Nick Jenkins: How I fattened up Moonpig

Ex commodities trader Nick Jenkins launched his own card copmany in 2000. It took five years to turn a profit, but now his company, Moonpig, sells ten million cards a year.

As death threats go, Nick Jenkins, 42, couldn't have asked for a timelier one. As a Moscow-based commodities trader, "one of my clients stole $10m worth of sugar. I pursued him, had him arrested and he took offence." Shortly after, Jenkins found a less-than-friendly warning pinned to his door. "I can take a hint," says the founder of £21m-a-year greeting cards firm Moonpig.com. "Which turned out to be lucky, because the economy collapsed within three months of me leaving."

Shropshire-born Jenkins returned to Britain in 1998 and took an MBA at Cranfield business school. "I wanted to do something entrepreneurial, but I hadn't come up with a plan. So I thought I'd do an MBA while I came up with a clever idea." While looking at online options, "I decided I wanted a product that I could improve. And the only way to do that was through personalisation."

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Jody Clarke

Jody studied at the University of Limerick and was a senior writer for MoneyWeek. Jody is experienced in interviewing, for example digging into the lives of an ex-M15 agent and quirky business owners who have made millions. Jody’s other areas of expertise include advice on funds, stocks and house prices.