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Top Man: How Philip Green Built His High Street Empire
 
 

Top Man: How Philip Green Built His High Street Empire (Hardcover)

by Andy Forrester (Author), Stewart Lansley (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Aurum Press Ltd (27 Oct 2005)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 1845131002
  • ISBN-13: 978-1845131005
  • Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.8 x 3.4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 72,544 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #54 in  Books > Business, Finance & Law > Careers > Entrepreneurship

Product Description

Observer, November 27 2005
" thorough and well-written, with a linking narrative that makes it a rattling good story".

Frank Kane

Product Description
Philip Green, owner of, amongst much else, British Home Stores, reached billionaire status faster than anyone else in British history. Today he is worth [pound]3.6 billion and is reckoned to be the country's fourth richest citizen. This is the first biography of a man whose aggressive business tactics and brash lifestyle have transformed the staid image of British retailing, and who is likely to remain in the headlines for as long as his ultimate prize, Marks & Spencer, continues to elude his grasp.. A middle-class Jewish boy from North London who left school at fifteen, Green started and failed with four businesses before he made it with his fifth venture, Jean Jeannie, which he sold to Lee Cooper for an enormous profit that set him on the road to fame and fortune. But there were pitfalls on the way; in particular, his involvement with Amber Day, a public company, left him with an abiding dislike for both the City establishment and outside investors. Ever since, he has relied upon a close group of like-minded entrepreneurs, including Tom Hunter the sports shoe millionaire and the Barclay twins, to help fund his buccaneering forays into Britain's High Streets. The authors describe Green's takeover and highly profitable break up of the Sears empire created by one of his business heroes, Charles Clore, and his first audacious attempt to seize control of Marks & Spencer at the end of 1999. Frustrated, in part by what were widely perceived as unfair tactics on the part of M&S, Green then turned his attention to the ailing BHS, for which he paid a mere [pound]200 million and then transformed its fortunes to such an extent that, in 2004, he was able to transfer dividends totalling [pound]400 million to his Monaco tax haven. His appetite unsated, Green then turned his attention to the Arcadia Group, which included brands such as Miss Selfridge, Top Shop and Dorothy Perkins before making another bid for M&S in 2004. Again he was folled, partly because of what he saw as treachery on the part of his former protege Stuart Rose, the man who was appointed by M&S to see off Green's bid. But there seems little doubt that, given the opportunity, he will be back and that this time the personal grudge between the two men will give the contest an added bitterness.

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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews

9 Reviews
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 (9)
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Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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18 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars An essential book about comics, 1 Nov 2006
By Lewis Stringer (Warwickshire, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Great British Comics (Paperback)
It's been quite a while since a book as thorough as this has been written on home grown comics, but Great British Comics has been worth the wait. Paul Gravett and Peter Stanbury should be proud of their work here, for it's about the most definitive book on UK comics that's been published.

Some previous books on the genre have only shown the covers to the comics, but this book also showcases the strips themselves, with numerous crisp reprodictions, some even taken from the original artwork, warts and all. Pleasingly, newspaper strips are also included, as are independent comics, two areas which are sometimes overlooked when people write about British comics.

Most importantly, Great British Comics shatters the often-heard myth that "the British comics industry is dead", as it includes examples of strips that bring us right up to date. What this proves is that although some people only consider "traditional comics" to have any merit, British comics have always evolved with the times so each generation has its own idea on what these "traditions" are, from Victorian tabloid comic/ story papers to today's slick comic / magazine hybrids.

The book also contains a timeline designed by Stanbury which shows the lifespan of various titles over the past 100 years. Plus there are several photographs which help give a cultural reference to certain eras, such as the full page photo of kids queueing for rationed comics outside a newsagent in 1943!

An essential book for anyone with an interest in comics.
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9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive and inspiring, 13 Dec 2006
By G. C. Ewing "Garen" (UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Great British Comics (Paperback)
I have a few books on comics in general, and 'Great British Comics' beats all of them hands down. It is wonderfully written - not scholarly, not dumb, but perfectly readable, intelligent and also very positive about its subject matter, showing no snobbery or bias towards any one particular area. And talking of that, the diversity of genres and styles is quite astounding - British comics are incredibly rich in history and it is fascinating to see the quality of early strips and their development through the years. But they also have a rich future from the look of things, and Paul Gravett is enthusiastically upbeat about a medium that many thought lost along with their distant childhood... "Oh yeah, I remember comics! Do they still make them?". There is a current scene and it's alive and kicking, and there are plenty of examples here. Graphically the book is excellent - there's plenty to look at, and it's not just a gallery of impressive covers as is quite often the case with books of this nature, but actual strip pages - the storytelling itself, which is what comics are. Overall the book is an inspiration.
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12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Gentlemen, we have a winner..., 21 Nov 2006
By Alan Woollcombe - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Great British Comics (Paperback)
Most general books about comics tend to specialize or be skewed towards a certain genre, audience or era - think 'superheroes', 'alternative', '1960s'. It's a rare beast that eschews such temptations and goes all out for the historical sweep, without seeming superficial or conversely dragged down by the weight of facts and figures. Fortunately, comics historian Paul Gravett wears his extensive learning lightly and weaves an extremely readable overview of a dense field, aided by inviting layouts from the talented Peter Stanbury.

So who should buy this book? Just about anyone with an interest in British comics will get something out of it: the melange of visuals from a century and a half of comic strips will draw in the casual browser, while its authoritative blend of comics culture and history will appeal to the comics' cognoscenti.

Put simply, this is the best primer on British comics I've ever read. Put it on your shopping list now.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Top Man - Top Dog!!
I found it hard to put the book down. This was a great insight into the world and antics of Phil Green and his business antics. A great read.
Published 1 month ago by Philip Grant

5.0 out of 5 stars a top book
great book, but it shows how scared people are of this guy, i guess because it was not authorised by philip green - it shows how some one with nothing can build himself up - would... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Mr. S. Franks

5.0 out of 5 stars It is easy to see how this guy is a billionaire!!!
I only bought this paperback on the off chance it could be interesting and i couldnt put it down until i had finished it. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Mr. M. Westcott

5.0 out of 5 stars You'll never look at the High Street the same way again!
Read this book to see how one man can influence the way you shop. This is an inspirational read, and because it is not an "official" biography it describes the rough and the... Read more
Published on 5 Dec 2006 by CS

5.0 out of 5 stars Business Icon's Candid Biography
Authors Stewart Lansley and Andy Forrester do a good job of crafting the story of Philip Green, who bullied, connived, intimidated, schemed, blustered and outworked his way to the... Read more
Published on 21 Dec 2005 by Rolf Dobelli

5.0 out of 5 stars A deal making maestro
An absolutely gripping read if you are interested in the history of the high street and how Philip Green has gone about shaping it. Read more
Published on 7 Nov 2005 by Mr Alastair Sinclair

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