International Women’s Day: An interview with April Jackson from Brixton’s Wood and Water

April Jackson is a restaurateur and then some.

She’s owned her own restaurant for six years and previously founded an event management firm and children’s charity in her home country of Jamaica.

April was even crowned Miss Jamaica in 2008 and appeared on season eleven of BBC’s Apprentice.

Nowadays, however, you’ll find her running the kitchen of her restaurant, Wood and Water in Brixton, South London—where she proudly serves up dishes inspired by her homeland.

For International Women’s Day 2022, we spoke with April Jackson about motherhood, what motivates her and making it as a female entrepreneur in the hospitality industry.

Can you tell me a bit about your start in hospitality?

I opened my first restaurant just over 6 years ago, then called Three Little Birds. People say you should do what you love. Well, I love food, and I love Jamaica—so I opened a Jamaican restaurant!

After about three years in Brixton, I opened a second location in Clapham. Unfortunately, we had to close it due to staffing issues. I’m soon to be relaunching Three Little Birds under a new name, Wood and Water.

Where did that name come from? 

The name Jamaica literally means ‘the land of wood and water’, and Jamaica forms a large part of our brand DNA.

We’re here in Brixton, the heart of the Jamaican community in London, and we would describe our food as modern British with a Jamaican soul. So that’s where the name comes from.

You’ve had an impressive and diverse career. What would you say is your biggest personal achievement so far? 

You know what? I’m hoping that the biggest achievement is still to come! I’m all about the grind and I’m always ready for bigger things.

What keeps you going as an entrepreneur in hospitality?

Hospitality is hard. It’s definitely harder than I thought it was going to be.

I got into this business with zero experience. I’d never worked in a restaurant. I just had an idea of what I wanted as a customer, and worked my way back from there. 

There’s a sense of pride that you get when you enter a building and you know that its existence is due to your hard work.

I just had twins. And to be honest, that’s a huge part of why I’m on this grind. I’ll be putting them to work as soon as they’re old enough.