John Caudwell: The Making of a Billionaire

Making the trip to meet with John Caudwell, founder of the Caudwell Group – which included mobile phone retailer Phones4u – at his house in Mayfair, showed just how far this young “ginger curly-haired boy” from the streets of Stoke-on-Trent has come.

We talk to John about his career, his new book Love, Pain and Money: The Making of a Billionaire, selling his baby, why anyone could do a better job than some of our politicians, and much more.

Here's what we discussed:

• Could a business like Phones4u exist today? (03:00)
• If we went back to speak to a young Caudwell and told him that one day he will become a billionaire, and help over 65,000 children through Caudwell Children, what would your reaction be? (04:19)
• Could you tell us about the early years of building the Caudwell Group? (06:12)
• When you were losing money at the Caudwell Group, did any part of you think that it was time to pack it in and admit failure? (08:04)
• The Caudwell Group was known for having great talent. How did you manage to retain that talent? (09:54)
• When you exited the business in 2006, was it a difficult decision or did you have your heart set on selling? (11:34)
• Did you have any seller’s remorse after exiting your business? (13:19)
• Some people believe it’s best to prepare for a sale from when you first start your company, but others believe that it can become a distraction while building a business. Which approach do you believe is best? (15:13)
• The Caudwell Group was well known for its company culture. In a world of working from home, do you think it would be difficult to build a similar culture today? (17:02)
• What are your thoughts on the trend of companies raising a lot of money, with wild valuations, before even turning a profit? (19:19)
• What is your prognosis for the UK economy currently? (20:56)
• There’s a train of thought that billionaires should be brought into discussions about policy, and the delivery of those policies because they aren’t affected by a four- or five-year campaign cycle like politicians are. What are your thoughts on that? (23:27)
• Do you feel you've been successful? (24:51)
• You’re a big advocate of sustainability, and you put your money where your mouth is with your developments such as 1 Mayfair. You also famously predicted the 2008 financial crisis before it happened. Looking at sustainability and what is going on in the governments around the world at the moment, what do you think the future holds? (27:12)
• How did you find the experience of writing your book, Love, Pain and Money: The Making of a Billionaire? (30:06)
• The Good News Postcard: What has been your most challenging moment and how have you overcome it? (31:52)
• What is one fact about you that people can't find online? (33:27)
• What makes a great business leader? (34:19)

Thanks to Denis from the Jill Dando News for bringing us The Good News Postcard this week. Get your dose of positive news by visiting The Good News Post, a website collated by hundreds of young people aged 8 to 18 in the UK. They've written real-life “news that’s good for you”, covering people, animals, stories to cheer people up, and tips to make lives better.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast and the Business Leader YouTube channel for more interviews with some of the world’s leading business figures.

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