0:00:02 > 0:00:05Big business is tough. But I believe there are certain factors that give
0:00:05 > 0:00:09us all a fighting chance of turning our dreams of success into reality.
0:00:11 > 0:00:14I'm on a mission to get inside the minds of some of Britain's
0:00:14 > 0:00:19most successful entrepreneurs and find out how they made it.
0:00:19 > 0:00:21I always knew I was to make a few quid, you know what I mean?
0:00:21 > 0:00:25I don't remember really being content. Enough is never enough.
0:00:25 > 0:00:29I'll be studying their personalities just as hard as their business models.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31Maybe I need the business more than it needs me.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34In a bid to unearth what drives these diverse characters,
0:00:34 > 0:00:37I'll also be asking some difficult questions.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40Have you been told that you're mad?
0:00:40 > 0:00:42Well, I think there's always been a very fine line
0:00:42 > 0:00:44between insanity and genius.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46And I'll be finding out how they survived
0:00:46 > 0:00:49when they faced their biggest challenges.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51I was so busy and I'd had this lump in my breast.
0:00:51 > 0:00:54- So, you realised you had a lump... - Well, yeah, but then...
0:00:54 > 0:00:56- ..and you did nothing about it.- No.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00My goal is to find out if it's our individual DNA
0:01:00 > 0:01:05that controls our destiny or whether there's a blueprint for success.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08Tonight, I'm digging into a pair of thriving businesses with
0:01:08 > 0:01:11wildly different attitudes and approaches to making money.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15I'll be meeting Mark and Mo Constantine, who've turned
0:01:15 > 0:01:19problems into prosperity with cosmetics chain Lush.
0:01:19 > 0:01:23Some of the basic business practices we weren't good at.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26I think we were arrogant, I think we had too long a party
0:01:26 > 0:01:29and I think as a result, we did a much better job the second time around.
0:01:29 > 0:01:34And Chris Dawson, an ex-market trader who's also overcome personal challenges...
0:01:34 > 0:01:37- In those days...- So, you are dyslexic, then?- For sure, yeah.
0:01:37 > 0:01:40I'm not ashamed of it, but when I left school I couldn't...
0:01:40 > 0:01:42Well, I can't write now.
0:01:42 > 0:01:44- You can't write at all? - No, not at all.
0:01:44 > 0:01:48..but now runs The Range, a discount department store business
0:01:48 > 0:01:51that has become a multi-million pound success.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55I want more all the time. Is it greed? OK. Then it's greed.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05Chris Dawson visits each of his 70 discount department stores
0:02:05 > 0:02:06six times a year.
0:02:06 > 0:02:09He's racking up the air miles, but with a reported
0:02:09 > 0:02:14personal fortune of £400 million, it seems to be paying off.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17- I think it's the eight stores today, isn't it?- Eight would be fine, but nine would be good.
0:02:19 > 0:02:24In 2011, Chris' profits were up 30% to £26 million
0:02:24 > 0:02:28with turnover climbing to nearly £300 million.
0:02:28 > 0:02:30No wonder he had a smile on his face as we met,
0:02:30 > 0:02:34ready to make our way to his Bournemouth store.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38- You travel in some style, don't you? - You can talk, look at this.
0:02:38 > 0:02:40- Off to your store?- Are you going to give me a lift?
0:02:40 > 0:02:42- Come on.- Let's get in.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48Ex-market trader Chris likes nothing more than making money fast
0:02:48 > 0:02:52- and splashing the cash. - I love making money. Why?
0:02:52 > 0:02:55Because I like using it, that's why. That's not a crime, is it?
0:02:57 > 0:03:00Chris' stores sell everything from garden gnomes and picnic hampers
0:03:00 > 0:03:03to plasma TVs and karaoke machines.
0:03:05 > 0:03:08My mission is to explore the route Chris took to the top and
0:03:08 > 0:03:11delve into the mind of this market- trader-turned-multimillionaire.
0:03:15 > 0:03:19The Range. I've got my golf clubs in the car. Do you...
0:03:19 > 0:03:20It's not that kind of range, is it?
0:03:20 > 0:03:23There's a firing range - but if we see shoplifters, we just shoot them.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27Are all your store managers like you?
0:03:27 > 0:03:32Most of them are entrepreneurial. They're proper traders, you know.
0:03:32 > 0:03:36For instance, they were opening Sundays, whether the law was correct or not.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39If they could spot a couple of people walking up
0:03:39 > 0:03:43and down the road, they would just open up. Within reason, of course.
0:03:43 > 0:03:45We have got... It's a big company,
0:03:45 > 0:03:47so we've got to have some structure, but...
0:03:47 > 0:03:48So, you were opening on Sundays when
0:03:48 > 0:03:50you're not allowed to open on Sundays.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53Yeah, well, you can go to church first and come to us after.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56Or the other way around, we're not fussy which way you do it.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02'Flouting Sunday trading laws and shooting shoplifters?
0:04:02 > 0:04:04'I'd only been with Chris for a short time
0:04:04 > 0:04:06'and I was enjoying his banter.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09'But I was also wondering how much of what he was going to tell me
0:04:09 > 0:04:11'was actually true.'
0:04:11 > 0:04:14- OK, let me show you around, Peter. - Right, this is going to be fun.
0:04:16 > 0:04:21- What sort of things do you sell, Chris?- Practically everything. It's...
0:04:21 > 0:04:24- What a tremendous line. - Silver Buddha.- Yeah, silver.
0:04:24 > 0:04:27- What would your margin be on that? - A lot.
0:04:27 > 0:04:29PETER LAUGHS
0:04:29 > 0:04:31- Should've guessed that.- Yeah.
0:04:31 > 0:04:35- There'll be quite a lot in the... - It's quite blingy, isn't it?
0:04:35 > 0:04:41Well, that the lamp is in a very famous department store at 122.99.
0:04:41 > 0:04:43- What, the same lamp? - Exactly the same factory.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46And I know because we're in trouble for selling it.
0:04:50 > 0:04:52'Chris clearly isn't afraid to test the boundaries of business.'
0:04:54 > 0:04:57You can put out candles with it and failing that,
0:04:57 > 0:04:59you could put a bell in it and do that, you know.
0:04:59 > 0:05:00It doubles up as a bell.
0:05:02 > 0:05:03'Chris' patter was good.
0:05:03 > 0:05:07'But I didn't want to be taken in by any sales pitch.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10'I did, however, sense that seeing Chris interact with customers
0:05:10 > 0:05:12'was something not to be missed.'
0:05:12 > 0:05:15Who's got all the money? You or Mum?
0:05:15 > 0:05:17- Daddy.- Daddy. I'll get out then.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19- And it's a pound a tin.- Pound a tin?
0:05:19 > 0:05:20Deposit.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22THEY LAUGH
0:05:22 > 0:05:24Chinese, Hong Kong, bing-bong, Taiwan, I gone wrong.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27- How many grandchildren have you got?- 62.- 62?- Yeah.
0:05:27 > 0:05:29You're not a rabbit family, are you?
0:05:29 > 0:05:31- Do you buy stolen gear?- No.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33Well, you just have, here, help yourself.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36We sort of do counterfeit credit cards, if you want to buy any.
0:05:36 > 0:05:37Do you want any of them?
0:05:37 > 0:05:38# Oh, leaning on a lamp post
0:05:38 > 0:05:41# When a certain little lady goes by #
0:05:41 > 0:05:43'Chris was on fire.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45'Showman and salesman, always on the move
0:05:45 > 0:05:47'and always trying to make money.'
0:05:50 > 0:05:54- You love it, don't you? - Absolutely love it. Completely.
0:05:54 > 0:05:59It's like a big circus to me. It's a ringmaster type feeling.
0:05:59 > 0:06:01You know, you've got all the punters, you've got the stock
0:06:01 > 0:06:05and if you can turn the punters on and make sure they buy the kit,
0:06:05 > 0:06:07you end up with a few quid to go with it.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10You know, when I was a market trader, you know,
0:06:10 > 0:06:12we would start when it's dark and leave when it's dark
0:06:12 > 0:06:14and you had to squeeze absolutely every penny,
0:06:14 > 0:06:17cos you never knew what tomorrow would bring and once
0:06:17 > 0:06:21I hit the stock, the customers and the old chemistry just fires up.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26My time with Chris was certainly going to be entertaining.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29His market trader past was clearly in his DNA.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33But before digging into it, I had an appointment with
0:06:33 > 0:06:36Mark and Mo Constantine in Poole.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40Their company is cleaning up in the highly competitive cosmetics industry.
0:06:40 > 0:06:41- Mark?- Good to see you.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45- Good to meet you.- Hi, lovely to see you.- Great to meet you. Well, this is it.
0:06:45 > 0:06:46This is our lovely factory,
0:06:46 > 0:06:48if you'd like to come in, I'll show you round.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50- After you.- Thank you.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53'This husband and wife team own over 850 shops worldwide
0:06:53 > 0:07:01'and in 2012, sold £368 million worth of soap, shampoo and scents.'
0:07:02 > 0:07:05The UK's cosmetics and toiletries industry is worth
0:07:05 > 0:07:08a reported £8 billion a year.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11With record profits of over £30 million,
0:07:11 > 0:07:14the Constantines are laying claim to a healthy slice of this.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18But Mark and Mo claim it's not all about the money.
0:07:18 > 0:07:21We're often presented as an ethical business.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24I don't see us in that light really, if I'm honest.
