John Roberts is the founder of Bolton-headquartered online electricals retailer AO.com, which was launched on the back of a £1 bet and recently topped £1bn turnover.
He’s one of a hundreds of names put forward for consideration for BusinessCloud’s Northern Leaders list, which will be published later this year.
He was 14 when he got his first job as a waiter at Bolton’s famous Last Drop Hotel but the moment that changed the direction of his life was a Christmas Eve drink in 1999 with his friend Alan Latchford.
The pair famously enjoyed honorary £1 bets and this one particular conversation turned to the internet, which was then in its infancy.
I interviewed Roberts a few years ago at Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham’s digital summit and he recalled the conversation with Latchford.
“Alan was saying it was a thing to search for information and I was saying ‘I reckon we can flog stuff on that’,” he recalled.
“We used to have these honorary bets of £1 so he bet me £1 that I wouldn’t give up my job and get on with it and get it started.”
Appliances Online – which later rebranded to AO.com – started trading in August 2000 and Latchford lost his bet.
In 2014 the company floated on the London Stock Exchange, given it a market value at £1.2bn.
It was 11 times over-subscribed and exposed AO – and Roberts in particular – to unprecedented levels of public scrutiny.
When he said in an interview that he would be leaving his fortune to charity instead of his five children it made front page news.
The float also gave the business the money to expand into Germany and the Netherlands with the stated ambition of becoming the No 1 white good website in both territories.
However, Roberts has never been afraid of making tough calls, evidenced by his decision to close their German operation in 2022 and focus on the UK.
His mantra is that it’s better to be right and fast 70 per cent of the time when making decisions than 95 per cent right and too late.
His approach to business is simple. Customers want the best and most convenient service at the best price. If something goes wrong, they expect to be looked after.
Roberts is passionate about customer service and highlights the goodwill created by the company’s famous green teddy bears.
The entrepreneur has a reputation for details and has been known to respond to customer complaints personally and make 2am visits to AO’s depots to see the delivery side of the business for himself.
Roberts has always recognised the value of brand awareness and in 2017 AO sponsored Britain’s Got Talent and the CEO even got a name check from Simon Cowell in the final on live TV.
The company has secured the naming rights for Manchester’s AO Arena while AO has also sponsored Lancashire County Cricket Club, National League side Altrincham Football Club and countless grass roots sports teams.
As well as business, Roberts champions the case of disadvantaged young people and believes that although talent is evenly distributed, opportunity isn’t.
The philanthropist is also a long-time supporter of the Bolton Lads and Girls Club and the OnSide Youth Zones.
The AO Smile Foundation was set up to provide practical and emotional support for the most vulnerable people in society, with a particular focus on young people.
In February 2017 Roberts was succeeded as CEO of the online retail giant by Steve Caunce so he could focus on innovation and development projects.
However, he stepped back into the hot seat in 2019 when his friend and associate stepped down in a bid to re-balance his lifestyle.
AO’s last set of financial figures for the year to the end of March 2024 revealed the company had broken £1bn turnover and made an estimated profit of £33m with a target of 10-20 per cent revenue growth in the year ahead.
Despite the company’s success and scale, Roberts still personally meets new starters at the beginning of their AO journey and privately mentors a numbers of entrepreneurs.
Roberts has become increasingly vocal on ‘X’, the platform previously known as Twitter.
As well as praising their appointment of James Timpson as prisons minister, he’s also called on the new Labour government “to give UK kids some badly-needed hope for the future” by restoring investment in youth services.
His approach to life can be best summed up by his profile on X. “Passionate about exceptional service,” he wrote, “leaving the world a better place and making Mum proud.”
* BusinessCloud has launched a search for the leaders who have made – and continue to make – the biggest positive change to the North.
Our Northern Leaders list is aimed primarily at the business world but could also include figures from politics, sport and the voluntary sectors.
Nominations are now being invited from across the North of England and BusinessCloud will then produce the definitive Northern Leaders list later this year. Email [email protected]