Peter Jones is the last original Dragon left on BBC’s Dragon’s Den. The charming British man has also appeared across the pond on Shark Tank and American Inventor. As an investor and entrepreneur, he owns businesses in industries including entertainment, retail, and mobile phones. According to the Sunday Times Rich List, Peter Jones has a net worth of £1.157 billion.
Early Life
Peter Jones was born on March 18, 1966 and spent his early childhood in Langley, Berkshire. As a kid, he developed a passion for business from his parents, who both worked full-time. He first attended Desborough School but later transferred to The Windsor Boys’ School.
Before becoming an entrepreneur, he was a talented tennis player and was an assistant coach at the age of 12. Four years later, he started teaching private tennis lessons to earn extra income.
Business Career
At 16 years-old, Peter started a local tennis academy and a personal computer business. He focused more time on the latter, but it eventually failed after he sold it to IBM. Then, he worked for Siemens Nixdorf, an IT company. Around this time, he strangely opened a cocktail bar based on the Tom Cruise movie Cocktail.
In 1998, he founded Phones International Group, now called Data Select. Between 2004 and 2008, he set up several businesses, such as the recruitment firm Celsius Resourcing and the beverage retailer Wines4Business.com. In 2013, he acquired the photography retailer before the business went under.
Television Career
In early 2005, Peter starred in the reality business series Dragon’s Den on BBC. The show has gone on to become a big success for the BBC and still pulls in a million viewers every episode.
In 2007, he sold the concept of American Inventor to ABC and became a judge on the show when it premiered. The series became the basis for Jones’ next media project, the ITV reality show Tycoon.
Despite every other original cast member leaving Dragon’s Den, Jones is still powering on. He made his first appearance on the American version of the show, Shark Tank in 2021 and will be returning for season 14.
Net Worth and Earnings
Over the last decade, Peter has invested in dozens of businesses on Dragon’s Den. His most successful ones include Reggae Reggae Sauce, Wonderland Magazine, iTeddy, and Concentrate Design. Reggae Reggae Sauce in particular is his most memorable investment and the company is now worth over $40 million! He originally invested £25,000 for 20% of the business.
In 2011, Jones sold a major stake in Data Select for £38 million to Wireless Logic. In 2022, the star’s face was used to lure people into a Bitcoin investing scheme in which he had no involvement. Still, his net worth is estimated to be £1.157 billion.
Personal Life
Jones married his first wife, Caroline when he was 21 years old. They had two children together but the couple went through a messy divorce in 2008. In 1997, the businessman started dating interior designer Tara Capp and had three kids: Tallulah, Isabella, and Natalia. The couple currently lives on a private Buckinghamshire estate.
