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The Entrepreneurial Engineer: The Early Years of Terry Matthews
Article Overview: You might not know him by name, but this entrepreneur has started up almost 100 companies and, as Wales’ first billionaire, is richer than even Prince Charles. An engineer by training, Terry Matthews became Wales’ richest man by fixing and building things ever since he was young. What started as $4000 in capital and a “long, long holiday” has since become one of the greatest examples of successful serial entrepreneurship in the world.
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The Entrepreneurial Engineer: The Early Years of Terry Matthews
You might not know him by name, but this entrepreneur has started up almost 100 companies and, as Wales' first billionaire, is richer than even Prince Charles. An engineer by training, Terry Matthews became Wales' richest man by fixing and building things ever since he was young. What started as $4000 in capital and a "long, long holiday" has since become one of the greatest examples of successful serial entrepreneurship in the world.
Terry Matthews was born with dual British-Canadian nationality on June 6, 1943 in Gwent, Wales, where he spent the rest of his childhood. As a boy, Matthews would enjoy taking cars to pieces and building small electric motors. He was curious to see how much he could put together on his own. When he found a four-leaf clover in the field behind a local Wesleyan chapel, Matthews says he knew he was going to be lucky in life. Indeed, he would later rename his international investment company that focuses on high tech ventures, Wesley Clover. Matthews would frequently choose corporate names that reflected his south Wales origins, including Cross Keys, Newbridge and Newport.
Matthews received a Higher National Certificate in mechanical and electrical engineering in London, followed by an honours degree in electronics from the University of Wales, Swansea in 1969. He is also currently a fellow of the Institute of Electrical Engineers and the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Matthews' professional career began as a trainee in the Post Office Research Station in London, but he quickly moved up in the ranks. In 1969, he moved over to Microsystems International in Canada, where he worked for the next three years as an electronics engineer.
But Matthews' trip to Canada was supposed to be nothing more than a "long, long holiday," he says. Indeed, while his trip was certainly for vacation, he wound landing a job and staying. After three years with Microsystems, Matthews' decided to venture off on his own.
Alongside business partner and fellow British expatriate Michael Cowpland, Matthews borrowed $4,000 and founded Advanced Networking Devices. He had no business plan to speak of, but was convinced he had an idea worth putting on the market. The pair also wanted to raise seed money for future enterprises they were planning. Six months later, he changed the company's name to Mitel. While some believe Mitel stands for "Mike and Terry's Electric Lawnmowers" - after their first, failed product - Cowpland insists it stands for "Mike and Terry Electronics."
Whatever the origins of its name, Mitel was one of the very first high-tech start-up companies in Canada. He turned what could have been any ordinary vacation into the beginnings of a stream of almost 100 successful telecommunications companies over 40 years. At the same time, he had become a technology consultant to various companies in Canada's emerging high-tech community, including the National Research Council, the Communications Research Centre, and a number of innovative startups. He was building a thorough network of contacts to draw on when his own startup could finally be realized.
Lesson #3: “Develop a tight team relationship and a fighting spirit that wins”
Lesson #2: “You can’t cut grass when it’s covered with snow”
Brokering Broadband: How Matthews Achieved Serial Success
Lesson #1: “Persistence is the single most important thing for success"
The Telecommunications Tycoon: Terry Matthews Takes Off
Related Forum Posts
Re: Keeping up wtith the (super rich) Joneses
- [quote="OmnivoreInk":ooof1b5b]What's a guy gonna do with 4 mansions??? [/quote:ooof1b5b]
I live very close to Albemarle County, VA which is where the members of the Dave Matthews band live along with a large number of other people with a lot of money. That's convenient to the business people who cater to these residents. The reason I mentioned Dave Matthews and his band members is because they have 3 properties in one county. If you feel that you NEED 3 or 4 homes, why not buy them in different places???
I've worked on a number of these high end homes over the years and it is astounding how some people live. But, I still don't see the reasons for 4 mansions or your own island.
Chris
Book: The System
- [quote:3e8ncw28]What was the name of that book -- the high finance murder mystery?[/quote:3e8ncw28]
Sorry for the delay in answering this question.
The book is:
The System: A Story of Intrigue and Market Domination
Terry Waghorn
Perseus Piblishing
2002
Jacket description:
In a world where competitive advantage is temporary at best - and illusory at worst - there is nothing more important to the business enterprise than creating a robust strategy and executing it with Steve. In The System, Terry WAghorn illustrates this universal theme through an action-packed adventure.
Capitalization Stages Model
- Once again, many thanks!
Terry
Minority Shareholders
- Hi Terry - how did it all work out?
Valuating A Business
- Terry did you get the valuation down on the business?
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