Peter Jones (entrepreneur)
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Peter David Jones (born 18 March 1966), also known as Mr. Global, is a British
entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...
, and
reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...
personality with interests in
mobile phone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whil ...
s,
television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
, media,
leisure Leisure has often been defined as a quality of experience or as free time. Free time is time spent away from business, work, job hunting, domestic chores, and education, as well as necessary activities such as eating and sleeping. Leisure ...
,
retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...
, and
property Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, r ...
. He is the last remaining original investor on the
BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...
show ''
Dragons' Den ''Dragons' Den'' is a reality television program format in which entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hope of securing investment finance from them. The program originated in 2001 in Japan, where it is k ...
'' and on the American television series ''
American Inventor ''American Inventor'' was a reality television series based on a competition to be named America's best inventor. It was conceived by Simon Cowell and the producers of ''American Idol'' afteBen Hausbachappeared on Season 5 with his Cosmic Coaster ...
''. He was appointed
Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(CBE) in the
2009 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2009 were announced on 31 December 2008 in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Barbados, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Christopher and Nevis,Saint Christopher. to ...
. According to the
Sunday Times Rich List The ''Sunday Times Rich List'' is a list of the 1,000 wealthiest people or families resident in the United Kingdom ranked by net wealth. The list is updated annually in April and published as a magazine supplement by British national Sunday news ...
in 2021, Jones is worth an estimated £1.157bn.


Early life

Jones grew up in
Langley, Berkshire Langley, also known as Langley Marish, is a suburb of Slough in Berkshire, South East England. It is east of the town centre of Slough, and west of Charing Cross in Central London. It was a separate civil parish until the 1930s, when the built ...
, before moving to
Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Bu ...
when he was seven, and attended Desborough School and, subsequently,
The Windsor Boys' School The Windsor Boys' School is a comprehensive all-boys upper school and sixth form located on Maidenhead Road in Windsor, Berkshire, England, within the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Local Authority. The school specialises in the arts. ...
.


Career


Businesses

He set up a business in which he made
personal computer A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or tec ...
s under his own brand when he was only 16 years old. However, he lost £200,000 after deciding to sell it to IBM. In an interview with ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'', Jones once said his computer business failed when he was in his twenties; he was forced to give up his three-bedroom home in Bray and his cars, and had to move back in with his parents. He then joined
Siemens Nixdorf Siemens Nixdorf Informationssysteme, AG (SNI) was formed in 1990 by the merger of Nixdorf Computer and the Data Information Services (DIS) division of Siemens. It functioned as a separate company within Siemens. It was the largest information ...
. In his mid-twenties, he opened a cocktail bar in Windsor based on the
Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Gol ...
film ''
Cocktail A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink. Most commonly, cocktails are either a combination of spirits, or one or more spirits mixed with other ingredients such as tonic water, fruit juice, flavored syrup, or cream. Cocktails vary widely across ...
''. After Siemens' acquisition, he set up his next venture, Phones International Group, in April 1998. In the summer of 2005, Jones, together with
Theo Paphitis Theodoros "Theo" Paphitis ( el, Θεόδωρος Παφίτης; born 24 September 1959) is a Greek-Cypriot British retail magnate and entrepreneur. He is best known for his appearances on the BBC business programme ''Dragons' Den'' and as former ...
, a fellow panellist on ''
Dragons' Den ''Dragons' Den'' is a reality television program format in which entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hope of securing investment finance from them. The program originated in 2001 in Japan, where it is k ...
'', bought gift experience company Red Letter Days from another fellow panellist
Rachel Elnaugh Rachel Elnaugh (born 12 December 1964) is a British entrepreneur who founded the UK gift company Red Letter Days. She was one of the investors participating in the first two series of BBC Two's TV show ''Dragons' Den''. Early life When she w ...
, under whose ownership it had collapsed. Jones founded other businesses between 2004 and 2008, including Wines4Business.com, an online retailer specialising in the sale of wine and champagne to corporate clients, and Celsius Resourcing – a specialist recruitment business aiming mostly in biotechnologists. On 1 July 2005, he founded The Peter Jones Foundation, a charity to support the advancement of education in young women, particularly through teachings of enterprise and entrepreneurship. In 2009, Jones founded the
Peter Jones Enterprise Academy The Peter Jones Enterprise Academy, formerly known as the National Enterprise Academy, is an educational initiative offering programmes at a number of colleges and schools in the United Kingdom. History The National Enterprise Academy was foun ...
(PJEA, formerly NEA) to teach entrepreneurial capabilities within the UK. PJEA has several campuses throughout the UK including Amersham, Sheffield, Manchester,
Southend Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authority area with borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary, east of central London. It is bordered ...
and Oxford. In November 2013, it was reported that a new Peter Jones Enterprise Academy was to be opened in Leamington through Warwickshire College. Pupils were to be taught how to enhance a company or key skills in becoming a successful entrepreneur. The academy was to offer the BTEC Level 3 Enterprise and Entrepreneurship at both its Leamington and Rugby campuses. According to his website, some of his investments in businesses that have appeared on ''Dragons' Den'' include luxury lifestyle and culture ''Wonderland'' magazine, Square Mile International, which provides data services for marinas and was later sold to BT, contemporary circus company
The Generating Company The Generating Company was a touring circus company producing large shows and events around the world. Most recent shows include 'Voyage de la Vie' at Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore and 'Aqua' the world's largest water show were located in Sh ...
, Concentrate Design, which makes products claimed to help pupils concentrate at school, Synthetic Genomics, iTeddy and
Reggae Reggae Sauce Reggae Reggae Sauce is a barbecue sauce that incorporates Jamaican jerk spice, popularised by creator Levi Roots' appearance on BBC Two's ''Dragons' Den'', on which he used a song to sell his product. Dragons' Den investor Peter Jones has sinc ...
. He owns a TV production company called Peter Jones TV, and has several property investments (his nine properties include a Portuguese villa that he bought from DJ Chris Evans and a property in Beverly Hills, California). Jones sold part of Phones International Group, Wireless Logic, for £38 million in 2011, retaining the Data Select part. In 2013, Jones became the owner and chief executive of
Jessops Jessops (Group) Limited is a British photographic retailing company. It was established in 1935 by Frank Jessop in Leicester, United Kingdom. The company controls Jessops Europe Limited, which in turn control JR Prop Limited (formally Jessops Re ...
in the United Kingdom. On 6 August 2017, it was announced that Jones and his ''Dragon's Den'' and Red Letter Days partner Theo Paphitis were almost scammed by an accountant who forged cheques over a two-month period. Judge Joanna Greenberg QC warned the accountant at Wood Green Court that "this was a serious offence, a breach of trust over considerable time. Custody is the most likely outcome".


