A biography for Theo Paphitishasn’t been written yet.
“When we arrived in the U.K. on the banana boat, we settled right by Old Trafford.”
“A lot of multinationals have long, drawn-out processes and are pretty useless at putting products on the shelves quickly.”
“I admire people who have passion and energy.”
“What makes business exciting is that you don't need a fancy degree, and anyone can do it.”
“The high street is not a retail thing: it's a social thing, part of the British lifestyle. And I say that as someone who started his life on Limassol high street in Cyprus.”
“Retail is my game. I spend every waking hour thinking about it. I started in the industry at the age of 18 after trying various other things that were mind-numbingly boring to me.”
“I was useless in the classroom; I would spend my time looking out of the window after the first 10 minutes. But when you do an apprenticeship, you don't have to wait for the teacher to tell you when it's time to start, because you are on the shop floor learning for real.”
“The eight years I spent at Millwall were among the best times of my life.”
“If you really want to sort out the High Street, you ask someone like Kate Swann at WHSmith, who has done a fantastic job of running profitable shops.”
“I'm a very considerate spender. I'm a shopper, and I do spend money, but I think about it first.”
“Women have to work harder to be in the same position as a fella because they often have to balance work with running a family.”
“I was born in Cyprus, but my family moved to England when I was about six.”
“Showing your emotions is not a weakness.”
“I try to support local traders. The service makes up for any extra cost.”
“If you look at all the investments made during 'Dragons' Den,' the ratio of those that make it to those that don't is actually extremely high.”
“In the 1960s, my first-generation immigrant parents were gifted the olive branch of a blue British passport when working for the British Army in Cyprus. It completely transformed the Paphitis story.”
“A small business can survive for a while without making a profit, but if its cashflow dries up, the impact is fatal.”
“Good businesses will survive good times and bad times.”
“If you cannot bore your friends to death about your own small business, then something is seriously wrong.”
“I didn't have a great childhood, and neither did Debbie, my wife, so we both try to give the kids not only the material things we never had but also the hugs and the love.”