0:07:24 > 0:07:29I hope that we do business as one should do business, I think
0:07:29 > 0:07:31that's how everyone should do business.
0:07:33 > 0:07:36I want to discover how Mark and Mo balance their principles
0:07:36 > 0:07:38with profit.
0:07:38 > 0:07:40If you'd like to come in here, Peter,
0:07:40 > 0:07:42this is the room we call the dairy.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44This is where most of our products are made.
0:07:44 > 0:07:47We've always likened ourselves to a kitchen,
0:07:47 > 0:07:51so many of the ingredients that we use you could cook with, you can eat.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54We've got some olive branch shower gel being made
0:07:54 > 0:07:57and Bob is over there juicing mandarins.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01So all of your products have natural ingredients within them.
0:08:01 > 0:08:05So you've really got to get your product there, ready, done,
0:08:05 > 0:08:06manufactured very quickly.
0:08:06 > 0:08:09And out there. You have a 36-month life cycle
0:08:09 > 0:08:11on the conventional cosmetic.
0:08:11 > 0:08:13We have a 12-month cycle on ours
0:08:13 > 0:08:16and we tell people when it comes to an end,
0:08:16 > 0:08:17so we have this really fast turnaround,
0:08:17 > 0:08:20so you have to make the product, get it out, get it in the shops,
0:08:20 > 0:08:23get it sold and then move on.
0:08:27 > 0:08:32Husband and wife Mark and Mo started Lush with five co-founders in 1995.
0:08:35 > 0:08:36It smells fabulous.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39Cosmetics have excited me since I was 14.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42I loved the idea of changing people's appearance.
0:08:44 > 0:08:49I find it intriguing that you can make somebody feel so much better
0:08:49 > 0:08:53about themselves by virtue of them using something lovely.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57They've always invented their own products,
0:08:57 > 0:08:59making them using no preservatives where possible,
0:08:59 > 0:09:03little packaging and no ingredients tested on animals.
0:09:03 > 0:09:04Yeah, very nice.
0:09:04 > 0:09:07'They're principles that we've adhered to over the years.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11'We've prided ourselves on being able to offer the general public'
0:09:11 > 0:09:16an alternative to an animal-tested product and we have stuck with it.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22Mark and Mo say they manage their business based on their passions
0:09:22 > 0:09:23and principles.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26I wanted to discover the origins of both
0:09:26 > 0:09:28and see if they really put them into practice.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37As a business, I'm getting the sense that the environmental credentials
0:09:37 > 0:09:39are absolutely paramount.
0:09:39 > 0:09:41It's not the credentials. It's the principle.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44The principle of what you're trying to achieve within the business.
0:09:44 > 0:09:49There's a difference. Credentials would be greenwash. The principles are the principles,
0:09:49 > 0:09:51they're the things we want to achieve.
0:09:51 > 0:09:55You're always trying to aim to get to a situation where there's no waste.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58Where everything that you've used comes back and is used again,
0:09:58 > 0:10:00everything is used again, everything is used again,
0:10:00 > 0:10:04so that you don't have large amounts of resources just being
0:10:04 > 0:10:06squandered and then put into landfill.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15Despite only spending a short amount of time with Chris Dawson,
0:10:15 > 0:10:19I was pretty sure that sacrificing bigger profits for the sake
0:10:19 > 0:10:22of the environment wasn't top of his to-do list.
0:10:22 > 0:10:27Arriving at his HQ in Plymouth confirmed my suspicions.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30There were some nice cars in the car park, but I was expecting
0:10:30 > 0:10:34a man as flash as Chris to have a slightly grander entrance.
0:10:36 > 0:10:39- Chris.- Peter, good morning, how are you?- This is it. This is your empire.
0:10:39 > 0:10:42- You're at HQ.- What am I going to see?- You're going to see not a lot.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45This is what £2-a-foot looks like. OK?
0:10:45 > 0:10:47If we had a gold-plated head office,
0:10:47 > 0:10:50would I take any more money in Bolton and Wigan?
0:10:50 > 0:10:51Well, the answer's clearly no.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56Chris might currently be riding high in the rich lists,
0:10:56 > 0:11:00employing over 5,000 staff and running 70 stores nationwide,
0:11:00 > 0:11:05but he started in the '70s as a market trader, selling moccasins.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08His stall went from strength to strength
0:11:08 > 0:11:12and by the early '80s, he says he was earning up to £38,000 a week,
0:11:12 > 0:11:17selling everything from pots and pans to wellies and watches.
0:11:17 > 0:11:21See, you've got The Sun, real-life Del Boy. Is that you?
0:11:21 > 0:11:23A large part of it. I do believe so.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27There was definitely bits that was deja vu. I thought, "I've said that.
0:11:27 > 0:11:32"We've looked like that." And some of the stories were uncannily close
0:11:32 > 0:11:35and some of the sayings, when they were selling watches and the like...
0:11:35 > 0:11:38- And do you carry any watches? - I carry a few watches, yeah.
0:11:38 > 0:11:42When I go out of an evening I get told off by her indoors,
0:11:42 > 0:11:44I do knock at a few watches and lighters because I have a theory,
0:11:44 > 0:11:47- if I want to go knock two or three hundred quid out...- You don't!
0:11:47 > 0:11:51You don't go out to dinner with your wife and sell watches, do you?!
0:11:51 > 0:11:55- I get scanned before I go out. - I'm a bit worried. I'm going to...
0:11:55 > 0:11:57I'm going to make this safe already!
0:11:57 > 0:11:59Well, I do expensive watches!
0:11:59 > 0:12:00Are you going to show me around?
0:12:00 > 0:12:03I'm going to show you around. There's plenty more to see.
0:12:03 > 0:12:07After you. After me, after you. All right. Same thing.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11'I had the feeling that my time with Chris was going to be fun, but
0:12:11 > 0:12:15'I was determined to get to know the real man behind the Del Boy facade.'
0:12:17 > 0:12:20When not spending time opening stores in the UK,
0:12:20 > 0:12:23Chris splashes the cash on his villa in Cannes.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27This is where I get fed.
0:12:27 > 0:12:31I don't know where everything is. There's a dishwasher here somewhere.
0:12:31 > 0:12:33My business strategy has always been the same.
0:12:33 > 0:12:37Go like hell, go as fast as you can, get as much as you can
0:12:37 > 0:12:38for as long as you can.
0:12:40 > 0:12:45So this is the staff kitchen where it's got all the...
0:12:45 > 0:12:47I don't know what that is, even.
0:12:48 > 0:12:52If you create success, then you get paid.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55This wasn't free, was it? This was a lot of graft.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58I absolutely love trading. Turning a pound into five pound...
0:12:58 > 0:13:01Hang on, I'll just correct that. The Revenue could be watching this.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03Turning a pound into £1.50.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05I do a lot of thinking here,
0:13:05 > 0:13:09I do an amazing lot of thinking with a glass of vino.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14I don't remember really being content or satisfied,
0:13:14 > 0:13:16and enough is never enough.
0:13:16 > 0:13:21Chris's thirst for success and its trappings is insatiable.
0:13:21 > 0:13:23But will he be as open or bold
0:13:23 > 0:13:26when I try to find out how his business mind really works?
0:13:32 > 0:13:34Chris, these are all your stores.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37We used to own a fair few of these, but we don't any more.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41I could show you a mathematical fact it's actually cheaper to pay rent
0:13:41 > 0:13:42than have all that money sat there.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45That money should be off doing something else like buying stock
0:13:45 > 0:13:50- and...- That's how you raised a lot of your capital, to finance
0:13:50 > 0:13:53- the growth of the business? - Yeah, yeah.- Clever.
0:13:53 > 0:13:55It's... It's...
0:13:55 > 0:13:58You can't pull your socks up if you can't reach them, can you?
0:13:58 > 0:14:03And what we've done over the years, it might look clever now, but
0:14:03 > 0:14:06I'm not being arrogant, but isn't that what you're supposed to do?
0:14:06 > 0:14:10Buy, sell, buy, sell, invest profit
0:14:10 > 0:14:12and the rest should be self-fulfilling.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15If you can only open two stores here, open two.
0:14:15 > 0:14:18OK, we can go round buying big groups of stores,
0:14:18 > 0:14:22but if you do a 10, maybe 15-year programme, or a 20-year programme,
0:14:22 > 0:14:26we'll financially end up at the same place, but with a surplus of money.
0:14:26 > 0:14:28And what's the average margin you make?
0:14:28 > 0:14:30- Gross margin?- Oh, dear, oh, dear.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32We're up there with anybody else's margin.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36- That's as close as you're going to get to that one.- 60% gross?
0:14:36 > 0:14:38- Wouldn't that be nice?- 40?
0:14:38 > 0:14:41- 40? No, no.- 50?
0:14:41 > 0:14:44- It's...- It's high, isn't it?
0:14:44 > 0:14:46Well, it keeps me in Bentleys.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49'Chris was obviously avoiding giving me real information,
0:14:49 > 0:14:53'but that wasn't going to stop me from getting it in the end.'
0:14:53 > 0:14:56Well, it looks a bit like a jumble sale
0:14:56 > 0:14:58but it's a jumble sale that makes a lot of money.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01'I wondered whether a tour of the office would reveal more
0:15:01 > 0:15:03'about his business ethos.'
0:15:03 > 0:15:06You wouldn't believe that sells for a pound, would you?
0:15:06 > 0:15:11- Well, you'd be right, it doesn't. It's £4.99.- So what is all this?