Television and media appearances


''Dragons' Den''

Jones is the sole remaining original Dragon on the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's ''
Dragons' Den ''Dragons' Den'' is a reality television program format in which entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hope of securing investment finance from them. The program originated in 2001 in Japan, where it is k ...
'', which started in January 2005 and has produced nineteen series to date; the current series began in January 2022. Jones had regular conflicts in the Den with former Dragon
Duncan Bannatyne Duncan Walker Bannatyne, (born 2 February 1949) is a Scottish entrepreneur, philanthropist, and author. His business interests include hotels, health clubs, spas, media, TV, and property. He is most famous for his appearance as a business a ...
, who starred on the show from 2005 to 2014.


''American Inventor''

He sold his television show idea called ''The Inventor'' to the
American Broadcasting Company The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American commercial broadcast television network. It is the flagship property of the ABC Entertainment Group division of The Walt Disney Company. The network is headquartered in Burbank, Cali ...
. ''
American Inventor ''American Inventor'' was a reality television series based on a competition to be named America's best inventor. It was conceived by Simon Cowell and the producers of ''American Idol'' afteBen Hausbachappeared on Season 5 with his Cosmic Coaster ...
'', which was co-produced by
Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...
,
Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of ''The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on t ...
and Peter Jones Television, and aired in March 2006. The first episode of ''Inventor'' put ABC ahead of rival networks with a 7.8 average rating and a 13 share. Jones was a judge on the show, broadcast in 2007.


''Tycoon''

After signing "
Golden Handcuffs Golden handcuffs, a phrase first recorded in 1976, refers to financial allurements and benefits that have the objective to encourage highly compensated employees to remain within a company or organization instead of moving from company to company ...
" deal with
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
to appear as their new "face" of business programming, on 21 September 2006 Jones appeared on ''
GMTV GMTV (an acronym for Good Morning Television), now legally known as ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited, was the name of the national Channel 3 breakfast television contractor/licensee, broadcasting in the United Kingdom from 1 January 1993 ...
'' to talk about ''Dragons' Den'' and his new ITV show ''
Tycoon A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through perso ...
'', produced by the Peter Jones Television company. The viewing figures were 2.1 million viewers, which was more than the UK premiere of ''The Apprentice'' and ''Dragons' Den'' when they both broadcast in 2005. The series returned on Monday, 9 July 2007 as a 30-minute format for the 10 pm slot. ''Tycoon'' also inspired Tycoon in Schools, which has now entered its third year of running.


