Started with: £20,000
After leaving school at 15, Sir Phillip Green started his retail career by importing jeans from the Far East to sell on to retailers in London. Green went on to take over the Arcadia Group – owner of popular high-street chains including Burton, Miss Selfridge and Topshop
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Mike Ashley, Sports Direct, worth £3.75bn
Started with: £10,000
After leaving school at 16, and following an injury, he became a county-level squash coach. In the 1980s Ashley opened his first Sport & Ski shop in Maidenhead, before hitting the big time with Sports Direct on a £10,000 loan.
Sir Richard Branson, Virgin, worth £3.6bn
Started with: £300
Branson created his first magazine aged just 16. In 1970 he founded a mail-order record company and within a year had opened his first shop on London’s Oxford Street, trading as Virgin Records. The Virgin brand now covers everything from telecommunications to space tourism.
Peter Hargreaves, Hargreaves Landsdowne, worth £2.39bn
Started with: £500
Hargreaves and his business partner began their investment broker business from a spare bedroom, with just £500 and their cars as company assets. In 2007 the company was floated on the London stock market valued at £800m.
Sir Anwar Pervez and family, Bestway Group, worth £1.31bn
Started with: £2,200
Born in Pakistan, Pervez moved to the UK aged 21 and later opened his first convenience store, which developed into Bestway Group."
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