0:15:11 > 0:15:14- What's in here?- Well, there's two buying departments.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16Do they know where everything is?
0:15:16 > 0:15:18It looks like a little bit of a disorganised mess.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21Well...we tidied up, actually.
0:15:21 > 0:15:25- I notice there's a few cables hanging down.- Yeah, well, yeah.
0:15:25 > 0:15:29- Is that all right?- What's all right? What's the matter with it?
0:15:29 > 0:15:32I don't know, they look a little bit unsafe to me.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35No, it's designer, it's meant to be like that.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Perfection is too costly.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42I'm prepared to put up with the bits and pieces here and there
0:15:42 > 0:15:45because the cost of that, I'm spending £20 to earn a tenner.
0:15:45 > 0:15:47- No point.- But if you're buying team bought the wrong product
0:15:47 > 0:15:50at the wrong price, you'd be in trouble, wouldn't you?
0:15:50 > 0:15:52THEY would, yeah.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54They would be in big trouble. But if...
0:15:54 > 0:15:56This is a very interesting point.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59Let's just say, for instance, this beautiful piece here.
0:15:59 > 0:16:03If that was a wrong line and it cost us a tenner,
0:16:03 > 0:16:06and we sold it for a fiver, what does that say?
0:16:06 > 0:16:07It means you've lost £5.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10Well, what the hell are we doing losing five pounds?
0:16:10 > 0:16:11Why don't we sell it for a pound
0:16:11 > 0:16:14and use that money we're losing and call it marketing?
0:16:14 > 0:16:17Because if you walked out with that under your arm for a quid,
0:16:17 > 0:16:19you're the biggest advertising board I've ever had.
0:16:19 > 0:16:22If you don't tell ten people, I'll eat my hat,
0:16:22 > 0:16:25- so if we've ruined it, we then convert it into marketing.- Yeah.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28So they're going to buy that for one pound.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31It cost you ten, so you lose nine, but they're going to come back
0:16:31 > 0:16:33and buy three toilet brushes at 5 quid that cost you 50p?
0:16:33 > 0:16:37Well, I'm not going to say how much we paid for them but you're close.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44'It's clear that it's profit that's on Chris's agenda.
0:16:44 > 0:16:48'I was beginning to see a sharp business brain beneath Chris's
0:16:48 > 0:16:49'Del Boy disguise.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52'And I sensed that there was still much more to discover.'
0:16:56 > 0:17:00Mark and Mo had convinced me that they take their responsibility
0:17:00 > 0:17:02to the environment seriously.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04But they run a massive business,
0:17:04 > 0:17:07employing around 10,000 people worldwide,
0:17:07 > 0:17:10so can they be as caring towards their staff as they are the planet?
0:17:10 > 0:17:13- What's it like working for Lush? - Well, it's great, really.
0:17:13 > 0:17:15I've been here since I left school
0:17:15 > 0:17:17so I've been here for nearly 15 years now.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Is there anything unusual that the company does?
0:17:20 > 0:17:23- There's lots unusual that we do. - Is there?- Yeah.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27Every year Mark and Mo dish out wish lists to the managers.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30I wanted to work on R&D sort of stuff,
0:17:30 > 0:17:33so I put that on my wish list and it came true.
0:17:33 > 0:17:36- Can you put anything down on the wish? Could I wish to...- People do.
0:17:36 > 0:17:38They put bizarre things down sometimes.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41Someone wanted us to organise a wedding in Italy. We did that.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43- You did it?- Yes, absolutely.
0:17:43 > 0:17:45Wow.
0:17:46 > 0:17:49Mark and Mo's intriguing way of incentivising their workforce
0:17:49 > 0:17:52got me thinking about Chris's attitude to his staff.
0:17:55 > 0:17:56This is the hub.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59'He told me that he'd scrapped his HR department, and I sense that
0:17:59 > 0:18:03'he would rather be chasing invoices than organising staff wish lists.'
0:18:03 > 0:18:06We're pretty strict on everything we do here.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08The old saying, look after the pennies,
0:18:08 > 0:18:11the pounds will look after themselves. That was £1.20 out.
0:18:11 > 0:18:12That's an invoice
0:18:12 > 0:18:16- and they've sent their paperwork back for £1.20 credit.- Correct.
0:18:16 > 0:18:22But sometimes I could be chasing 120. It's meticulous down to every penny.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26As well managing a chain of retail stores,
0:18:26 > 0:18:29Chris is a property developer, runs a carpet cleaning company
0:18:29 > 0:18:32and, amongst others, a shopfitting business.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35Any other business that's not related to retail?
0:18:36 > 0:18:40- Er... - That you're not telling me about.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43Yeah, I don't think I'll tell you the other one. Not yet anyway.
0:18:43 > 0:18:44What's the other one?
0:18:44 > 0:18:46Erm...
0:18:48 > 0:18:49I might regret saying this,
0:18:49 > 0:18:52but we know there's an amazing problem with lending money.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54That's going to go on for three to four more years.
0:18:54 > 0:18:56I'll look at a company,
0:18:56 > 0:19:00providing I can hold enough of their property, I'll loan them money.
0:19:00 > 0:19:02- So you...- I loan money, yeah.
0:19:02 > 0:19:04- Basically.- Like a loan shark?
0:19:04 > 0:19:08- Well, I wouldn't say a loan shark. - Do you charge normal rates?- No, no.
0:19:08 > 0:19:11- No, not at all. No, I charge as much as...- High rates?
0:19:11 > 0:19:12Yeah, very high rates.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14Chris, come on, what's the difference?
0:19:14 > 0:19:17The difference is, you can tell me to get stuffed.
0:19:17 > 0:19:21- You don't have to have it, do you? - If I asked you for £1 million, what would you lend it at?
0:19:21 > 0:19:23I'd charge you as much as I'd look at your business can afford.
0:19:23 > 0:19:27If I was to charge you 200 grand and realise that you can only do 50,
0:19:27 > 0:19:30you'll go skint, what's the point? I won't get my money back.
0:19:30 > 0:19:32The only reason people come and see me,
0:19:32 > 0:19:33cos all the other doors are shut.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36They don't come and see me cos they like me.
0:19:36 > 0:19:39I wouldn't say last chance saloon - we're a service
0:19:39 > 0:19:43but I will not allow people to borrow millions off me,
0:19:43 > 0:19:46or 500 grand or whatever, if I think they can't pay it back.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48I will study that business.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51And if I make a fool of myself or I blow the money...
0:19:52 > 0:19:54Do you not think doing all these different things,
0:19:54 > 0:19:58there will come a point where you will drop a ball somewhere?
0:19:58 > 0:20:00I hope so, because that means...
0:20:00 > 0:20:03If I can juggle every ball easily, well,
0:20:03 > 0:20:05I should be doing two or three more, shouldn't I?
0:20:05 > 0:20:06Or doing more of the same.
0:20:06 > 0:20:10If I start to drop balls, I know I've maximised myself.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12And that's a good point. You've maximised.
0:20:12 > 0:20:16My job today is to beat yesterday, and tomorrow I want to beat today.
0:20:16 > 0:20:17It's not a problem, is it?
0:20:17 > 0:20:21If I won four gold medals, could I have won five or six?
0:20:21 > 0:20:25'I know from experience how hard it is to juggle more than one business.'
0:20:26 > 0:20:28Managed incorrectly
0:20:28 > 0:20:31and Chris's diverse business interests might become a hindrance.
0:20:31 > 0:20:33But I can see that he loves trading
0:20:33 > 0:20:36and will do all that he can to simply make more money.
0:20:40 > 0:20:44Chris is refreshingly upfront about his motivation,
0:20:44 > 0:20:47but so far, Mark and Mo have been less revealing about their attitude
0:20:47 > 0:20:49to cash. I wanted to know
0:20:49 > 0:20:54if they were as excited about profit as they were about their principles.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56So here we are in the ballistic room.
0:20:56 > 0:20:59This is where all our bath bombs are made.
0:21:02 > 0:21:06Mark, Mo and the team produce and sell over 300 products.
0:21:06 > 0:21:10And one of their bestselling and most lucrative is the bath bomb.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13How many bath bombs will be made a day?
0:21:13 > 0:21:19- At the moment, they're making about 60,000 in a day.- In a day?- Yeah.
0:21:19 > 0:21:20Yeah. And I think they topped...
0:21:20 > 0:21:24Last year we topped about 15 million in the whole year.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28- Who came up with the idea? - That would be me, primarily,
0:21:28 > 0:21:32- in the late '80s. - How does that make you feel?
0:21:32 > 0:21:34You've created a product that sells 15 million.
0:21:34 > 0:21:38- Terrified, actually. Yeah. - Not excited, but terrified?
0:21:38 > 0:21:41I'm terrified at the success of it all, I think.
0:21:41 > 0:21:46Because when I'm making things, for a start we were very hungry,
0:21:46 > 0:21:49you don't flash forward and think, "This will be great,
0:21:49 > 0:21:52"we could make 15 million of these." Do you know what I mean?
0:21:52 > 0:21:54It's not how you work.
0:21:54 > 0:21:58Does Mo often tease you that, really, she was the one that's made
0:21:58 > 0:21:59this all happen?
0:21:59 > 0:22:02Has that conversation ever happened in the bedroom,
0:22:02 > 0:22:05- if you don't mind me being so rude? - What, pillow talk?- Pillow talk.
0:22:05 > 0:22:08We've got a little rule that we won't talk about business
0:22:08 > 0:22:10without our underwear on!
