An optician with an eye for opportunity

When Alexis Amor hit on an idea with the potential to put other opticians out of business - by offering glasses at 30-50% less - his rivals tried to stop suppliers from dealing with him.

With banks, landlords and suppliers all breathing down your neck, the last thing you need as an entrepreneur with a new business is to be targeted by a rival intent on closing you down before the first customer walks through the door. But that's something Alexis Amor, 35, knows all about.

Less than a month after he opened his opticians, Iris, in Richmond, Surrey, in summer 2005, he had an unwelcome visitor. "This man walked in and started pointing at all the brands, not even looking at me, saying yeah, we do that, we do that'." He turned out to be the head of Amor's biggest competitor. "He said, I came here to tell you that we're moving over the road. We'll see you in ten weeks' time'."

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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.