Spear's Wealth Management Survey

At the Sharp End: Brent Hoberman

Founder of lastminute.com and entrepreneur Brent Hoberman faces the Spear’s questionnaire
 
 
Q. What would your other career be?
A. If it wasn’t the internet, I had once toyed with the idea of being a film producer. They always seem to have fun.

Q. Who is your greatest influence?
A. My entrepreneurial grandfather, who started with one clothes shop and built it up to 650. And my father, who is a fellow technology enthusiast.

Q. What is your biggest fear?
A. My kids being unhappy.

Q. What is missing in the world?
A. One common language.

Q. In a year, the UK economy will be…
A. Over the worst.

Q. Is business a pleasure?
A. Yes — it should be a passion and a hobby. Easier when you work in areas like the internet.

Q. How many assistants do you have?
A. Just one, and one on the world’s longest maternity leave.

Q. Who makes your shirts?
A. Probably someone in China or India. In other words, no special tailoring (but one day I’m sure Oswald will give me a deal).

Q. Philanthropy should be…
A. Personal and impactful.

Q. My business mantra is…
A. Tenacity, risk and originality.

Q. Which watch do you wear?
A. None right now, as my Cartier strap broke — again.

Q. Where do you summer?
A. The South of France.

Q. Favourite hotel suite?
A. Singita game lodge in South Africa, or Reethi Rah in the Maldives.

Q. What is your guilty pleasure?
A. Too much Biltong.

Q. When I drive, I drive…
A. Lackadaisically.

Q. Money lets me…
A. Have time.

Q. My greatest success in business was…
A. The initial business plan for lastminute.com.  

Q. My greatest failure in business was…
A. Not cutting costs faster... and not having built another European brand yet.

Q. Where are you right now?
A. In the Grove hotel at the Google Zeitgeist conference.

Brent Hoberman is now, among other entrepreneurial and internet projects, backing made.com, where visitors can vote for which pieces of designer furniture they would like to be put into production

Photography by Liz de Souza

At the Sharp End is sponsored by KPMG