I was always interested in ladies' fashion.
— John Caudwell
I'm addicted to the deal, to the next thing. It's irresistible.
I really do feel guilty that I don't visit me mum enough.
Business is about being the best that you can be, and there are always glowing examples of people that we can all learn from.
I considered several names, but Titania, a character from Shakespeare's 'Midsummer Night's Dream', was best able to portray the image I wanted for what is a fantastically elegant and sexy yacht.
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.
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.
I saw that e-mail was insidiously invading Phones 4u, so I banned it immediately.
E-mails are the cancer of modern business.
I couldn't even contemplate anyone even making a film about my life!
People are much more important than superficial environments.
When I came into the mobile phone business, I was really the upstart who pretty much took the business, not quite by storm, but really made an impact on it quite early on. But it was from a position, really, of feeling that I was a last mover.
If you throw money around like confetti, it just becomes shallow and meaningless.
Those of us who have yet to find philanthropy may find there is a far greater reward from it than from wealth creation.
I always felt, right from a youngster, that it was my destiny to be a success. It sounds a little bit egotistical, but I felt I had a calling to do something.
When my back's to the wall, I want to fight.
As the years passed, and I was nine, 10, 11 years old, it became obvious I was going to start up a business of some sort.
I'd much rather leave £2bn to charity, or £3bn or £4bn, than £1bn. That is my motivation to carry on working as hard as I do.
If I died tomorrow, I would regret growing so wealthy and still running the business when there are so many more people I could have helped.
I had challenges to overcome as a child, and that was good.
'Titania' is the best yacht currently afloat of its kind and size. There is very little, if anything, that anybody would go wanting for on 'Titania.'
Taxes aren't the way to go. They'd strangle the economy; you wouldn't create the wealth. And nothing squanders money as well as a government. What we need is to encourage rich people to give.
Business gives you a massive high. Doing a great deal, coming up with an inspirational solution... It's very addictive. But it doesn't last long. In isolation, it's a bit sterile. It doesn't reward the soul.
My main commitment is to Caudwell Children. I put more than £1m a year into the charity, besides a lot of time and effort.
There are lots of brownfield sites in Stoke, but they are not suitable for building executive homes. It needs to be surrounded by fields. It needs to be on greenbelt land. That's what executives want.
People can come to me, and no matter how expert they are, I can virtually always see a way of doing something better.
It's important to show children love, affection and balance and invest time in their moral upbringing.
The power of fear of failure, with will to win, is an incredible force. I don't think we should be worried about having a fear of failure; I think it's quite natural. If you surveyed any top businessman or any top athlete, I bet if they were truthful, they would all say they've got a fear of losing and a fear of failure.
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.
I always switch off from the business when I go across the threshold. Home is home, and I try to keep it that way.
My philosophy is very much to encourage my children to forge their own success and happiness, even though that will undoubtedly involve much more modest levels of wealth creation.
I believe in workers' rights when people are doing a good job.
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.
Before I really even understood what the term meant, I wanted to be wealthy. I wanted to be able to drive the beautiful old Rolls-Royces my father admired when I was a child.
I realised I've got quite a talent for coming up with ideas for design. I've got so many ideas about fashion.
I don't think I'm going to live until I'm 70, no; I could die tomorrow. So there isn't a panic that time is running out, but there is an element that anything could happen.
When the country's indebtedness is so colossal and where the budget deficit is so huge, there is a moral obligation on people to pay their fair and reasonable dues.
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.
OK, I've made a preposterous amount of money. But I was born with the attributes needed to do it.
I decided to leave most of my wealth to my charitable foundation, which is not to be confused with my charity. My charity helps children directly. The charitable foundation will receive most of my legacy when I die.
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.
I do not put my tastes as incredibly expensive, but they are incredibly expensive for an average man.
I suppose I have very undesirable traits. I am very critical, which is very undesirable. But it is good from a business point of view.
I do like a healthy dose of adrenalin, but my character is more rounded. I am not timid; I like excitement.
At the end of the day, if you've got the great idea, and someone judges you've got the managerial capability, you'll probably get the backing for it.
I don't like paying too much for anything or wasting it. I think that I'm more of a balanced individual rather than a dichotomy.
Really good customer service will deliver sales. You are training salesmen to give the best possible advice and then to achieve the sale. People actually like you to ask for a sale because it shows you value their business.
I will give away at least half my wealth during my lifetime and after my death. In the meantime, I'll continue to grow my wealth as much as possible so that the amount I bequeath to charities and worthy causes can be as substantial as possible.
I will stay living in Staffordshire. Other people would be moving offshore. I am reasonably happy to help support the British economy. I have done very well out of Britain.
I just wasn't academic. I wanted to be in the real world.