0:22:11 > 0:22:14There aren't many married couples in business as successful
0:22:14 > 0:22:16as Mark and Mo.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19'I wondered how they had divided their roles
0:22:19 > 0:22:21'and whether two heads are better than one.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25'So it's time for me to get hands-on, even if it does mean wearing
0:22:25 > 0:22:27'an apron and rubber gloves.'
0:22:27 > 0:22:31- First of all, you're going to dip into this bucket here.- Yeah.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35Put a nice dollop of white topping in. Just press it in...
0:22:35 > 0:22:37'I wanted to find out the ingredients at the centre
0:22:37 > 0:22:39'of their success.'
0:22:39 > 0:22:42Slam those two parts together and sort of screw them round
0:22:42 > 0:22:46till the two halves of the mould meet. How is that looking?
0:22:46 > 0:22:50- I think mine is better than yours. - Do you reckon? OK.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54What's the secret of your success working together?
0:22:56 > 0:23:00- Please tell me you've got a secret!- We haven't got a secret.
0:23:00 > 0:23:04- No, I'm sorry. We have no secret. - I think it's just habit, isn't it?
0:23:04 > 0:23:08- Rub along well together.- It can't be easy. Husband and wife. Come on.
0:23:08 > 0:23:12We have very, very different places that we work,
0:23:12 > 0:23:15so you never see me in this environment, this is Mo's favourite environment.
0:23:15 > 0:23:17So that makes a big difference.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20Mo looks after manufacturing worldwide, with her team.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23I look after the retail more and the business side more.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26I'm broad-stroke, you're medium-stroke.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29- And I like to get things done as well.- I'm not interested in detail.
0:23:29 > 0:23:31No. I'm very practical.
0:23:31 > 0:23:35And so when I suspect that either someone's life or their time
0:23:35 > 0:23:38or their energy is going to be wasted, I do like to just get
0:23:38 > 0:23:41to the nub of it there and then and say, I don't think we should do this.
0:23:41 > 0:23:46- I've got this thing about success - marry well.- There we are.
0:23:46 > 0:23:48- And you've done that. - I was thinking Mo!
0:23:53 > 0:23:57Childhood sweethearts Mark and Mo married in 1973.
0:23:59 > 0:24:01Initially, Mark worked as a hairdresser.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08But in the early '70s, Mark set up a small beauty salon in Poole,
0:24:08 > 0:24:10with his friend and colleague Liz Weir.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14It wasn't long before Mo joined them full-time,
0:24:14 > 0:24:17developing new products in her garden shed.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20It was here that Mo invented the bath bomb.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25I'll tell you what, if I had met Mo 20 years ago and knew
0:24:25 > 0:24:28she was going to sell 15 million of these, I would have married her.
0:24:28 > 0:24:30- Yes, well hard luck - I was there first.- Oh, boys!
0:24:35 > 0:24:39Mark and Mo's formidable partnership has helped them face
0:24:39 > 0:24:42the many challenges that business has brought their way.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47'The growth of Chris Dawson's business has also been
0:24:47 > 0:24:51'a labour of love. But before I left his HQ, I wanted to separate fact
0:24:51 > 0:24:55'from fiction, and hear more about his muse.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57'Money.'
0:24:57 > 0:24:59Chris, why are we sitting here?
0:24:59 > 0:25:02Well, it's my jungle. It's my environment.
0:25:02 > 0:25:06In fact, when the final day comes, you can bury me amongst the stock.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09- I love it.- You want to be buried in your warehouse?
0:25:09 > 0:25:12Well, I've got loads but this'll do, it's fine.
0:25:12 > 0:25:17- There's clearly no luck in this. - No, no.- What is your business ethos?
0:25:17 > 0:25:20OK, well, if you maximise the day, you know,
0:25:20 > 0:25:24if I can get 70 minutes out of every hour, there is no relax,
0:25:24 > 0:25:28there is no, "That'll do," there is no, "That's almost right,
0:25:28 > 0:25:30"we'll do this tomorrow."
0:25:30 > 0:25:32I don't mind having a sense of humour,
0:25:32 > 0:25:35but I'll put the energy into what is going to be the biggest return.
0:25:35 > 0:25:38What about success? How do you measure success?
0:25:38 > 0:25:42OK, well, success to me is a big scoreboard in the sky,
0:25:42 > 0:25:45and I challenge myself to beat figures - turnover figures,
0:25:45 > 0:25:49net profit figures, balance sheets, the amount of stores.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53How long the applause was when I done a speech. I want more all the time.
0:25:53 > 0:25:55Is it greed? OK.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Then it's greed. I'm very, very greedy for more success.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04One of the secrets to Chris's success is his belief that
0:26:04 > 0:26:06he can make the impossible happen.
0:26:06 > 0:26:10He set up one of Britain's first discount superstores,
0:26:10 > 0:26:12just outside Plymouth in the late '80s.
0:26:12 > 0:26:16It sold everything, from toys and homeware to DIY equipment
0:26:16 > 0:26:20and jewellery. Within four months, turnover hit £1 million
0:26:20 > 0:26:26and Chris claims to have made a £250,000 profit in his first year.
0:26:26 > 0:26:30By 2009, Chris was in a position to make a deal so outrageous
0:26:30 > 0:26:33that its details have remain secret.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35Until now.
0:26:35 > 0:26:39You did a deal, and a pretty successful one, with MFI.
0:26:39 > 0:26:41- Yes, that's right. - Tell me what happened.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46Yeah, it depends if you want the drunken version, the real version,
0:26:46 > 0:26:50the version I need to tell the Revenue or the Trading Standards.
0:26:50 > 0:26:53- Which one do you want? - Give me the real one.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55I'm going to give you the real one. OK. We...
0:26:55 > 0:26:58Everybody was up to buy this MFI.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03We told the press at the time that we had amazing competition.
0:27:03 > 0:27:07There wasn't one. Because we got the press out first.
0:27:07 > 0:27:10They said, "Dawson's in battle with five or eight people."
0:27:10 > 0:27:14We probably made the names up. But the press, bless them, printed it.
0:27:14 > 0:27:16So you had no competition.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20Well, after what we done, well, we would've if... So...
0:27:20 > 0:27:21That's life, isn't it?
0:27:21 > 0:27:25So I'm sat in a deckchair in Barbados and funny enough,
0:27:25 > 0:27:27we had a Del Boy thing.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31You know, the umbrella. This is true.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34And, "Mr Dawson?" I said, "Yes, quite right."
0:27:34 > 0:27:37And he said, "About this MFI stock..."
0:27:37 > 0:27:40And I thought, "Great, I can see the pound notes now."
0:27:40 > 0:27:42And I said, "OK, I'll have it all.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47"Every bit of it. Forklifts, the lot." And I put the phone down.
0:27:47 > 0:27:50- How much for?- I'm not telling you.
0:27:50 > 0:27:5215 seconds had gone by.
0:27:53 > 0:27:56I'm going like this. 20 seconds.
0:27:56 > 0:28:0130 seconds. I'm over a minute now. I thought, "Dawson, you've blown it.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04"You ain't so clever as you think you are." Ring, ring.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07The guy's on the end of the phone. I felt like kissing him.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10"Erm, erm, erm..." A bit flustered.
0:28:10 > 0:28:11"Erm, you...
0:28:11 > 0:28:15"You said you'd have all of it, but you don't know the price."
0:28:15 > 0:28:19I said, "You don't know what I'm going to give you either. Goodbye." It went on like that.
0:28:19 > 0:28:21And what did you pay for it?
0:28:21 > 0:28:24- Erm, not a lot.- Say it quietly. You can whisper it to me.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27Well, we'll have a competition.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30So if I had paid nine million, you'd have thought I was a star.
0:28:30 > 0:28:34If I'd paid eight, you'd have thought, "This boy's nicked it."
0:28:34 > 0:28:39- Had I paid six, you'd think, "He's telling lies."- Yeah.
0:28:39 > 0:28:42Had I paid five, you would've thought I'd been drinking.
0:28:43 > 0:28:47All I'm going to tell you, I got change out of three mill.
0:28:47 > 0:28:51And I can remember drinking I don't know how many of these other things
0:28:51 > 0:28:54in Barbados and I fell off the chair and said,
0:28:54 > 0:28:58"I think I've just bought a hell of a deal." We made a lot of money on it.
0:28:58 > 0:29:00- A lot.- Wow.
0:29:02 > 0:29:06If that was the real version, it's an incredible revelation.
0:29:06 > 0:29:11Having tricked the opposition into retreating, Chris secured himself
0:29:11 > 0:29:16at least £60 million worth of retail goods for just under three.
0:29:16 > 0:29:18You sail really close to the wind.
0:29:20 > 0:29:23How far are you prepared to go to be successful?
0:29:25 > 0:29:26What it takes.
0:29:26 > 0:29:29Whatever it takes is what I'll do.
0:29:29 > 0:29:32I just desperately want to win. And I mean desperate.
0:29:34 > 0:29:38Chris certainly tells a good story, but I was left wondering
0:29:38 > 0:29:42if he's an expert entrepreneur, a relentless genius or both.
0:29:42 > 0:29:46Whichever way you look at it, he deserves to be given credit
0:29:46 > 0:29:50for building a reported personal fortune of over £400 million
0:29:50 > 0:29:51from nothing.
0:29:57 > 0:30:00Mark and Mo may have some seriously green credentials,
0:30:00 > 0:30:03but let's not forget that they too are guided in part
0:30:03 > 0:30:05by the colour of money.