Other television work

In January 2010, Jones appeared alongside his ''Dragons' Den'' co-stars
Duncan Bannatyne Duncan Walker Bannatyne, (born 2 February 1949) is a Scottish entrepreneur, philanthropist, and author. His business interests include hotels, health clubs, spas, media, TV, and property. He is most famous for his appearance as a business a ...
and
Deborah Meaden Deborah Sonia Meaden (born 11 February 1959) is a British businesswoman and TV personality who ran a multimillion-pound family holiday business, before completing a management buyout. She is best known for her appearances as a 'Dragon' on the ...
in the fifth episode of the sixth series of '' Hustle''. Jones appeared in
ITV2 ITV2 is a British free-to-air television channel owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998. For a number of years, it had the largest audience share after the five analogue terrestrial stations, a ...
's ''
Celebrity Juice ''Celebrity Juice'' is a British television comedy panel game on ITV2, broadcast since 24 September 2008. The show is written and presented by Leigh Francis in the role of his alter ego Keith Lemon, and its current team captains Laura Whitmore ...
'' in May 2010, and ''
James Corden's World Cup Live ''James Corden's World Cup Live'' is a comedy chat show hosted by comedian James Corden during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The show was broadcast after every ITV evening match with Abbey Clancy, celebrity guests, a football hero, a studio full of fa ...
'' in June. In November 2010, Jones was a guest panellist in BBC Quiz Show ''
Never Mind the Buzzcocks ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' is a British comedy panel game show with a pop music theme. It has aired on Sky Max since September 2021, having originally aired between November 1996 and January 2015 on BBC Two. The original series was first hoste ...
'', and in '' The Magicians'' in January 2011. Jones has twice participated in the " Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car" segment of ''
Top Gear Top Gear may refer to: * "Top gear", the highest gear available in a vehicle's manual transmission Television * ''Top Gear'' (1977 TV series), a British motoring magazine programme * ''Top Gear'' (2002 TV series), a relaunched version of the or ...
'', once on his own and once with fellow ''
Dragons' Den ''Dragons' Den'' is a reality television program format in which entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hope of securing investment finance from them. The program originated in 2001 in Japan, where it is k ...
'' judge
Theo Paphitis Theodoros "Theo" Paphitis ( el, Θεόδωρος Παφίτης; born 24 September 1959) is a Greek-Cypriot British retail magnate and entrepreneur. He is best known for his appearances on the BBC business programme ''Dragons' Den'' and as former ...
. Jones took over from
Gordon Ramsay Gordon James Ramsay (; born ) is a British chef, restaurateur, television personality and writer. His restaurant group, Gordon Ramsay Restaurants, was founded in 1997 and has been awarded 17 Michelin stars overall; it currently holds a tot ...
as the face of
BT Business BT or Bt may refer to: Arts, media and entertainment The arts * BT (musician) (born Brian Transeau), American electronic musician * ''BT'' (album), a 2000 album by Buck-Tick * Burton Taylor Studio or ''The BT'', managed by Oxford Playhouse Fi ...
in 2008. Jones is also the Ambition Ambassador for the business software company
Sage Group The Sage Group plc, commonly known as Sage, is a British multinational enterprise software company based in North Tyneside, England. As of 2017, it is the UK's second largest technology company, the world's third-largest supplier of enterpri ...
and appears in their television advertising as well as being a customer of the company. * ''Peter Jones Meets'' – BBC 2 (2013) * ''Save Our Business'' – TNT (2014)


Personal life

He is separated from his first wife Caroline, with whom he had two children; Annabelle and William. He lives in Buckinghamshire with his partner, Tara, with whom he has three children. A car enthusiast, Jones's first car was an
Alfa Romeo Alfasud The Alfa Romeo Alfasud (Type 901, 902 and 904) is a small family car manufactured and marketed from 1971 to 1989 by Alfa Romeo as a front-engine, four-door, five-passenger entry-level model over a single generation — with facelifts in 1977 a ...
. He owns several classic and luxury sports cars. Jones is a keen amateur pipe organist and achieved his grade 8 aged 18 (organist review Sept 2005). He is a supporter of
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
football club.


References


External links

*
Dragons' Den Biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Peter People from Maidenhead English businesspeople English television personalities Participants in American reality television series Commanders of the Order of the British Empire 1966 births Conservative Party (UK) donors Living people