take a closer look at the moments that define Will’s story so far.
Speaking at My First Wedding Showcase
This was a hugely proud moment for me and the first time that I truly felt like an events professional. After being made the venue manager of my first venue and overseeing over 170 weddings in my first year, I spoke at my final group couples tasting event. It was a huge privilege to stand up in front of 20 couples who had all chosen our amazing venue and speak to them about their upcoming weddings. Seeing the incredible team I got to work with to deliver an event so perfectly is something I will never forget, and seeing each couple’s faces light up over different elements that we had tirelessly worked on for weeks is something that will stay with me for many years to come. In this moment, I knew I had found a career I loved and felt honoured to work in every day.
Growing Up Surrounded by Family
Family is such an important part of my life, and growing up with my parents and younger sister, we had the huge added bonus of our nan and grandad living next door to us. Getting to ride our scooters round the driveway, go play cards in the evening, or even get a KitKat from the special orange tub in the fridge (if you are a cousin reading this, you know what I mean!) Here I am with the aunts and uncles while walking over the O2. Originally, my family were from Battersea before moving to the countryside, and it has been great since moving to London to experience so many of the areas I had heard stories about, especially getting to spend so much time in Battersea Power Station now it is open to the public.
Why Running Means So Much to Me
Running is my big passion. Whether it is to clear my head after a long event, to set myself goals and stay focused away from work, or to spend time with my friends, I will find any excuse to run. There is something about running a race through the closed roads of London that gives you a completely different perspective on the city. Now I am a very passionate attendee of parkrun, and being in London and getting to roll out of bed on Saturday morning and run down to Dulwich Park to run with 800 other runners has become a weekly staple for me that I use to constantly justify my desire to buy more running kit.
My Musical Journey to Nashville
Music has been the one constant in my life since a very early age. Ever since I picked up a recorder aged eight, I have wanted to learn new instruments and create music with different people. This led to me learning saxophone, clarinet, oboe, piano, guitar and pretty much anything else I could borrow from someone, playing across a huge variety of different groups. In 2014 and 2017 I had the unbelievable opportunity to tour Nashville and Memphis as a guitarist and songwriter, playing at some of the most famous musical locations in the world. Highlights included Graceland, the Listening Room, performing “Jolene” with Carly Pearce, and Columbia Studio A (pictured here). Here I am recording a song from Bob Dylan’s Nashville Skyline in the studio where he originally recorded the album. These trips are experiences I will never forget, and real pinch-me moments for a boy who started off with “Hot Cross Buns” on a recorder in his bedroom.