Words by Smiley Team
When Jack Petchey returned home after serving in the Navy in World War II he went back to work in his former office job in a solicitor’s.
But he was soon passed over for promotion, after his boss decided he was ‘not management material’.
Petchey promptly handed in his notice, gathered together his life savings and bought a car, with the intention of running a taxi service in his home in London’s East End.
He expanded into a hire car business, then bought car showrooms and eventually started to invest in property both in the UK and abroad.
Today Sir Jack Petchey, now 95, is one of the UK’s leading philanthropists, having set up the Jack Petchey Foundation and gifted £140m to good causes in the last 20 years.
His foundation focuses on education and achievement for young people, with the aim of inspiring and motivating 11 to 25 year olds across London and Essex to do their best and reach their full potential.
Sir Jack regards the Foundation as his greatest achievement, and it runs multiple programmes and projects every year to help young people learn new skills, make friends and gain confidence.
The Speak Out! challenge is the world’s largest public speaking competition for young people, while they also run Step into Dance, the UK’s biggest inclusive dance project for secondary school pupils.
In an interview with the BBC Sir Jack put his business success down to his confidence in taking a risk. He said: "Many people have said I've been lucky in business.
“Well, I spell lucky with a 'p'- plucky! Because a lot of success is about having courage to make decisions and take advantage of opportunities.”
He also explained his personal philosophy is to embrace optimism and look to the future, saying: "It's no good looking back, you always have to look forward. I can honestly say I have no regrets."
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