Caprice Bourret

Former Wonderbra model Caprice Bourret made the transition from lads mags to the world of business. Having taken control of her company, she now fully finances, designs, models and markets her own successful lingerie brand, By Caprice

James Butterfield

James Butterfield is a serial investor in fast-growth companies. He has over 25 years’ experience advising small and medium-sized businesses on a range of activities, from stock market listings to mergers and acquisitions and fundraising

Rachel Elnaugh

Rachel Elnaugh shot to fame in 2005 as one of the investors on the BBC’s Dragons’ Den, but crashed back down when her gift experiences business Red Letter Days went to the wall, along with her career as a dragon

Felix Velarde

In 1996, Felix Velarde founded eCRM specialist Underwired. A year later, he launched B2B multimedia company Head New Media, which he went on to sell to Lowe & Partners, the fourth largest advertising agency in the world at the time

Rich Ambler

Rich Ambler runs Brighton-based language training specialist Cactus. It provides courses in 25 languages across 45 countries and its clients include Channel 4, BT, Burberry and The Royal Bank of Scotland

Mike Southon

Mike Southon co-founded The Instruction Set in 1984, following a period treading the boards and working as a site manager on oil rigs. Five years later it was bought by global IT consultancy Hoskyns and since then Southon’s worked with numerous growing companies. He is co-author of The Beermat Entrepreneur

Tony Moloney

A year after Tony Moloney started Anthony Alan Foods, the company won the UK licence to manufacture cakes under the Weight Watchers brand. In its first four years it achieved organic growth of 7,600 per cent to £20.6 million

Chris Mottershead

Chris Mottershead is a travel industry veteran. He was president and CEO of North American leisure group Airtours before changing course to steer online travel specialist Travelzest through a turbulent period for the sector to land record profits

Jennifer Irvine

Jennifer Irvine launched The Pure Package in 2004 as a home-delivery meals service tailored to meet customers’ individual dietary needs. In its first year, The Pure Package delivered 70,000 meals and achieved a turnover of £200,000. It has since grown into a multi-million pound operation

Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones

Three years ago, Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones launched his food brand ‘The Black Farmer’, daring to take on the big stores and their labels dominating the market. Based in Devon, his range of sausages, burgers and barbecue products is now stocked in major supermarkets across the UK.

Dave Brooks... wish I'd known

Dave Brooks is CEO of cakemaker Finsbury Foods. Since taking control in 2002, he has seen profits rise as a result of his hands-on approach to management and business.

Charles Cockell: What I wish I'd known when I started

Charles Cockell, managing director of hotel and conference management company Booking Services International (BSI), worked his way up to lead a management buyout of the company in 1995. He now jointly owns BSI with chairman Simon Milstead and during 2006, was recognised as one of the top ten travel management firms in the UK by Business Travel World...

Mike Tobin: What I wish I'd known when I started

Charismatic Mike Tobin is CEO of data centre provider TelecityRedbus, as well as a member of the Magic Circle and one-time Father Christmas to a children’s ward. He joined Redbus Interhouse in 2002, grew turnover to more than £50 million and has now completed a reverse takeover with TeleCity Group. In 2005, the London Chamber of Commerce and Business awarded the company ‘Business Turnaround of the Year’...

Christian Nelleman: What I wish I'd known when I started

Serial entrepreneur and high-flyer Christian Nelleman founded XLN Telecom in 2002 to offer an alternative telecoms service for small businesses. The company’s growth was phenomenal, advancing 800 per cent in the first year and has continued in the same vein...

Simon Tate: What I wish I’d known when I started

Simon Tate took control of family pharmaceutical business Wallace Manufacturing Chemists at the age of 22. Seven years later, as managing director of spin-off Kew Health and Beauty, he’s providing bespoke luxury health, beauty, cosmetic and personal care solutions and the company reports year-on-year growth in excess of 85 per cent...

Dan Somers: What I wish I'd known when I started

Dan Somers left his job as a management consultant in 2001 to start a video-conferencing business, Vc-net. An initial venture capital round of fundraising was completed in January 2002 and since then the business has gone on to sign its 200th customer...

Paul Woodmansterne: What I wish I'd known when I started

Paul Woodmansterne inherited the family business with his sister and Watford-based Woodmansterne Publications has become a leading publisher of fine-art and culturally-inspired greetings cards in the UK. Founded originally in 1953 as a publisher of colour slides, the company introduced its first greetings cards in 1987...