Another side of Geoffrey Debono

Geoffrey Debono, CEO of Debono Group, sat down with Coryse Borg, at the chic and fashionable Under Grain to talk about his dedication to his family, his love for football, and his passion for travelling, over a meal of delicious meat and delectable fish.

We uncovered the man behind the job, who is also, apparently, an avid reader. He claims that he likes to read mostly non-fiction books, and tends to be drawn to books which can give him knowledge which he can use in his everyday job. Due to this, the books he reads are usually business book or biographies, and his recommendation is Alex Ferguson’s biography, because it combines two of his favourite things; football and business. He’s also a fan of Steve Jobs’ biography, as he is one of his business idols.

When asked about his time away from work, he admitted that it’s not easy to lead a balanced life, especially when he is torn between work which he really enjoys doing and having a young family. However, he insists that he makes it a priority to spend time with his family and do something fun which can create memories for the future. Additionally, he declared that he doesn’t work when the children are awake. Because of this, he makes it a priority to work after they go to bed, and once they get up, he switches off his laptop and he’s back with them, doing what they enjoy. He engages in a variety of activities with his family; when the weather is good, they go for picnics and go to the pool or the beach in summer. His son, much like his father, is growing into football, and Debono asserts that even though he is only 3 years old, he’s very competitive which again, is something he takes after his father. More importantly, his main goal when it comes to his children is that he would like them to see him as their best friend and not simply as a dad.

Debono also talks about his devotion to travelling and he claims that even though he’s travelled extensively, the country which sticks most to mind is South Africa. He expressed how he was lucky to be there for the World Cup final in 2010 and described how special it was when Nelson Mandela came out. Moreover, he communicated how much he loved the natural beauty and the safaris one can experience in South Africa. With regards to his future travels, he expresses that that he’s going to be visiting Japan for the Olympics.

Geoffrey Debono concluded by saying that London feels like home to him, and so he takes every opportunity he can get to travel there, because as he put it: “If you’re tired of London, you’re tired of life.” He also discussed how London has become much more cosmopolitan than it was ten years ago, and how eating out is better than it used to be in the past.

Thank you for sitting with us and choosing Under Grain and we look forward to welcoming you again!