John Caudwell
John Caudwell
John David Caudwellis an English businessman, philanthropist and co-founder of mobile phone retailer Phones 4u. He also invests in fashion, real estate and other industries, and chairs Caudwell Children, a charity which benefits ill or disabled children and their families. He is also known for being the UK's biggest taxpayer...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionBusinessman
Date of Birth7 October 1952
business corrupt cut gear jealousy motorbike people second selling sold succeeded time
My second business would have succeeded but for competitors' jealousy. I was selling motorbike gear cheap, but the people I was undercutting complained to the manufacturer and cut off my supply. It showed me how corrupt business can be. When I sold phones, the same thing happened, but this time I was ready.
business four helicopter people rest sort south time weeks yacht
I have a helicopter that I use for U.K. business trips, and I fly myself. I have a yacht in Antibes in the south of France, which is a sort of indulgence, as we only use it for about four weeks a year. The rest of the time, it is chartered out to people as a business.
break leading life maybe people
I'm a capitalist. I'm not going to feel sympathetic to people leading a life they don't have to lead who, with effort, could maybe break out of it.
epitaph gave instinct john knew lies life time
I didn't want my epitaph to read 'Here lies John Caudwell, billionaire.' I knew that wasn't enough. I've had a charitable instinct all my life, but working gave me no time for it.
borrowing bought detached family financial house huge life money outside status taking
I was only 21 when I bought a five-bedroom detached house in Stoke-on-Trent that was way outside of my financial status in life. I did it by borrowing money from my family and the bank, taking out a huge mortgage.
coming design ideas quite realised
I realised I've got quite a talent for coming up with ideas for design. I've got so many ideas about fashion.
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I can safely say that there are dozens of places on 'Titania' to watch a film with friends. I would estimate there's something like 50 televisions on board, some of which are very big-screen, some of which drop out of ceilings on the outdoor decks.
adequately children family objective
My objective is to leave my family adequately catered for, but I want my children to make their own way. I want them to have pride in their own achievements.
job left pottery sweeping time
Journalists like to say I started off sweeping the pottery floors. But it was just a short-lived part time job doing that after I left school.
albeit assets interested money quite saving spend work
I'm a wealth creator. I'm not interested in saving in the least. While I do spend a lot, I don't spend money like other billionaires. I'm probably quite unusual, albeit I do have some of the significant trappings. But I always try to make my assets work for a living.
biggest business low lowest primarily risky
In any business opportunity, you'd be looking, probably, primarily at the risk and return. Some business can be very risky with a low return; what you want is the lowest risk with the biggest return.
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It's important to show children love, affection and balance and invest time in their moral upbringing.
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Some of the things I did in my early career were massive learning curves because I had no one to guide me. You learn very quickly because it costs you torment and trouble.
burning crude early lad success
In the early days, I had everything to prove. A very working class lad with a burning ambition. A very crude way of measuring success is how much you are worth.