Name: Rowan Gormley

Age: 49

Company: Online wine retailer Naked Wines

Turnover: £20m

First job: Bean Counter at Accenture.

Dream job: To set up a new university where people learn skills that will actually help them earn a living.

Car: Very old Audi TT. It has 150,000 miles on the clock.

Economy, business or first class: Economy. But with extra leg-room supplement.

Most extravagant purchase: My Armani suit

Most played song on iPod: Paul Weller’s “You do something to me”.

Best business book: Good to Great by Michael Collins.

Worst business moment: Realising I had launched a business, raised money, hired some lovely people, and it wasn’t going to work.

Proudest business moment: When 12 people left Virgin Wines to help me set up Naked Wines.

Business mentors: There’s a few: Richard Branson (follow your instincts); Virgin Money’s chief executive Jayne-Anne Gadhia (treat your staff right and they treat your customers right); and Tim Syder, deputy managing partner at Electra (how to negotiate with people and remain friends).

Next big thing: Our new iPhone app, WineDemon. We’re an online retailer so digital technology has always been important to us. Our app gives consumers instant wine guidance when they need it most, most notably in supermarkets and restaurants.

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