Quick Facts
Biography
John Hargreaves (born January 1944) is a British businessman, the founder and chairman of the UK out-of-town discount clothing and homeware chain Matalan.
Career
John Hargreaves was born in 1944 in Everton, the son of a docks labourer, the middle of eight children all sharing one bedroom in a Liverpool terrace house.
Hargreaves left school at 14, went into the retail business when he was 16, and opened the first Matalan store in Preston in 1985.
Matalan has 200 stores in the UK, and employs over 16,000 people.
Hargreaves resigned as chairman of Matalan on 18 November 2007, less than a year after taking the company private. His resignation marked the end of a 22-year era for Matalan.
Hargreaves purchased British womenswear retailer Fenn Wright Manson for an undisclosed sum on 28 March 2012.
In April 2015, the Sunday Times estimated his net worth at £1.0 billion
Personal life
Hargreaves married aged 19, and has three children, Jason, Jamey, and Maxine.
Hargreaves resides in Monaco with his wife. This alleged non-residence in the UK has enabled him to claim that he is not liable to capital gains tax on a gain of £200 million arising on the disposal of Matalan shares. This claim is being resisted by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, and the matter is subject to litigation.