James Caan - The Real Deal

THE REAL DEAL

THE REAL DEAL

My Story From Brick Lane to Dragons Den

James Caan

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Version 1.0

Epub ISBN 9780753544914

www.randomhouse.co.uk

Published by Virgin Books 2009

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Copyright James Caan 2008

James Caan has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

This book is a work of non-fiction based on the life, experiences and recollections of the author. In some limited cases names of people, places, dates, sequences or the detail of events have been changed to protect the privacy of others. The author has stated to the publishers that, except in such minor respects not affecting the substantial accuracy of the work, the contents of this book are true.

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publishers prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition, including this condition, being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

First published in Great Britain in 2008 by

Virgin Books

Random House, 20 Vauxhall Bridge Road,

London SW1V 2SA

www.virginbooks.com

www.rbooks.co.uk

Addresses for companies within The Random House Group Limited can be found at:

www.randomhouse.co.uk/offices.htm

The Random House Group Limited Reg. No. 954009

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 9780753515099

I dedicate this book to my Father.

My destiny has been shaped by events connected with him and without his influence life could have taken a completely different direction.

He was a true inspiration, a guiding light and someone

I wil always have the utmost respect for.

Success is not always about ones materialistic achievements but should also be measured by the relationships that one builds. For me, the amazing support, love and laughter I have shared with my wife Aisha and our two lovely daughters has been a wonderful foundation, enabling me to fulfil my drive towards success.

Aisha thank you for sharing this incredible journey with me.

Id also like to take this opportunity to thank my family, friends and the people I have both worked with and who have al contributed greatly to the events in my life. My achievements have most definitely not focused on one person but have been about being part of a team to al those who have played their part I thank you.

Special thanks to the team at Alexander Mann, my first business, to the team at Hamilton Bradshaw, the team at Curtis Brown, most recently the team at Dragons Den, as wel as the team at Virgin. Youve al been amazing each and every one of you.

Id also like to thank Stephen Leveridge and Marilyn Tobias who are part of the team at home.

Final y to Jo Monroe who has worked tirelessly with me and shown utter dedication to this book, I thank you too.

CONTENTS

1 Brick Lane, 19601971

2 Growing Up Fast, 19711977

3 Breaking Free, 1977

4 Teenage Kicks, 19771978

5 Finding My Way, 19781979

6 A Career in Recruitment, 19781979

7 The Job That Changed My Life, 1980

8 Aisha, 19811982

9 Open for Business, 19821984

10 The Beginning, 1985

11 Pall Mall, 19851986

12 Growing the Business, 19861987

13 Learning to Innovate, 19861987

14 Having Fun, 19871989

15 Kidnap, 1988

16 Life in the Office, 19891991

17 The Recession, 19921993

18 Fightback, 19921993

19 An Amazing Day, 1993

20 Investing in People, 19931995

21 What Goes Around, 1994

22 Serial Entrepreneur, 19951998

23 The End of an Era, 19981999

24 A New Beginning, 19992000

25 Kosovo, 19992001

26 What Now? 20022003

27 Harvard, 2003

28 Back to School, 2003present

29 Getting to Know Pakistan, 2003present

30 Private Equity, 20032004

31 You Win Some, You Lose Some, 20052007

32 Kashmir, 20052006

33 Into the Den, 2007present

34 Getting the Most out of the Den, 2007present

35 My Life as a Dragon, 2007present

Observe the masses and do the opposite.

That may sound like a strange piece of advice, but its something my dad used to say, and I believe its been instrumental in my success. He told me that when the masses are al charging in one direction after The Next Big Thing, its often the path in the opposite direction that leads to profit. As a kid I found this quite confusing, but as I got older I realised just how smart my dad was.

Doing the unexpected has taken my career on some very interesting journeys. Ive never real y planned al that much and, surprisingly, never actual y made too many decisions either. The thing Ive noticed over the years is that if you study the world around you and ask the right questions, the decisions make themselves: you just go on the journey and see what happens.

Increasingly in the past few years more and more people have started out on journeys into the world of business, as interest in companies, economics and entrepreneurs has boomed. Dragons Den is one of the shows that has made it cool to be an entrepreneur, and every day I get asked about the best way to start a business. Whether Im in a restaurant, or in a departure lounge, or at Stamford Bridge watching Chelsea, someone always comes up to me to tel me about their bril iant idea for a new business. A few months after I first appeared on Dragons Den, I went to give a talk on entrepreneurship at a conference. I nipped to the bathroom before I went on stage and this guy recognised me.

Hi. James, isnt it? Ive got this great idea for a business. Perhaps you could give me some advice? How do I make sure it succeeds?

I was tempted to tel him it was al about timing but I didnt think hed get the joke. The truth is theres no quick answer: success takes time, but there are techniques Ive developed that limit my chances of failure and vastly increase my chances of success, so I started to think that writing a book would be the best way to tel people about my career.

Im surprised shocked, even how often fans of Dragons Den come up to me and say that it must have been easy for me. It seems that if youre successful people assume youve always been successful, and when I tel them I started my first business with no money and no support in a broom cupboard with only the Yel ow Pages for company they are genuinely surprised. Anyone can start a business the way I did. Al it takes is a good idea and the determination to tel people about it. It just requires you to be wil ing to start out on a journey even though you dont know the destination.