Sir Jim Ratcliffe: his journey from council house to Britain's richest man
Harriet Noble
18 February 2019
The self-made billionaire's success story
Most people had never heard of Jim Ratcliffe until it was announced in 2018 that he was the richest person in the UK, according to the Sunday Times Rich List. The self-made billionaire has been called the most successful post-war industrialist, yet only became an entrepreneur aged 40 and is notoriously publicity-shy. We take a look at the amazing story of the INEOS founder, from his humble beginnings in Greater Manchester to his luxurious life today and why he's moving to Monaco.
Early life in Greater Manchester
Sir James Arthur Ratcliffe was born on 18 October 1952 and spent the first 10 years of his life in Failsworth, Greater Manchester, where he lived in a council house with his parents. To this day, he still supports Manchester United Football Club.
Ratcliffe’s family
Ratcliffe's father was a joiner and then latterly went on to run a factory making laboratory furniture, while his mother was an accounts office worker. Ratcliffe’s love of industry stems from his childhood days when he used to count the factory smokestacks from the window of his house.
Education
The family moved to Yorkshire when Ratcliffe was 10, where he attended Beverley Grammar School. He continued his studies at Birmingham University, where he graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering in 1973. After that, he worked at BP for a mere three days then oil giants Esso before returning to education, gaining an MBA from London Business School.
Early career
Ratcliffe worked at Courtaulds, a fabric and chemicals producer based in Coventry, before joining US private equity group Advent International in 1989. With backing from Advent International, he co-led the buyout of a chemicals business from BP to form his first company INSPEC.
The risky birth of INEOS
In 1998, Ratcliffe founded INEOS in order to acquire the former BP site at Antwerp from INSPEC. To raise the necessary finance, he took a huge gamble and put in everything he owned, plus loans and venture capital equity, to purchase the site.
What does INEOS do?
The company specialises in producing chemicals and oil products that are used in the manufacture of goods. While the brand isn’t very well-known to the average person, most of us are using its products every day. They range from household products to medicines to furniture. The plastic cap on your toothpaste? Solvents used in the production of antibiotics? INEOS is the company that makes these products.
Takeovers
INEOS flourished by buying operations from huge companies, such as German chemicals maker BASF. The game-changer deal, however, was the $6.38 billion (£5bn) takeover of BP's petrochemical business Innovene in 2005. Overnight, it quadrupled the sales of INEOS to more than $22.96 billion (£18bn) and doubled its staff numbers to 15,000.
INEOS moves to Switzerland
To avoid huge taxes, INEOS moved to Switzerland in 2011. The move was reported to save the company around $127.53 million (£100m) a year. However, in 2016 the company moved back to the UK and now has its headquarters in Knightsbridge, just opposite upmarket store Harrods.
Industrial action
Jim Ratcliffe came under the spotlight in 2013 when trade unions threatened strike action over pay and pensions at the Grangemouth petrochemical plant and refinery in Scotland (pictured) and a standoff ensued. INEOS announced that it would close the plant and cut jobs but reversed the decision, keeping the plant open. Ratcliffe's tough stance earned him the nickname Dr No.
INEOS today
Currently, INEOS has around 19,000 employers and owns 171 sites in 23 countries. The Sunday Times valued the company at $45 billion (£35bn) in 2018.
The secret of Ratcliffe's success
Talking about the strategy and success of INEOS, Ratcliffe (pictured, left) told The Times: “We’d look at businesses that were unfashionable or unsexy, facilities owned by large corporations where you’d know they would be sloppy with the fixed costs. We’d run them a bit better, reduce the costs, make them busy, and over the cycle they are very profitable.”
Support for fracking
Ratcliffe firmly supports fracking and INEOS has invested millions in the controversial activity. In 2016 there was a lot of media attention around the arrival of the first shipment of shale gas from the US to arrive in the UK.
Moving into motor vehicles
Current plans for the company include a $770 million (£600m) investment in a new vehicle based on the Land Rover Defender (pictured), which was discontinued in 2016. Ratcliffe, an adventurer and huge fan of the 4x4, believes INEOS can fill the gap in the market with a prototype currently dubbed Projekt Grenadier. The SUV is expected to be in production in 2019, with finished cars on the road by 2020.
