Aerospace Bristol appoints Lloyd Hughes as first COO

Image courtesy Aerospace Bristol

The newly created COO position reflects Aerospace Bristol’s determination to build a sustainable, high-performing organisation that can invest in its collections, its people and its community for the long term, following 109,000 visitors in 2023/24 and over 100,000 in 2024/25, excluding events and school visitor numbers.

Lloyd Hughes (above) joins from the PDSA, where he served as Director of PDSA Trading and Head of Retail and Buying, and possesses an array of commercial leadership experience across national and international retail and charity trading. His career has taken him from shop floor to boardroom across some of the UK’s most recognisable retail environments, before moving into the charity sector where he has led a broad range of commercial activities at organisations including English Heritage amongst others.
 
In his new role, Hughes will take responsibility for the day-to-day running of Aerospace Bristol’s Filton site, leading the museum’s visitor experience, finance, commercial, and operations functions. He will play a central role in delivering and evolving the museum’s commercial strategy – driving revenue growth across events and venue hire, ticket sales, retail, and hospitality – as well as deputising for the chief executive and representing Aerospace Bristol at key industry and networking events.

Lloyd Hughes, chief operating officer, Aerospace Bristol, said: "Aerospace Bristol is an extraordinary place – one that sits at the heart of a globally significant industry and tells stories about the wonders of flight to inspire people of all ages. 

“I’m hugely excited to be joining at such a pivotal moment – there is enormous potential to grow both the commercial reach and resilience of the museum and I’m looking forward to working with the brilliant team here to unlock it."

Sally Cordwell, chief executive, Aerospace Bristol, said: "This is a landmark appointment for Aerospace Bristol. Lloyd brings exactly the blend of commercial sharpness and charity sector understanding that we need as we look to deliver on our 10-year growth strategy. 

“Creating this COO role signals our intent – we are serious about being an organisation that is operationally excellent, commercially strong and well positioned to serve our visitors, our community and the story of flight for decades to come. 

“We’re delighted to welcome Lloyd into our team.”

Aerospace Bristol is the UK’s only museum dedicated to 100 years of amazing aerospace history, showcasing past, present and future aviation stories.