- Conference Speakers
Topics:
- Business
- Entrepreneurs/Innovation
Duncan Bannatyne
As a conference speaker or pannelist, entreprenuer Duncan Bannatyne, or Dragon Duncan as he is now known following his success on Dragons' Den on BBC2, is available for your event.
The Start Up
He grew up in Clydebank and in his early teens he joined the Navy. He left the Navy at 19 after a disagreement with a commanding officer and lived in Jersey where he gained a reputation as a bit of a party animal.
It was when sitting on the beach one morning, with nothing to his name, that he boldly told his then girlfriend they were moving back to mainland Britain to become millionaires. Never have truer words been spoken !! He moved to Stockton-On-Tees with his now ex-wife Gail and bought an ice-cream van for £450 and, at the age of 31, had his own business. Duncan's Super Ices expanded to four vans and a turnover of £300,000. He sold up and moved on to Quality Care Nursing Homes and setup Just Learning children''s day-care centres.
Getting Leaner and Fitter
He then suffered a serious leg injury which took him into a gym for the first time and subsequently he set up Bannatyne’s Fitness Ltd a health centre chain which has a reported annual turnover of £30million, more than 30 health clubs and he now plans to build a UK casino empire.
When he is not speaking, presenting or running one of the country’s most profitable and largest independently owned businesses, Duncan likes to spend his time with his family, or pursuing his hobbies and sports such as running, climbing, water skiing and scuba diving. He dedicates a great deal of his time working with charitable organisations such as UNICEF and Scottish International Relief. He also established the Bannatyne Hospice for Children with HIV and AIDS in Romania.