Diversifying into clothing...
In October 2017, a month after Ratcliffe announced his plans to start making cars, INEOS dipped its toes into luxury clothing when it bought Belstaff, the iconic British motorcycle wear, whose jackets were once worn by stars such as Steve McQueen and David Beckham (pictured).
...and sport
And Ratcliffe and his company snapped up Swiss football team FC Lausanne-Sport in 2017. David Thompson (pictured), a senior executive at INEOS, said at the time: "This is not a profit-making activity". The long-term aim is that one day the team can qualify for major European club competitions.
Other ventures
Not content with running a huge global corporation, Ratcliffe is also the owner of Hampshire’s luxury Lime Wood hotel and a stakeholder in the expanding boutique Pig hotel chain.
A reclusive reputation
Ratcliffe has a close cohort of friends and is generally reported to be secretive and reclusive. As well as the Dr No nickname, he has also been called JR after the oil tycoon in TV show Dallas.
Properties
Ratcliffe has properties in Chelsea, London and in the county of Hampshire. He also has a New Forest beach house, which he plans to demolish and replace with a contemporary $5.2 million (£4m) carbon-neutral mansion that will be raised on hydraulic stilts to protect it from rising sea levels.
Super-yachts
Ratcliffe has owned two super-yachts, named Hampshire and Hampshire II. Hampshire II is reported to be 258 feet long and is valued at around $100 million (£78.4m). The yacht boasts a helipad, a playing field, wine cellar with underwater sea viewing area, and a zip wire which guests can use to travel down to the sea.
Private jets
He also owns no less than four private jets, though all are registered to his company INEOS. Currently, the fleet consists of a Gulfstream G550, two Gulfstream G280 and a Dassault Falcon 2000EX. He also owns an AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter.
A deal that didn't come off
Despite already owning a football club with INEOS, albeit a Swiss one, the billionaire was keen to buy Chelsea Football Club and approached the club's owner Roman Abramovich. Unfortunately for Ratcliffe, his advances are understood to have been rejected by the Russian oligarch.
Fitness fanatic
When Ratcliffe turned 60, he set himself physical challenges: to run the Comrades marathon in South Africa (a 90km uphill slog), to go on a motorbike ride through Africa, and to learn to kitesurf.
Polar explorer
Ratcliffe has also been on expeditions to the North and South Pole.
Sailing challenge
In 2018, Ratcliffe formed INEOS Team UK with the aim of winning the world-famous sailing competition, the America's Cup. The cup dates back to 1851 but has never been won by a British team.
Philanthropic work
Ratcliffe is the founder of charity Go Run for Fun and The Daily Mile, both of which encourage children to be more active through running events.
A knighthood
Ratcliffe was knighted in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in June 2018 for his services to business and investment.
Net worth today
According to the Sunday Times Rich List 2018, Jim Ratcliffe is the richest person in the UK, with a net worth of $26.85 billion (£21.05bn). In 2017, he was 18th place on the list but his wealth increased from $19.51 billion (£15.3bn), partly due to of a revaluation of assets including property and two super-yachts. He is the first UK-born person to top the Rich List since the Duke of Westminster back in 2003. However, Forbes calculates his net worth in mid-February 2019 at a more conservative $12.6 billion (£9.7bn).
Private life
In 1985, Ratcliffe married Amanda Townson and they had two sons, Samuel and George. Unfortunately the marriage did not last and the couple divorced in 1995. Ratcliffe later married Alicia and they have a daughter together.
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Brexit views
Ratcliffe is a supporter of Brexit and said in an interview: "The Brits are perfectly capable of managing the Brits and don't need Brussels telling them how to manage things." He added: ‘'I just don't believe in the concept of a United States of Europe. It's not viable."
Moving to Monaco
In 2018, Ratcliffe announced that he was moving to the glitzy, tax haven coastline of Monaco. The Sunday Times reported that relocating could save him up to $5.2 billion (£4bn) in tax. It's thought that the headquarters of INEOS will remain in London. Given his outspoken views on Brexit and his knighthood, the move has generated a lot of controversy. But then controversy is nothing new to this self-made man from Greater Manchester.
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