For the past 30+ years Rob Wing has pioneered the diversity of fresh, sustainably caught Cornish fish. A born and bred Cornishman who grew up in the fishing village of St Mawes, Rob has been involved in fishing all his working life; first as a seafood chef, then a fisherman, trawler owner, and since 1986, a fishmonger and merchant supplying leading restaurants all over the UK.
Over the decades Rob has worked with the industry to protect and conserve a centuries old way of life. He helped found Seafood Cornwall, a trade body to help cohesion in the industry between fishermen. He was also part of an EU funding project that set up a 1500 square mile ‘no fish zone’ off north Cornwall that fishermen credit with a significant rise in stocks of species like cod and haddock.
Still a very much sought after source of knowledge, Rob has now become a Chair of the Harbour Commission for Newlyn fishing port where he is helping to install better facilities for fishermen and modernise practices by increasing sustainable fisheries.
Rob is proud to have spent almost all of his working life within Cornish fishing and continues to work towards future generations benefitting from the wonderful seafood that surrounds our county’s coast.
Tommy has been working at Wing of St Mawes, or Wings as it is more commonly known, since 2011. Tommy’s background is food based, having spent the early years of his working life as a butcher, then moving into restaurant kitchens as a chef. He worked as a head chef in a number of high end hotels and restaurants in Cornwall and France. Working in France gave him an indepth knowledge of food and the high standards he acquired has followed him through all his jobs.
After 12 years of cooking professionally, Tommy was looking for a change in his career but still wanting to utilise his expertise in food, he came to work for Wings and it turned out to be the perfect fit.
“I found I had a natural passion and flair for fish and seafood; I just love the whole environment of fish markets, fishermen and sourcing the best seafood on a daily basis. I gain a huge sense of satisfaction from managing what is the last bulk hunted food in the world, and Cornwall is the perfect location to buy seafood from.”
Alongside Tommy’s passion for food, he is also a massive football fan and loves Plymouth Argyle but with a young family, he spends more time at the weekends watching CBeebies rather than on the terraces.
Roberta Newton prefers to be known as Robbie, and has been on the phones in the sales office since May 2015. She grew up in the Cotswolds and her working life started in nursing. Since then has moved through several different fields, including medical sales, teaching English and various telesales roles.
The world of Wings presented a steep learning curve for Robbie but she has gained in fishy knowledge over time; however, she still refuses to pick up a live lobster, even if bribed with smoked salmon!
Out of work, Robbie is a keen musician, playing piano and guitar and loving live music.
Gaelle was born and raised in France, and moved to the UK in the late 90s. She was introduced to fish from an early age as her parents were fishmongers. She has fond memories of beautiful seafood platters being prepared around Christmas time and being occasionally allowed to go to the early morning fish market for fresh produce.
Gaelle has years of office and customer service experience having worked in a wide range of sectors, from healthcare recruitment to estate agents.
She is a self-confessed MotoGP addict, a music geek and a keen cook.
Vicky originates from Bristol, and moved to Cornwall in July 2014 when she joined the Wing team.
Vicky has been working in customer service since the tender age of 15 and has built up her experience in a number of sectors from call centres. She enjoys interacting with customers and has become passionate about Cornish seafood.
Vicky mainly looks after our Bristol customers as she knows the area rather well, being born and bred in the locality. ‘Knowing the area really helps me to understand the needs of our customers.'
In her spare time Vicky loves watching movies, listening to a variety of music and enjoys a beach walk with her beloved Pug Coco.
She has also enjoyed gaining a good knowledge of fish since joining Wing’s, and admits to eating a lot more fish than she used to!