Alex Chesterman
With one of the most diverse portfolios on this list, Alex Chesterman’s businesses do not have much in common other than being revolutionary upon their launch.
Having studied economics at University College London, he went on to be executive vice president of the restaurant chain Planet Hollywood until 1998. It was at that time he founded ScreenSelect, a DVD and video rental service that offered customers the chance to order films which would arrive by post. It later became LoveFilm and was bought by Amazon.
While that business has been wound down, his two other creations are very much still in operation. Zoopla, the property website arm of the London-based estate agency ZPG Ltd, was founded in 2008. It remains one of the most popular comparison sites of its kind and ZPG was in 2018 sold to Silver Lake Partners for $2.2 billion. It was as founder of Zoopla that Mr Chesterman first invested in football by sponsoring West Bromwich Albion. But in 2014, two years after signing a deal, he pulled out after the team’s player Nicolas Anelka made a gesture in a goal celebration that was said to be anti-Semetic and offensive to Mr Chesterman, who is Jewish. Anelka denied the salute was anti-Semetic but was fired nonetheless.
A strong supporter of the UK remaining in the EU, Mr Chesterman donated £300,000 to the Liberal Democrats during the period to try and stop Brexit. While this failed, he did enjoy a successful end to the 2010s with the foundation of Cazoo - an online platform to sell used cars. The brand sponsors seven football clubs including West Brom’s rivals, Aston Villa.
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