Born into inner city poverty against a backdrop of racist and
misogynistic 1960s Britain, Sue finally ‘made it’ becoming a self-made multi-millionaire
at 59 years old. Admittedly slower than some entrepreneurs, but she got there in the end.
After working for 35 years
she decided to set up her own tax company with her best friend's daughter, Brady
Last. They started in her small conservatory on two laptops and with a large stash of Yorkshire
tea bags. The kids had left home and at 54 years old, she thought
she should do something risky for once in her life. She put her entire savings
into starting a business even though there were no clients in sight. She
convinced Brady to join her in this one last hurrah.
Accountants laughed at them, banks wouldn't give them an overdraft (never mind a loan), and rivals tried to put them out of business. Five years later it was sold to EY, that big multi-billion pound turnover company who just loved the staff and the brand.
How did she build a buy-out in such a short time and from scratch? Hiring people with no qualifications, starting a radio show (wtf!), co-founding a women's business group, sponsoring charities and writing a book or two, among other things . . .
