From Tokyo backstreets to quiet coastal towns and off-grid cabins, top executives reveal where they holiday and why stepping away makes the grind worthwhile.
5 min
Months of running between meetings and breaking down the working week into 30-minute increments to get through a long list of tasks takes its toll on the most astute business leader.
So, Kanebridge News asked corporate high-flyers where they holiday and how they value their time, which revealed a fascinating insight into not just what makes them tick.
Many told stories of time away from the hustle, spent exploring the dark corners of Tokyo, the beaches of Bali and off-grid tiny homes with loved ones.
They agreed that taking a well-earned break from rigid scheduling and being ruled by a calendar in a high-pressure environment makes the hustle worthwhile.
High-profile Sydney leadership trainer Karlie Cremin leaves the city behind for a break by the beach with her husband and three children, all under 10 years of age.
Having school-aged kids means she’s tethered to the school holiday period for her breaks, but the CEO of leadership program firm Crestcom makes the most of it, driving north of Sydney to the Central Coast for a two-week break at the end of each year at Pearl Beach.
“We love the area because no one goes there, and yet it’s magical. It’s this little oasis away from the traffic jams, which gives us something to look forward to.”
The family hires the same house every year, located within walking distance of the local beach, where they hang out during the day.
“The kids arrive at the holiday house and know where everything is and how to get around. They love the familiarity of hiring the same house every year.”
Karlie loves a bite at nearby eatery Bells at Killcare while in town, which is booked in advance.
“There’s nothing much at Pearl Beach, which is how we like it. Mostly, we barbecue out back, serve salads, and keep it really simple. We enjoy not having complicated dinners when we’re on a break,” Cremin says.
While she would love to completely switch off, the reality is that she does need to be available for work.
“There are some tasks that only I can do in the organisation, but I tend to handle those things that pop up once the kids are in bed, so it doesn’t interfere with family time.”
Running the largest global franchise pool service brand as it continues on a strong growth trajectory is a big job for Nic Brill, who stepped into the global CEO role late last year. (SUBS 2025)
He admits that leading a service business of scale requires clear thinking, good judgement and sustained energy.
“I’m at my best when I’ve had time to step back and reset, so I view downtime as a strategic necessity.”
The company works hard to create environments that elevate people’s quality of life at home.
“We also take a few international breaks throughout the year. For me, the ideal holiday is somewhere warm, relaxed and close to the water.”
“Time is one of those things you can’t manufacture, so I’m very deliberate about how I use it. When I’m taking a break, I try to protect it so I can be present with my family and properly recharge. At the same time, I lead a large franchise network, and I’m always mindful of my responsibility to our people.
Small townships dotted along the northern NSW coastline has become a favourite, where he goes to switch off, spend time with family.
“I’m happiest when the days are simple – time by the pool or ocean, good meals and a chance to slow down and reconnect.
“I also like to keep active, whether that’s swimming, getting out for a run or exploring somewhere new,” Brill says.
The founder of Australia’s largest privately owned flexible workspace operations has spent more than a decade building his business.
Founded in response to the growing number of freelancers and entrepreneurs requiring workspace following the global financial crisis, the pioneering business model has been built on sweat equity.
But when he’s away from the daily grind, Brad likes to book flights to somewhere in Asia, which has emerged as a favourite holiday spot for him and his family. Malaysia, Thailand and Bali are popular spots.
He also recalls a great holiday in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Golden Gai, a collection of mismatched, tumbledown bars lining a darkened corner of the city.
While adventure holidays were a favourite in years gone by, that’s not so much the case these days as a family man. He often spends time trying local cuisine, wandering through retail areas and seeing the local sights, which are his favourite.
Holidays across Australia are also a favourite. “When I’m away, the out of office is on, and the team know that if they need me, they need to call or text me. I’m not contactable on email when I’m on a break, which means I’m not buried in my inbox while I’m away. Keeping yourself off the emails or Slack or whatever it is gives you that distance from work that enables you to take a good break.”
He also likes to take a break by himself occasionally to recharge. “I try to take all my leave each year, because it helps me be better when I’m at work.”
Brad has taken a few breaks at an Unyoked Cabin, an off-the-grid cabin in a remote area, both alone and with his daughter.
Quick little nature getaways that mean you’re completely disconnected are the best. And I never finish a holiday without having booked your next one,” he admits.
Spending his working days at the helm of a Perth-based wealth management and financial planning firm is where Justin Gilmour belongs.
But when he’s on a break, he prefers to get in the car rather than a plane, driving to the regional area of Yallingup in the southwest of Western Australia in the Margaret River region.
He loves to slow down and enjoy warm, sunny days and gentle coastal breezes when relaxing. “The beaches in the south-west are world-class, offering pristine sands and crystal clear waters that rival any international destination. For me, there’s simply nowhere better to unwind and recharge than this spectacular corner of the country.”
His break is spent with his wife and kids, but he admits half of Perth heads up to Yallingup as well.
“We’re always bumping into people (and even clients) that we know. But spending time in Yallingup allows me to slow down and enjoy the simple pleasure of life with my family.”