0:30:05 > 0:30:11I'm curious how they use their fortune, estimated at £150 million.
0:30:13 > 0:30:17Normally when you meet entrepreneurs running successful businesses,
0:30:17 > 0:30:20especially, you know, not even perhaps the size of your business,
0:30:20 > 0:30:24there's normally a little bit of... the trappings of success are shown.
0:30:24 > 0:30:28- They're either hidden in the car park with some nice flashy cars. - I've got a very nice jacket!
0:30:28 > 0:30:30Do you not think I'm looking...?
0:30:30 > 0:30:32Yeah, as I was saying, Mark!
0:30:32 > 0:30:34- Lovely jacket.- Thank you.
0:30:36 > 0:30:39Money. Is it like the unspoken word?
0:30:39 > 0:30:41No, we talk about it.
0:30:41 > 0:30:42- You do?- Yeah.
0:30:42 > 0:30:45The money we have we're either spending on ourselves
0:30:45 > 0:30:47or we're giving to someone else to spend.
0:30:47 > 0:30:50You can give small amounts of money to dynamic groups
0:30:50 > 0:30:53and they can make it go so far. And that's really exciting.
0:30:53 > 0:30:56That what we can do, in our business,
0:30:56 > 0:30:58is really make a contribution.
0:31:00 > 0:31:03Donating to good causes is not unusual,
0:31:03 > 0:31:06but the Constantines have used their company to protest
0:31:06 > 0:31:08against some very high profile issues.
0:31:08 > 0:31:14In 2008, they campaigned for fair trials at the Guantanamo Bay prison.
0:31:14 > 0:31:18- It was a suggestion from Clive Stafford Smith, wasn't it?- Yeah.
0:31:18 > 0:31:19Human rights lawyer.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22He's a human rights lawyer and he actually coined the phrase
0:31:22 > 0:31:24"Buy one, set one free."
0:31:24 > 0:31:29And I knew straightaway then that was a product,
0:31:29 > 0:31:35and so while the discussion was going on at the time, I nipped over
0:31:35 > 0:31:39to my lab and I made the ballistic that had a peace dove on the top.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42So you literally would put this product into your bath
0:31:42 > 0:31:44and it would float. Yeah.
0:31:44 > 0:31:46- We sold that.- Really?- Yeah.
0:31:46 > 0:31:49So that was a really successful thing.
0:31:49 > 0:31:52It was successful because they were both released.
0:31:52 > 0:31:54And how far would you go?
0:31:55 > 0:31:58Well, we had a situation with the hunt job where we were
0:31:58 > 0:32:01selling a product on behalf of hunt saboteurs.
0:32:01 > 0:32:05And hunt supporters came in, intimidated the staff,
0:32:05 > 0:32:06pushed things off the shelf.
0:32:06 > 0:32:09That was a bit of an issue for me because I don't like the thought
0:32:09 > 0:32:12that our staff were put in some kind of danger.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15I wasn't expecting that kind of reaction from hunt supporters.
0:32:15 > 0:32:20But I wouldn't really put someone else in danger if I could avoid it.
0:32:20 > 0:32:21No, absolutely.
0:32:22 > 0:32:26'Their controversial campaigning shows that the Constantines
0:32:26 > 0:32:28'have a steely backbone.
0:32:28 > 0:32:32'But I wondered if the accompanying publicity brought other benefits.'
0:32:32 > 0:32:35You've dealt with very controversial issues out there,
0:32:35 > 0:32:38- not just in the UK market but in a global sense.- Yeah.
0:32:38 > 0:32:40Is that PR, or is that a belief?
0:32:41 > 0:32:43It can be both, of course.
0:32:43 > 0:32:47It can be your belief and it can create publicity.
0:32:47 > 0:32:50There's always this sort of thing like, you know,
0:32:50 > 0:32:52they're doing that for the publicity.
0:32:52 > 0:32:56Well, if it creates an interest, it gets the message out there,
0:32:56 > 0:33:00and it sells a product, you know? Where's the problem?
0:33:05 > 0:33:09Mark and Mo have built their company around some strong principles,
0:33:09 > 0:33:12and even used their ideals as a powerful marketing tool.
0:33:14 > 0:33:18It is clear that the Constantines have proved that you can mix profit
0:33:18 > 0:33:21with politics. But I was left wondering
0:33:21 > 0:33:24whether these happy hippies had always found business so easy.
0:33:26 > 0:33:30What most surprised me about Mark and Mo were their honest answers
0:33:30 > 0:33:33to some pretty sensitive questions.
0:33:33 > 0:33:36I was hoping to make the same breakthrough with Chris Dawson.
0:33:38 > 0:33:40- There we go, Chris. - Thank you very much, sir.
0:33:40 > 0:33:44Chris, like all good entrepreneurs, sees openings and opportunity
0:33:44 > 0:33:46in everything that he does.
0:33:46 > 0:33:49He's proud to be open about wanting more
0:33:49 > 0:33:51and showing how determined he is to achieve it.
0:33:53 > 0:33:58I wanted to get to the root of his success by exploring his childhood,
0:33:58 > 0:34:02and that meant going back to where it all started - his old school.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08- So this is it.- This is it.
0:34:13 > 0:34:14Long time ago, eh?
0:34:20 > 0:34:24- Were you academic at school?- Oh, no, not at all. I didn't have a clue.
0:34:24 > 0:34:30I struggled to write the date on the top and the answers, no.
0:34:30 > 0:34:33Completely no. I didn't really enjoy school.
0:34:33 > 0:34:36- You didn't?- No, because it was awkward for me.
0:34:36 > 0:34:39I was forever in trouble simply because I didn't have an ability
0:34:39 > 0:34:40to learn anything.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44It just went over my head, practically everything I done.
0:34:44 > 0:34:46Were you dyslexic? Have you got any...
0:34:46 > 0:34:51Yeah, yeah, dyslexic, yes. Indeed I was. But in those days...
0:34:51 > 0:34:53- So you are dyslexic, then? - For sure, yeah.
0:34:53 > 0:34:57And in those days they would call it backward,
0:34:57 > 0:34:59but it was no big offensive thing then, was it?
0:34:59 > 0:35:01So, from your perspective,
0:35:01 > 0:35:04- you didn't learn anything from school at all?- No.
0:35:04 > 0:35:08I'm not ashamed of it, but when I left school... Well, I can't write now.
0:35:08 > 0:35:13- You can't write at all?- No, not at all. I can't write, I can't spell.
0:35:13 > 0:35:17- Can you read?- Yeah, I could read when I was about 27.
0:35:17 > 0:35:20And I can read anything now.
0:35:20 > 0:35:22My maths is pretty hot!
0:35:22 > 0:35:25- That's pretty quick.- So you're good with numbers.- Yeah, for sure.
0:35:25 > 0:35:27I'm really good with numbers.
0:35:27 > 0:35:31'The jigsaw puzzle that is Chris Dawson was beginning to come together.
0:35:31 > 0:35:35'But the fact that a multimillionaire owner of a massive retail empire
0:35:35 > 0:35:39'left school with no qualifications, and without being able to read
0:35:39 > 0:35:42'or write, was not a massive surprise to me.
0:35:42 > 0:35:46'Because I'm partially dyslexic, but didn't find out until later in life.
0:35:46 > 0:35:51'Research claims that entrepreneurs are five times more likely
0:35:51 > 0:35:54'to have the condition than the rest of the population.
0:35:54 > 0:35:57'Dyslexics tend to struggle in mainstream education,
0:35:57 > 0:36:00'but they flourish in other environments.
0:36:00 > 0:36:03'So I wondered where Chris really learned his early lessons.'
0:36:06 > 0:36:10- School was a bit of an enterprise for me.- You used to bunk off?- Yeah.
0:36:10 > 0:36:11And where did you go?
0:36:11 > 0:36:15When my dad would take me, I would go to a market or a fairground
0:36:15 > 0:36:21and he'd stand me somewhere, anywhere, selling peaches or...
0:36:22 > 0:36:25..toffee apples or things like that.
0:36:25 > 0:36:28We were toffee-appling and we ran out of apples,
0:36:28 > 0:36:32so he made me put the sticks in these oranges
0:36:32 > 0:36:34and we toffeed the oranges with the rind on.
0:36:34 > 0:36:38Of course, everybody is looking at our toffee apples, the biggest.
0:36:38 > 0:36:40He made me shout out, "Biggest toffee apples!
0:36:40 > 0:36:43"Biggest toffee apples!" when they were oranges
0:36:43 > 0:36:46and I was very young and when they bit into them through the toffee,
0:36:46 > 0:36:49they'd taste the orange, "Oh, my God!"
0:36:49 > 0:36:52My dad would say, "You'll acquire that taste."
0:36:52 > 0:36:55- He had an answer for everything. - Wow.
0:36:55 > 0:36:56No Trading Standards then!
0:36:58 > 0:37:01'By swapping school for the market stall,
0:37:01 > 0:37:02'Chris picked up the sales skills
0:37:02 > 0:37:06'that have played a major part in his success today.
0:37:10 > 0:37:14'I'd be delving deeper into his early days as a market trader later,
0:37:14 > 0:37:17'but now, I'm on my way to Mark and Mo's first shop in Poole.'
0:37:21 > 0:37:25- Mark, Mo, good to see you. How are you?- Hi, lovely to see you.
0:37:25 > 0:37:27- What a beautiful day out there. - Fabulous, isn't it?
