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UK

July 1, 2004

A trust can be used to plan the future of a family business, create tax efficiencies and safeguard family wealth. Are they just a domain for the very rich? Not necessarily, says Iris Wuenschmann-Lyall

Iris Wuenschmann-Lyall TEP is a consultant at Toby Harris Tax Consultancy.

Week at the top

May 1, 2004

John Timpson is chairman of Timpson, a high street service retailer based in Wythenshowe, Manchester. The company was founded in 1903 and currently has 350 shops around the UK. John is married to Alex and has five children, of which two work in the business.

Saturday
Being a retailer I used to feel guilty not working Saturdays, but now Saturday morning is golf. With the course close to home, I can play 18 holes, visit the bar and be home for lunch.

British brands abroad

November 1, 2003

Many British brands have been acquired by large, foreign family-owned conglomerates. How do they manage to retain the quintessential British qualities so important to their image?

Ian Sclater is a freelance journalist based in Scotland.

Many British brands have been acquired by large, foreign family-owned conglomerates. How do they manage to retain the quintessential British qualities so important to their image?

The Rolls-Royce Motor Cars company has a German driver, BMW. The exclusive Thomas Pink clothing company fits its French owners, the LVMH group. Some of Britain's best known breweries have been lapped up by Belgians (Interbrew) and Americans (Coors).

For Queen, country and Bridget Jones

November 1, 2003

It’s a tough job making underwear fit for a monarch, but Rigby and Peller are the experts

Melanie Stern is Section Editor of Families in Business magazine.

It's a tough job making underwear fit for a monarch, but Rigby and Peller are the experts

Changes in store

November 1, 2003

The Douglas Miller brothers have embarked on an unprecedented expansion programme for their family’s 165 year old store. Despite these changes one thing will remain the same – family succession

Suzy Bibko is Editor in Chief of Families in Business magazine.

The Douglas Miller brothers have embarked on an unprecedented expansion programme for their family's 165 year old store. Despite these changes one thing will remain the same – family succession

Just an old fashioned family business

November 1, 2003

David and Ralph Gold are known commonly as the ‘Porn Barons’ – but behind the headlines, Gold Group International is an exemplary family business model

Melanie Stern Section Editor of Families in Business magazine.

David and Ralph Gold are known commonly as the 'Porn Barons' – but behind the headlines, Gold Group International is an exemplary family business model

David Gold, the UK's most notorious 'Porn Baron', is sharing a nice cup of afternoon tea with me, telling me how much he loves his mum.

Chinese networks in the UK and Malyasia

January 1, 2003

Many Chinese immigrants have set up family businesses in the UK and Malaysia. Despite their common ethnicity, they share few other traits

Edmund Terence Gomez is Associate Professor at the Faculty of Economics, University of Malaya, Malaysia. His published books include Chinese Business in Malaysia: Accumulation, Ascendance, Accommodation and Chinese Business in Southeast Asia: Contesting Essentialism, Understanding Entrepreneurship. He is currently co-authoring a book on the history of the Chinese in the UK.

Many Chinese immigrants have set up family businesses in the UK and Malaysia. Despite their common ethnicity, they share few other traits

UK families explore achieving longevity

September 1, 2002

Friday, 14 June 2002 saw a gathering in London of over 100 family business delegates from home and abroad for the inaugural IFB National Forum Conference.

Grant Gordon is Director General of the IFB (UK).

Friday, 14 June 2002 saw a gathering in London of over 100 family business delegates from home and abroad for the inaugural IFB National Forum Conference. The Institute for Family Business (UK), one of the youngest chapters of FBN launched at the end of 2001, marked its spot on the FBN map with its successful conference on the theme "Governance for Longevity in Family Companies".

Week at the top

April 1, 2002

Geoffrey Dovey is Chairman of Dovey Premium Products Limited. DPP was formally established in 1977, although the origins of the business hark back to 1958. Geoffrey runs DPP today with his two brothers James and Jeremy. They distribute quality frozen food, drink and spices to Indian restaurants throughout Southern England. Geoffrey has an active interest in family companies and is a trustee of the UK Chapter of the Family Business Network

Saturday

Beyond the gene lottery - leadership in family firms

April 1, 2002

I was talking recentlyto the Chairman of a financial services organisation, telling him about my interest in family business and my desire to establish a new international centre for the study of leadership in family firms at London Business School. The Chairman was interested, but after a while asked "Aren't they a thing of the past in the UK?"This is not the first time I have heard this belief expressed, and by people who you might think would know better. Around three years ago it was estimated that 75% of all British businesses were family-owned and -managed.