The team - who we are, what we do
John Bywater - Managing Director
John is Managing Director of MFM Gastro and manages the event business at the Arminiusmarkthalle. His background in the 5-star hotel industry and luxury cruise lines brings a wealth of experience in team management. He is the engine and driving force behind the future of MFM Gastro. Born in Manchester, he worked for many years on board cruise ships in the international premium segment and then moved to Southampton to manage F&B for P&O Cruises and the luxury Cunard Line, before he finally opted for a change to Berlin. His knowledge of businesses and events of all sizes has proved invaluable to the success of the Market Hall events business.
Thomas Forcher - Director
Thomas is the main organizer of all matters relating to the Markthallenbrunch in Moabit. Born in Tyrol, he has traveled the seven seas all over the world in the course of his professional career and has experienced many countries and nationalities. In Europe, he was F&B Manager in the Sacher Group in Vienna, Salzburg and Tyrol for many years and General Manager in Europe´s oldest restaurant in Salzburg. But he found a new challenge in Berlin. Here, all his experience shows in the successful restaurant operation as well as the event business in the Arminius Market Hall.
Liliane Uwamaliya - Senior Project Manager
As Senior Project Manager, Liliane is your main contact for all event-related topics. With many years of experience in the upscale hotel industry, gastronomy and customer management, she stands for the highest quality of service, structured organization and solution-oriented work.
Thanks to her extra-occupational distance learning course in project management and extensive practical experience in leading teams at major events, she combines strategic planning with operational expertise - for events that are professionally implemented and holistically conceived.
Nikita Gerasimov - Event Coordinator
Before joining MFM Gastro, Nikita worked in a wide variety of fields in Germany and abroad, ranging from political foundations and media to project management at public and private universities in Moscow and Berlin. He joined MFM Gastro in 2024, where he has since been able to contribute his experience from very different fields and actively supports the market hall event business as well as taking care of other matters relating to the website, newsletter, etc.
Simone Zanco - F&B Manager
After graduating from Italian culinary school, Simone gained experience in many different restaurants. He always wanted to become a chef since he was a child, which he achieved after 5 years of culinary school and various internships in Italy and in a luxury restaurant in France. From 2013, he worked in various Italian restaurants in Berlin until he joined the MFM team at the Arminiusmarkthalle in 2021. In 2024, he was promoted to Executive Chef/F&B Manager. His Italian love of good food and wine is evident at our events.
Michael Schöps - Head waiter
Our head waiter from the old school. Michael has learned and experienced all facets of gastronomy in various countries. Before coming to Berlin, he worked in Vienna, London and Southampton, both as a freelancer and as a team leader in international hotels. He finally joined MFM Gastro in 2015, where he has been one of the most experienced team members ever since, keeping an eye on the well-being of customers both in day-to-day business and at events. Always attentive to every guest request, he keeps an overview even at large events with intense hustle and bustle.