0:37:27 > 0:37:29- So this is it.- This is it.
0:37:29 > 0:37:35- Your first original, which opened...?- In 1995. What a team!
0:37:35 > 0:37:37Wow, 17 years ago.
0:37:39 > 0:37:41I always feel like my granddad in here
0:37:41 > 0:37:44because he had a grocer's store down in Dorchester.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50'I was keen to see if Mark and Mo felt comfortable
0:37:50 > 0:37:53'swapping the back office for the shop floor.'
0:37:53 > 0:37:55I find this really interesting because it's a bit like
0:37:55 > 0:37:58a cake or a cheeseboard sort of style
0:37:58 > 0:38:00where you take a slice of what you want.
0:38:00 > 0:38:04Yes, we've arranged it to be exactly that, like a cheese shop,
0:38:04 > 0:38:07so you can graze through the different ranges that we have.
0:38:07 > 0:38:09Is there a lot of research in this?
0:38:09 > 0:38:12- There's research, but not necessarily...- Or is it instinctive?
0:38:12 > 0:38:13It's not market research.
0:38:13 > 0:38:17What we tend to do is, we do about 20 - 30% new product every year,
0:38:17 > 0:38:20so we bring it out, we do it and then we have a look
0:38:20 > 0:38:23and see what people think of it and then we keep on talking about it.
0:38:23 > 0:38:26We might tweak it a little bit, but often the first thing is the best.
0:38:26 > 0:38:28So when... That's what I find interesting.
0:38:28 > 0:38:30You bring a product out to market when you don't even know
0:38:30 > 0:38:34- the customer is going to like it. - Absolutely.
0:38:34 > 0:38:37We do not... I mean, the idea is, basically,
0:38:37 > 0:38:41if you only bring out things that people are expecting,
0:38:41 > 0:38:44then you keep on bringing out a new flavour of shower gel
0:38:44 > 0:38:46because people don't have
0:38:46 > 0:38:48the imagination beyond what they can see.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51That's not rude, that's just the way it works. So if you...
0:38:51 > 0:38:57What you're trying to do is get them to experiment, try new ideas out,
0:38:57 > 0:39:01expand their thinking with regard to what they're looking at.
0:39:01 > 0:39:03You're quite bold then. Would you describe it as bold?
0:39:03 > 0:39:06- Testing doesn't...- Being driven by what your customers want,
0:39:06 > 0:39:10you're clearly not driven by that at all. You're driven by...
0:39:10 > 0:39:14I'm driven by what my customers LIKE, but not by what they WANT.
0:39:14 > 0:39:16We're doing something right.
0:39:16 > 0:39:20I think that too much timidity and too much messing about
0:39:20 > 0:39:22once you are clear as to what you're doing
0:39:22 > 0:39:25is part of the reason for failures.
0:39:26 > 0:39:29Mark's bullish approach to business was a side of him
0:39:29 > 0:39:34I hadn't seen before, but one that I needed to explore.
0:39:34 > 0:39:36He certainly doesn't lack self-confidence
0:39:36 > 0:39:40and having done some research, I knew that like many entrepreneurs,
0:39:40 > 0:39:42there had been tough times to conquer
0:39:42 > 0:39:46before arriving at such a confident view on how to run the business.
0:39:47 > 0:39:51Time to tackle Mark and Mo's boom-and-bust beginnings
0:39:51 > 0:39:53and their roller-coaster relationship
0:39:53 > 0:39:55with one of the biggest names in the cosmetics industry.
0:40:00 > 0:40:03So, Mark, tell me how it all began with The Body Shop.
0:40:03 > 0:40:06Well, I was broke and living off Mo.
0:40:06 > 0:40:08I was trying to flog my goods here, there and everywhere.
0:40:08 > 0:40:13I thought I could probably sell them and then I spotted a little piece in
0:40:13 > 0:40:17Honey Magazine about someone who had a shop, one shop, in Littlehampton.
0:40:17 > 0:40:21I met Anita Roddick in her first shop.
0:40:21 > 0:40:26She placed an order for £1,000-worth of my product, which was amazing
0:40:26 > 0:40:30and that was the start of a really lovely and exciting relationship.
0:40:30 > 0:40:32And it grew and grew and grew into...
0:40:32 > 0:40:36Well, I thought it would be the only order I'd get and then it grew
0:40:36 > 0:40:39and then, obviously, her and her husband Gordon
0:40:39 > 0:40:44grew The Body Shop into a really large concern and I had...
0:40:44 > 0:40:48Well, WE had a really exciting ride with them
0:40:48 > 0:40:51and a hell of an education in, you know...
0:40:51 > 0:40:54I'd see them as true entrepreneurs, as far as I'm concerned.
0:40:54 > 0:40:56What, even over and above yourselves?
0:40:56 > 0:41:01Absolutely, yeah, because of the drive, the speed, the fanaticism.
0:41:01 > 0:41:04The whole thing worked on argument. Even if you phoned Anita and Gordon,
0:41:04 > 0:41:06they would both lift up the extension,
0:41:06 > 0:41:09and they'd argue even about who was answering the phone,
0:41:09 > 0:41:11so if you wanted to get an idea through,
0:41:11 > 0:41:13you had to argue it through,
0:41:13 > 0:41:15you had to argue with her, you had to argue with him,
0:41:15 > 0:41:17the whole thing would go through and then,
0:41:17 > 0:41:21if it was robust enough to stand that kind of pressure, off it went.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27By 1984, Mark, Mo and Elizabeth Weir's company,
0:41:27 > 0:41:29Constantine and Weir,
0:41:29 > 0:41:31were Anita Roddick's biggest suppliers.
0:41:31 > 0:41:35It was a lucrative relationship, but one that would end abruptly.
0:41:35 > 0:41:39In 1992, Roddick decided to buy Mark and Mo out
0:41:39 > 0:41:41and bring production in-house.
0:41:41 > 0:41:44The Constantines sold their cosmetic formulas
0:41:44 > 0:41:46to The Body Shop for £9 million.
0:41:46 > 0:41:50Interestingly, any products that Roddick hadn't bought
0:41:50 > 0:41:54were funnelled into a new mail-order company, Cosmetics To Go.
0:41:54 > 0:41:56You carried on with Cosmetics To Go.
0:41:56 > 0:42:00We did, which lost a pound every time we sent out an order.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04It lost a pound every time you sent an order out?
0:42:04 > 0:42:05But we worked on the principle...
0:42:05 > 0:42:08It was the dot-com principle, that if you get to a certain size,
0:42:08 > 0:42:10your overhead will be covered by...
0:42:10 > 0:42:13You've got economies of scale across the business as you grow?
0:42:13 > 0:42:18- Yes.- And what...?- We never achieved it. We went bust.- You went bust.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23Cosmetics To Go never sold enough product to bring
0:42:23 > 0:42:25the cost of production down.
0:42:25 > 0:42:29As a result, Mark and Mo failed to make any profit,
0:42:29 > 0:42:31burned through almost all of The Body Shop's £9 million
0:42:31 > 0:42:35and, eventually, the company went bust.
0:42:35 > 0:42:38I think it just highlighted what we didn't know at that point.
0:42:38 > 0:42:43We had been a contract supplier, basically, to The Body Shop and then
0:42:43 > 0:42:47suddenly, it's a whole different game when you take on your own business.
0:42:47 > 0:42:49You take on more responsibilities
0:42:49 > 0:42:52and I don't think that we really understood that.
0:42:52 > 0:42:56Some of the basic business practices, we weren't good at,
0:42:56 > 0:42:59- we didn't pay enough attention to. - How did you feel?
0:42:59 > 0:43:03Em... Yes, shame was the word that came to mind.
0:43:03 > 0:43:06It was quite difficult. Basically, I was hiding away at home,
0:43:06 > 0:43:10- so I tended to come in the back door.- So it affected you?
0:43:10 > 0:43:13- You wouldn't go through the front door?- For a little while.
0:43:13 > 0:43:16It's like losing a child, isn't it?...
0:43:16 > 0:43:20- That's how you felt? - At the time, I felt angry,
0:43:20 > 0:43:23but I also felt somewhere between raped and robbed.
0:43:23 > 0:43:26I felt that, especially with the receivers coming in...
0:43:26 > 0:43:29I don't think we were good business people before that.
0:43:29 > 0:43:31I think there are arrogant, I think we had too long a party
0:43:31 > 0:43:34and I think, as a result, we were much more contrite,
0:43:34 > 0:43:38we were much more focused and we did a much better job the second time.
0:43:42 > 0:43:45It could be argued that competing against an ex-client
0:43:45 > 0:43:49isn't terribly principled, especially one so established.
0:43:49 > 0:43:52But Mark and Mo have clearly learned from their mistake,
0:43:52 > 0:43:54one that's left some emotional scars
0:43:54 > 0:43:57and shapes how they approach business today.
0:44:00 > 0:44:04Buoyed by my breakthrough with Mark and Mo, I thought it about time
0:44:04 > 0:44:07to delve into Chris Dawson's market trader DNA.
0:44:09 > 0:44:12- Give me a two-minute pitch to sell that watch to me.- Right, OK.
0:44:12 > 0:44:14Ladies and gentlemen, this was due for H Samuel's,
0:44:14 > 0:44:15it got lost and I found it.
0:44:15 > 0:44:18The police said, "What are you doing pulling that string?"
0:44:18 > 0:44:19I said, "You try pushing it."
0:44:19 > 0:44:21The retail value of this is in excess of £900.
