Green's £250m from Bhs revival
A TYCOON who left school at 16 with no qualifications has become Britain's fastest-ever billionaire. Philip Green, son of a Jewish property dealer, transformed the fortunes of High Street retailer Bhs in less than two years. The 49-year-old is now reckoned to be among the country's ten richest people.
He bought the clothing business for £200m, most of it borrowed. It is now worth about £1.2bn.
A family friend gave Green his first job importing shoes and five years later he borrowed £21,000 to import flared jeans and denim jackets. The denim craze kept him going for more than a decade, turning him into a young millionaire.
Today, Croydon-born Green and wife Tina live in Monaco. He commutes to London each week, staying at the Dorchester Hotel in Park Lane.
Philip Beresford, editor of the Sunday Times Rich List, said: 'What is impressive is the speed of the turnaround at Bhs. And this fortune is made on a real, profitable business, not a paper fortune made on a dotcom.'
Green bought the failing company in May 2000 and by March last year, it owed £100m. Since then, he has turned it into a profitable brand which does not owe a penny. 'We are putting money in the bank every week,' he said. Virtually all Bhs shares are owned by the Green family. Bankers say Green, who once tried to buy Marks & Spencer and dress hire retailer Moss Bros, will receive a dividend of up to £250m.
In his 30s, the former boarding school pupil became chairman of menswear retailer Amber Day before being ousted. He then bought US retail chain Sears for £550m, making £200m for him and his backers after the group was successfully broken-up.
