My first million: Peter Jones

Peter Jones, 41, is one of Britain’s best-known entrepreneurs. He starts up or invests in businesses in different sectors, ranging from telecommunications, leisure and recruitment to property and e-commerce.

Jones founded his own tennis academy at 16 and set up a computer business before his 20th birthday. At 28 he joined Siemens Nixdorf and ran its computer business in the UK. In 1998 he founded Phones Inter­national Group, a telecoms company with a turnover today of £150m.

The father of five children, Peter lives in Buckinghamshire with his partner, Tara.

Did you think you would get to where you are?

When I was young I had a vivid imagination, but it was business I was dreaming about. I had hoped to do well but I had no idea I would get to where I am now.

The fact that I did not have the money in the first place and I had to go out and get it makes everything a lot more pleasurable.

One of my guys, Imran Hakim, from series four, has made more than £1m with his I-Teddy, a teddy bear with an MP4 player in its stomach. I invested £75,000 and it became one of the best-selling toys in Argos before Christmas. I own 20 per cent of the company, along with my co-Dragon Theo Paphitis.

When you had made your first million, were you tempted to slow down?

Whenever I’ve thought of slowing down, another opportunity has come along. I’m passionate about enterprise. Slowing down is not something that comes into my mind. At the moment I am working with the prime minister trying to establish my own enterprise academy in Buckinghamshire for 16-to-19-year-olds. Whether it is business, TV, charity or recruitment, I have always got something to do.

What is the secret of your success?

Determination, passion, self-belief and commitment. I’m very driven. I also work with other like-minded people, and I think that is the key. I could not do the things I do if I did not have a great team around me.

What was your most prudent investment?

It was the £1,000 I invested in 1998 to start up Phones International Group, Turnover in the first year was an unbelievable £13.9m.

Have you had time for personal financial planning?

When I was 19 I started a pension and had a couple of endowment policies, but now I rely on investing in property and businesses. I lost everything when I was 29 and had to start again. By the time I was 34 I was back on my feet and owned a nice house with no mortgage.

Do you want to carry on till you drop?

I want to carry on. I enjoy what I do too much. I’ve got a mansion in Beverly Hills, a house in the Algarve and a house in Spain, but I would be dead bored if I retired to any of them.

Have you made any pension provision?

I stopped paying into my pension in my late 20s. Now I just rely on my business investments, rather than stocks and shares. I do follow the stock market but I don’t spend enough time on it to buy and sell shares.

What steps have you taken in terms of planning to pass on your wealth?

I have created a trust fund for my five children, who range from age two to 15.

But they will have to go out to work – and the trust doubles their income each year. If they go into the charity sector or take up a ­vocation such as nursing or teaching they will get twice the amount.

I have also set up a charity, Forgotten Children, which supports children in the UK.

Do you allow yourself the odd indulgence?

Yes, I like to dine out, especially at Malik’s Tandoori in Cookham, Berkshire. I had an outrageous indulgence on my 40th birthday. I took 30 friends on holiday and hired Necker Island in the Caribbean for a week. It cost more than £250,000, but I was lucky enough to be able to share my birthday with my best friends.

What is the most you have ever paid for a bottle of fine wine or champagne?

I paid £2,000 for a bottle of sweet dessert wine at a charity lunch. The wine was absolutely awful, but the cause, a charity for victims of the tsunami, was worth it.