0:44:21 > 0:44:23Half price is 500. What do you mean, I can't add up?
0:44:23 > 0:44:27£500, 480, 380, if I turn round I'll charge you £300.
0:44:27 > 0:44:28You shove your legs and arms up.
0:44:28 > 0:44:30Madam, do you mind if I make it cheaper?
0:44:30 > 0:44:32Have you got two? I wish I did have.
0:44:32 > 0:44:34Listen, I wasn't that quick when I stole it.
0:44:34 > 0:44:38First hand up there, quickly and sharply. Bang, I'll take £50.
0:44:39 > 0:44:45- That is...- But we'd adjust the figures to whatever. It can be...
0:44:45 > 0:44:48I could be selling a Royal Worcester dinner and tea set,
0:44:48 > 0:44:53I could be doing Gucci with two Gs.
0:44:53 > 0:44:59It's good. It's a bit like a mix between an auction at Christie's,
0:44:59 > 0:45:02but it's being done by Del Boy Trotter.
0:45:03 > 0:45:11Basically, you're actually appealing to somebody's greed really
0:45:11 > 0:45:14because they certainly don't want it when I start to sell.
0:45:16 > 0:45:18Chris is clearly a great salesman,
0:45:18 > 0:45:23but I wondered whether things could have turned out differently.
0:45:23 > 0:45:26As well as linking dyslexia and entrepreneurship,
0:45:26 > 0:45:31research has found a link between undiagnosed dyslexia and crime.
0:45:31 > 0:45:34Feeling devalued at school, young people with the condition
0:45:34 > 0:45:39often seek self-esteem via deviant behaviour.
0:45:39 > 0:45:45If you hadn't gone down a sort of a legitimate way to make your money,
0:45:45 > 0:45:49do you think you could have dug into the sort of criminal world?
0:45:49 > 0:45:53I certainly don't recommend anybody steals,
0:45:53 > 0:45:58- but I am fascinated with crime. I always wanted to rob a bank.- Did you?
0:45:58 > 0:46:02Yeah, I did. I didn't do it, by the way. They robbed me instead!
0:46:02 > 0:46:05And to be rich that fast was the reason I was going to do it.
0:46:05 > 0:46:08- And did you ever get caught by the police?- Yeah, I did, yeah.
0:46:08 > 0:46:11- Several times.- What made you stay the right side in the end?
0:46:11 > 0:46:16Well, I've ended up being pretty good at my job and I was earning
0:46:16 > 0:46:20so much money as a spieler, there was never any point,
0:46:20 > 0:46:23considering the fact that the money was ridiculous that I was earning.
0:46:23 > 0:46:28Chris moved from market stall to department store in 1988.
0:46:28 > 0:46:30He bought his first premises with cash
0:46:30 > 0:46:33and claims to be remarkably debt-free today.
0:46:33 > 0:46:34Have you got an investor at the moment?
0:46:34 > 0:46:37No, no investors, no borrowed money.
0:46:37 > 0:46:41We all know that actually I should have some debt at this stage,
0:46:41 > 0:46:42but I haven't.
0:46:42 > 0:46:46It's a little bit old-fashioned, but do you know, we open, we buy,
0:46:46 > 0:46:50we build, we sell. Buy, build, sell.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53See, that's amazing, isn't it?
0:46:53 > 0:46:55Starting life with no debt,
0:46:55 > 0:47:00growing a business with no bank loans or debt,
0:47:00 > 0:47:04getting a business up to several hundred million in income,
0:47:04 > 0:47:05no loans or debt.
0:47:05 > 0:47:12No, 400 million this year it will top, but that's the warm-up act.
0:47:12 > 0:47:15I've got to get that billion-pound turnover, that's the target.
0:47:17 > 0:47:19(A billion pounds?)
0:47:19 > 0:47:22- Yeah, a billion pounds.- Do you think you'll do before you die?
0:47:22 > 0:47:24Yeah, sure, yeah, yeah.
0:47:24 > 0:47:28I don't think it will be tomorrow, but it won't be long. Yeah, for sure.
0:47:30 > 0:47:33Ambitious is an understatement!
0:47:33 > 0:47:35No matter how much time I spend with Chris,
0:47:35 > 0:47:37the surprises just keep coming.
0:47:39 > 0:47:43Mark and Mo are as keen as Chris to grow their business,
0:47:43 > 0:47:45but they aren't just doing it for their own benefit.
0:47:45 > 0:47:49This is Simon, my son, he is one of our perfumers.
0:47:49 > 0:47:52'The couple's three children all work for the company.
0:47:52 > 0:47:56'Simon, the eldest, is based here in the lab.'
0:47:56 > 0:47:58I'm seeing a little bit of the likeness there.
0:47:58 > 0:48:01Yeah, obviously I'm slimmer and better looking.
0:48:01 > 0:48:04Don't you think they're old enough to retire now, though?
0:48:04 > 0:48:08They've been old enough to retire for years, in my eyes, but...
0:48:08 > 0:48:11- You can't kick 'em out fast enough! - They are getting on, aren't they?
0:48:11 > 0:48:13Certainly, I thought that,
0:48:13 > 0:48:16but I'm pleased that you said it rather than me.
0:48:16 > 0:48:19I now know the truth. The son!
0:48:19 > 0:48:22Yeah, I'm really the secret of the success, I think.
0:48:22 > 0:48:24You know, that's the way I feel anyway.
0:48:24 > 0:48:26You're letting him get away with this, aren't you?
0:48:26 > 0:48:29We have many conversations like this because we actually work
0:48:29 > 0:48:33sitting opposite each other here, so it's always quite interesting.
0:48:33 > 0:48:35- But you clearly have got a close relationship, haven't you?- Yeah.
0:48:35 > 0:48:39And did you have this sort of relationship with your family,
0:48:39 > 0:48:42- with your father?- No.- You don't?
0:48:42 > 0:48:44- No.- You don't have this bond?
0:48:44 > 0:48:49- I didn't know my father from the age of two. So...- Wow.
0:48:50 > 0:48:52And now, he must be proud then?
0:48:54 > 0:48:57- Sorry, is this a bit...? - This is a very difficult subject.
0:48:57 > 0:49:00I'm going to see my father for the first time next week.
0:49:02 > 0:49:06For my 60th birthday, a close friend did a family tree
0:49:06 > 0:49:10and, through a whole series of very clever pieces of thinking,
0:49:10 > 0:49:13he traced my father, basically, in South Africa.
0:49:13 > 0:49:15So it wasn't to do with me looking.
0:49:15 > 0:49:17I have looked before and didn't find him
0:49:17 > 0:49:20and evidently, they've looked for me and didn't find me.
0:49:20 > 0:49:21That's quite amazing.
0:49:21 > 0:49:23Do you think that your father, then,
0:49:23 > 0:49:25if you haven't seen him since you were two,
0:49:25 > 0:49:27do you think that's influenced your life in any way?
0:49:27 > 0:49:29I think it's defined my life.
0:49:29 > 0:49:32I think it's defined everything about my life.
0:49:32 > 0:49:34Why do so many entrepreneurs have these kinds of situations
0:49:34 > 0:49:36in their backgrounds and their childhoods,
0:49:36 > 0:49:42severe illnesses, parents splitting up, something that really does
0:49:42 > 0:49:45sort of create a jar in a child's development
0:49:45 > 0:49:47and then go on in that way?
0:49:47 > 0:49:49They call it the entrepreneur's wound, you know.
0:49:49 > 0:49:52Many people have got far worse circumstances then I've got.
0:49:52 > 0:49:55Does your father know how successful you've become?
0:49:55 > 0:49:58It's embarrassingly irrelevant.
0:49:58 > 0:50:03- It was only pertinent when he didn't exist.- Yeah, yeah.
0:50:03 > 0:50:07I'm not interested in, you know, why did you do this?
0:50:07 > 0:50:10He's 80, I'm 60, we don't need that, but just to be with him.
0:50:10 > 0:50:12I think it's a great privilege, again.
0:50:12 > 0:50:16Even if I'm in the last act of his life, at least I'll know him.
0:50:19 > 0:50:23Many entrepreneurs I know have a historical chink in their armour.
0:50:23 > 0:50:26With Mark, it's his dad. Chris, his dyslexia.
0:50:26 > 0:50:30As a result, these complex characters become more creative,
0:50:30 > 0:50:34come up with lateral solutions, or are driven to prove themselves.
0:50:36 > 0:50:39My time with Mark, Mo and Chris was nearly up.
0:50:39 > 0:50:43I'd appreciated Mark and Mo's refreshing honesty and,
0:50:43 > 0:50:45after getting to know Chris over the past few days,
0:50:45 > 0:50:49I wanted to make sure I was getting the same from him.
0:50:49 > 0:50:52It's been an adventure, if I can call it that.
0:50:52 > 0:50:54You are clearly an amazing trader.
0:50:54 > 0:50:59You've got incredible energy, an insatiable appetite for business,
0:50:59 > 0:51:05but everything that you've sort of told me...is it really true?
0:51:05 > 0:51:09Well, the bits that I want to be true are true, you know.
0:51:09 > 0:51:13Maybe we bend a few letters here and there,
0:51:13 > 0:51:16but I think a good slug of it is true.
0:51:16 > 0:51:19The figures, as I say, they do the talking.
0:51:19 > 0:51:22The MFI deal, I'll go back to that, that was an education.
0:51:22 > 0:51:23You keep going on about that.
