The Apprentice star topped the ‘Most Searched for Company Directors’ list this year ahead of BHS’ Dominic Chappell, who was recently arrested as part of an investigation into unpaid taxes on profits made from the collapsed department store chain.
Compiled by Creditsafe, the global business intelligence experts, the list details the most popular searches of its customers using the service to browse director information such as previous business history. The facility is often used by organisations keen to find out as much information as possible about who they are working with, before agreeing to a commercial deal.
Dominic Chappell, a former bankrupt businessman with no retail experience, bought BHS for £1 in March 2015 from Sir Philip Green. The retailer collapsed into administration in April 2016, leading to 11,000 job losses and a £571m pension deficit. Philip Green himself came eighth in Creditsafe’s list, having seen a motion recently passed in the House of Commons approving a measure to strip him of his knighthood due to his role in the downfall of BHS.
In-keeping with the theme of failures, Gordon Dunne, founder of construction firm Dunne Group which folded earlier this year with the immediate loss of 524 jobs, came third in the top 10 list. Other individuals to make the top 10 included Sports Direct founder, Mike Ashley and Dragons’ Den star Peter Jones. Jones’ inclusion may be influenced by the recent 50/1 prediction that he will be the UK’s next Prime Minister, after the entrepreneur confirmed he is considering running for the post in the wake of US-President Elect Donald Trump’s election success.
Dawn Ward, star of reality TV show the ‘Real Housewives of Cheshire’ and director of construction business Bilton Ward Developments Limited, came ninth in the list. She made the headlines earlier this year having been found guilty of assaulting 80s pop singer Sinitta in 2015. Meanwhile, last year’s number one, Jeremy Clarkson slipped to tenth place this year.
Rachel Mainwaring, Operations Director at Creditsafe UK, said: “2016 has been a turbulent year for UK businesses, with countless scandals and bankruptcies seeing many business owners becoming unlikely celebrities in their own right. As a result, there have been a number of new entries in this year’s list, with failures proving to be of particular interest to those searching for director history. As legal cases with some of these organisations continue and further scandals come to light, it will be interesting to see how the list changes in a year’s time.”
The top ten most searched for directors in 2016:
1. Alan Sugar
2. Dominic Chappell
3. Gordon Dunne
4. Peter Jones
5. Mike Ashley
6. Julie McInnes
7. Jay Hawkes
8. Philip Green
9. Dawn Ward
10. Jeremy Clarkson
