Jacqueline Gold

Jacqueline Gold, Chief Executive of Ann Summers and Knickerbox, is one of Britain's most successful businesswomen and an inspiration to thousands of women. She has been voted the second Most Powerful Woman in Retail by Retail Week, the Most Inspirational Businesswoman in the UK in a survey by Barclays Bank and handbag.com, one of Britain's top 10 Most Powerful Women by Cosmopolitan, top 12 women by Good Housekeeping Magazine, one of Britain's 100 Most Influential Women by the Daily Mail, Business Communicator of the Year 2004, and was made a new entry in Debrett's 'People of Today' 2005 for her contribution to British society. She heads an empire that is run by women, for women. Jacqueline is the charismatic boss of one of Britain's most extraordinary business families. With a gross annual sales turnover at over £155 million, Ann Summers ranks as one of the most successful and profitable private companies in the UK. The parent company Gold Group International incorporates property and publishing interests, Gold Air International (a luxurious executive airline), and Birmingham City Football Club. The combined family fortune is estimated at £515 million (Sunday Times Rich List 2005).

At the age of 21, working as a junior in her father's business, Jacqueline saw the potential of selling sexy lingerie and sex toys to women in the privacy of their own homes. Working her way through the ranks of the company Jacqueline was made Chief Executive in 1987, and quickly transformed Ann Summers into a multi-million pound concern. Ann Summers now boasts a sales force of over 8,500 women as party organisers, and has 124 high street stores in the UK, Ireland, and Channel Islands and one in Spain. Future plans include further outlets in the UK and worldwide. Whilst the recent takeover of Knickerbox has added another 28 stores in the UK to the group, plus seven franchises in Iceland and Greece. Jacqueline has been the subject of several documentaries including 'Back To The Floor' (BBC2, 2001), 'Ann Summers Uncovered' (ITV1, 2003), and 'So What Do You Do All Day' (BBC2, 2004), and co-presented the daytime business series 'Mind Your Own Business' (BBC1, 2005). Her autobiography 'Good Vibrations' was published in 1995 (Pavilion Books). She is a regular columnist for Retail Week and Kent Business.