0:51:23 > 0:51:29- It was that really true, it was a number under three million?- The...
0:51:29 > 0:51:33Yeah, I'm going to say it was south of £3 million.
0:51:33 > 0:51:34You bought it for under three million?
0:51:34 > 0:51:38That's the bit that I just feel... That's like legendary!
0:51:38 > 0:51:41Your negotiating skills are unreal as well?
0:51:41 > 0:51:45Well, you know, if they are still breathing, I'll carry on.
0:51:45 > 0:51:52And if they're screaming in pain, so long as they're making a noise
0:51:52 > 0:51:54and breathing, their eyes are fluttering,
0:51:54 > 0:51:57I will carry on and carry on and carry on.
0:51:57 > 0:51:59I'm like an alcoholic in an off-licence.
0:51:59 > 0:52:04I've got the keys to the store and I feel sometimes like a pirate
0:52:04 > 0:52:06swinging through the window on a rope
0:52:06 > 0:52:09going, "Here I come, I'm having this, whatever happens."
0:52:09 > 0:52:11It's the excitement and thrill.
0:52:11 > 0:52:14And what's the future going to hold for you?
0:52:14 > 0:52:18I want to do this as long as I can breathe and, you know,
0:52:18 > 0:52:20I'm also looking for investments.
0:52:20 > 0:52:23I'm looking to get a few quid here and a few quid there.
0:52:23 > 0:52:26If I won the lottery, that wouldn't make much difference,
0:52:26 > 0:52:29but if you give me more money than I could ever spend,
0:52:29 > 0:52:31I'd go and start another business,
0:52:31 > 0:52:34so if this went, I'd only go and start something else.
0:52:34 > 0:52:36Because I was thinking to myself,
0:52:36 > 0:52:38if I was ever going to put money somewhere,
0:52:38 > 0:52:42after the first few occasions of us meeting, I was thinking,
0:52:42 > 0:52:46- "You know what, 100 quid, he'll turn that into 200."- Yeah.
0:52:46 > 0:52:50Then I thought the other day, "If I give him half a million quid..."
0:52:50 > 0:52:54- Then I'd start to get a little bit nervy.- You would get nervous?
0:52:54 > 0:52:55Would get a return on it?
0:52:55 > 0:52:58Now I've got to know you, I'm thinking,
0:52:58 > 0:53:03"Yeah, there's no question, I'd make money by giving you half a million."
0:53:03 > 0:53:06But if I was to give you a couple of million and invest...
0:53:06 > 0:53:09- Yeah?- What would happen?
0:53:09 > 0:53:12Well, I'd turn it into four, five, six. What do you want?
0:53:12 > 0:53:15How much do you want? How much risk do you want?
0:53:15 > 0:53:17But we don't call it risk, do we?
0:53:17 > 0:53:21We just call it business, so what are you punting for? Two?
0:53:21 > 0:53:24- Two, maybe three.- Maybe five?
0:53:24 > 0:53:25I'd be pretty useless
0:53:25 > 0:53:29if I couldn't turn five into ten and then we need to get into the teens.
0:53:29 > 0:53:32I quite like this bit. How much have I got in the money bank?
0:53:32 > 0:53:33Have you got it with you?
0:53:34 > 0:53:37'Chris is a phenomenal businessman.
0:53:37 > 0:53:41'His appetite for making money is as big as his personality.
0:53:42 > 0:53:46'Both he and the Constantines have built hugely successful businesses,
0:53:46 > 0:53:50'but with completely different attitudes and approaches.
0:53:51 > 0:53:54'Mark and Mo have impressed me with their ability to
0:53:54 > 0:53:59'blend their ideas and profits in an industry not known for its idealism.
0:53:59 > 0:54:01'But in our final meeting,
0:54:01 > 0:54:03'I wanted to put their principles to the test.'
0:54:04 > 0:54:08One thing I've been dying to ask you,
0:54:08 > 0:54:12is to have... be so successful,
0:54:12 > 0:54:15and be quite edgy and controversial at the same time,
0:54:15 > 0:54:19you must have had some pretty harsh decisions to make at some point.
0:54:20 > 0:54:22Sometimes you have to be brave.
0:54:22 > 0:54:25Invariably, each time you're brave, afterwards you look back
0:54:25 > 0:54:28and think, "That wasn't so difficult."
0:54:28 > 0:54:33So if you received a huge, huge offer, financially,
0:54:33 > 0:54:37from another massive cosmetics company, would you take it?
0:54:38 > 0:54:41- No.- I wouldn't have thought so.
0:54:41 > 0:54:44Unless they come along with a complete, you know,
0:54:44 > 0:54:47embargo on animal testing of their products.
0:54:47 > 0:54:51That would be a nice negotiating position, wouldn't it?
0:54:51 > 0:54:56- I don't think it's possible, I think that...- So no amount of money?- No.
0:54:56 > 0:55:00- A billion pounds, you wouldn't? - No, because it's...
0:55:00 > 0:55:02We're in a lovely position
0:55:02 > 0:55:06where we already earn adequate sums from our business.
0:55:06 > 0:55:08We like to make a contribution,
0:55:08 > 0:55:11we're delighted to be in a position to be able to make that.
0:55:11 > 0:55:15That's it, that's the endgame. There isn't another endgame beyond that.
0:55:15 > 0:55:18- And you're not just saying that? - No, of course we wouldn't.
0:55:18 > 0:55:21The fun is in the business, isn't it? Working the business.
0:55:21 > 0:55:23And you have your children coming along, working...
0:55:23 > 0:55:25If you sell, you wouldn't know what to do.
0:55:25 > 0:55:27Is not not knowing what to do.
0:55:27 > 0:55:30The big issue for ethical businesses...
0:55:30 > 0:55:34Well, hardly any of them have managed to fund their
0:55:34 > 0:55:39businesses up to a reasonable size without losing their businesses.
0:55:41 > 0:55:45The thing about our ideals is they are actually our ideals,
0:55:45 > 0:55:48they're not something that we've just borrowed,
0:55:48 > 0:55:49so therefore they stay constant.
0:55:54 > 0:55:57For me, it's been an absolute honour to meet you
0:55:57 > 0:56:00because it's quite nice to see successful people do well
0:56:00 > 0:56:02but yet make such a difference.
0:56:02 > 0:56:05- That's very kind of you, thank you.- Yes, thank you.
0:56:07 > 0:56:09Mark and Mo's passion for their business
0:56:09 > 0:56:13and unrelenting belief in their principles is refreshing.
0:56:13 > 0:56:17Together, they've created a global brand from humble beginnings,
0:56:17 > 0:56:19learning from a spectacular mistake.
0:56:22 > 0:56:26To be successful, you do have to believe
0:56:26 > 0:56:27in the most extreme circumstances,
0:56:27 > 0:56:30you do have to believe in your product
0:56:30 > 0:56:35and believe in the people around you and believe in your customers.
0:56:35 > 0:56:39You just have to hang in there, even when you've got dreadful doubts.
0:56:41 > 0:56:44The Constantines now know how to make money and how to hold on to it,
0:56:44 > 0:56:47but they care about the people that work with them
0:56:47 > 0:56:52and use what they earn to make a contribution to the wider world.
0:56:52 > 0:56:56We do try hard to present an honest face and to...
0:56:56 > 0:56:58What we say is what we do and so on,
0:56:58 > 0:57:00but that should be normal, in my opinion.
0:57:03 > 0:57:07Chris is relentless, determined and motivated by personal wealth.
0:57:07 > 0:57:10I think you need an amazing focus and the focus
0:57:10 > 0:57:13has got to be so strong, you could walk across the beam.
0:57:13 > 0:57:17He's learned all he knows from his days as a market trader
0:57:17 > 0:57:20and has scaled that model up to a massive size.
0:57:20 > 0:57:23But I don't see Chris being satisfied
0:57:23 > 0:57:26with what he's achieved any time soon.
0:57:26 > 0:57:31You will need strength as a person because every day is not rosy.
0:57:31 > 0:57:33And you would need drive.
0:57:33 > 0:57:34I'm going to convert drive.
0:57:34 > 0:57:37I would want to call it greed. You need greed.
0:57:37 > 0:57:40And last but not least, you will need that thing called talent.
0:57:40 > 0:57:45Chris and the Constantines' stories are both fascinating and inspiring.
0:57:45 > 0:57:48They demonstrate that successful business models
0:57:48 > 0:57:50are not shaped simply by profit and loss,
0:57:50 > 0:57:52spreadsheets and sales,
0:57:52 > 0:57:57but by ethics, ideals, perseverance and personality.
0:57:58 > 0:58:01- 'Next time...' How are you? - All right, mate, how are you?
0:58:01 > 0:58:04'I'll meet multimillionaire plumber, Charlie Mullins,
0:58:04 > 0:58:08'who has learned that to survive in business, you have to be tough.'
0:58:08 > 0:58:10- Tell me when you're ready. - I'm ready, yeah.
0:58:10 > 0:58:12So what happens if an employee doesn't adhere
0:58:12 > 0:58:16- to something in this bible? - They go.- Really?- Yes.
0:58:16 > 0:58:19Nice to see you. 'And Lord Karan Bilimoria,
0:58:19 > 0:58:22'whose business journey has been far from easy.'
0:58:22 > 0:58:25Was there a point where you ever felt this is too much?
0:58:25 > 0:58:27Several times you feel it's too much,
0:58:27 > 0:58:31but you never think of giving up. Never, ever.
0:58:50 > 0:58:53Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd