Mike Ashley

[Wacky Racer]

[DSLiverpool]

20 with 2 shops and a qualified coach. He went for it from the start. Surely he had a leg up from someone to open the shops?

Thanks for sharing Wacky.

[Wacky Racer]

DSLiverpool said:

20 with 2 shops and a qualified coach. He went for it from the start. Surely he had a leg up from someone to open the shops?

Thanks for sharing Wacky.

He borrowed 20k off his parents to open his first shop.

The man in a financial genius, completely self made.

He gets a lot of stick but completely undeserved (imo)

[basherX]

Wacky Racer said:

DSLiverpool said:

20 with 2 shops and a qualified coach. He went for it from the start. Surely he had a leg up from someone to open the shops?

Thanks for sharing Wacky.

He borrowed 20k off his parents to open his first shop.

The man in a financial genius, completely self made.

He gets a lot of stick but completely undeserved (imo)

Agreed. Worked for his accountants back in the day. That was a proper education.

[clarkey]

I worked in his shop in Maidenhead in about 1988 or 1989. He fired me because some money went missing from the till (wasn't me). He didn't try to be a nice person, but expected everyone to work hard every minute of the day in a 'if you're leaning you could be cleaning' sort of a way. Didn't like him, but I'm sure he didn't lose a single second of sleep over it!!

[SpeedBash]

Meanwhile, just down the road, Philip Green was at the start of making his fortune with the purchase of jeans retailer Jean Jeanie whose HQ was based on Slough Trading Estate.

[Blib]

SpeedBash said:

Meanwhile, just down the road, Philip Green was at the start of making his fortune with the purchase of jeans retailer Jean Jeanie whose HQ was based on Slough Trading Estate.

Green was a friend of my father.

I remember hearing of Green cashing cheques to pay his staff wages at an Edmonton wholesale wheeler dealer.

When I was about 25 I went to Green to ask him about a business idea I had, centred around importing sports shoes from Malaysia.

He listened politely to what I had to say and when I asked him what he thought about my idea his response was,

"If you go ahead it wont work and you'll do your fking bks"

Being an arrogant, young man I ignored him and went ahead with the deal.

I did my fking bks.

[Wacky Racer]

SpeedBash said:

Meanwhile, just down the road, Philip Green was at the start of making his fortune with the purchase of jeans retailer Jean Jeanie whose HQ was based on Slough Trading Estate.

They have a long history together going back years. Friends and business rivals.

I have been in the Sports trade since the 1960's and seen hundreds of firms come and go, but Ashley's empire continues to grow.

His main regret was buying Newcastle, but he even came out of that in profit.