He prefers not to stay in touch with the office too much while he’s down there, using the time to reset and recharge, but does chat to clients when he bumps into them.
“I think it’s important to have that period of clear headspace and take a step back and look at the bigger picture, both in terms of my personal life and for the business. A daily swim is certainly a must when I’m down there.”
The sports-car maker delivered 279,449 cars last year, down from 310,718 in 2024.
A long-standing cultural cruise and a new expedition-style offering will soon operate side by side in French Polynesia.
In a series of social-media posts, the eldest child of David and Victoria Beckham threw stones at the image of a ‘perfect family’.
3 min
David Beckham was at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday with Bank of America chief executive Brian Moynihan to promote their new partnership. But all anyone wanted to talk about was his son.
After the obligatory questions about business and the World Cup, a host on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” lobbed Beckham an out-of-left-field query about how young people can preserve their mental health in the age of social media.
“Children are allowed to make mistakes,” Beckham, 50, said. “That’s how they learn. So, that’s what I try to teach my kids, but you have to sometimes let them make those mistakes as well.”
Just a day earlier, his 26-year-old son Brooklyn Beckham had posted a series of accusations about his soccer-famous father and pop-star-turned-fashion-designer mother, Victoria Beckham.
He said that his parents had controlled him for years, lied about him to the press and sought to damage his relationship with his wife, Nicola Peltz Beckham. Their goal, he said, was to affect the image of a “perfect family.”
“My family values public promotion and endorsements above all else,” he wrote on Instagram. “Brand Beckham comes first.”
That brand has been burnished over decades of professional triumphs, tabloid scandals and slick dealmaking.
Recently, both David and Victoria Beckham put their legacies on-screen in docuseries that cast them as hardworking entrepreneurs and devoted parents. Their image appeared stronger than ever. Now their firstborn child is throwing stones.
Representatives for David Beckham, Victoria Beckham and Brooklyn Beckham did not respond to requests for comment. A representative for Nicola Peltz Beckham declined to comment.
In the U.K., the Beckhams are as close as you can get to royalty without sharing Windsor DNA. David is perhaps the most famous English player in soccer history, while Victoria parlayed her Spice Girls fame into a career as a respected fashion designer.
Their partnership was forged in the cauldron of 1990s celebrity gossip, with their every move—in their careers, their bumpy personal lives and their adventurous senses of personal style—subject to tabloid scrutiny.
“They were Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce before Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce,” said Elaine Lui, founder of the website Lainey Gossip.
Over time, the couple became savvy managers of their own brand, a sprawling modern empire including a professional soccer team, fashion and beauty lines, investment deals and commercial partnerships.
In recent years they each released a Netflix docuseries—“Beckham” in 2023, “Victoria Beckham” in 2025—featuring scenes from their private family life. (Brooklyn and Nicola appeared in David’s series, but not Victoria’s.)
“The way they’ve performed their celebrity has been togetherness,” Lui said: Appearing and engaging with the world as a happily married couple, in both relative calm and amid scandal. And as their family grew, their four children became smiling ambassadors for Brand Beckham, too.
Until Monday night. In a series of Instagram Story posts, Brooklyn accused his parents of “trying endlessly to ruin” his marriage to Nicola, an actress and model, and the daughter of billionaire investor Nelson Peltz . Brooklyn declared, “I do not want to reconcile with my family.”
Where Victoria and David seemed to see press scrutiny as part of the job, Brooklyn and Nicola are operating in a manner more typical of their own generation. Brooklyn’s posts call to mind the “no contact” boundaries some children have enforced with their parents in recent years to much pop-psych chatter.
Andrew Friedman, managing director of crisis communications at Orchestra, said he’d advised many clients through family drama. “Going public,” he said, should be a “last resort.”
He’s also warned clients that using social media to air grievances opens a can of worms. “Nuance is not welcome in social-media feeding frenzies,” Friedman said. “Sensational and unusual details will overshadow the central issue.”
Brooklyn, the eldest of the Beckhams’ four children, has built a following in his parents’ image, though without the benefit (or burden) of a steady career.
He’s worked as a model, photographer, cooking-show host and most recently founded a hot-sauce brand. Brooklyn and Nicola went public with their relationship in 2020 and married in a lavish 2022 ceremony at her family estate in Palm Beach, Fla.
Rumors of a family feud flared almost immediately after the wedding, including whispers about the fact that Nicola didn’t wear a dress made by her fashion-designer mother-in-law.
Brooklyn on Monday recounted further grievances related to a mother-son dance and the seating chart. In the months and years that followed, celebrity journalists and fans closely tracked both generations of the family, looking for cracks in the relationship.
But official dispatches from Beckham World suggested that things were just fine. In a scene from the final episode of David’s Netflix series, the Beckham family, including Brooklyn and Nicola, joke around on a visit to their country home. It’s a picture of familial bliss.
“We’ve tried to give our children the most normal upbringing as possible. But you’ve got a dad that was England captain and a mom that was Posh Spice,” David says in voice-over.
“And they could be little s—s. And they’re not. And that’s why I say I’m so proud of my children, and I’m so in awe of my children, the way they’ve turned out.”
