Jon Hunt, founder FOXTONS

In this Series of Rags to riches Entrepreneurs , we will focus on the lives and times of some of the most successful entrepreneurs.

Jon Hunt, founder Foxtons ,Current worth- $1.08 billion(Approx.)

Starting with about £100 at the age of 19, this property entrepreneur from England gives us one of the stories which demonstrates how hard work and perseverance pays for entrepreneurs.

This British property entrepreneur comes from an army background who also spent few  years washing cars in Ottawa, Canada before returning to the United Kingdom in 1972. For few years, he also worked as a real estate agent. In 1981, Jon Hunt,who was 28 then, founded Foxton with one of his school friends. His friend had a major stake in the business in the first year who pumped in £30,000 to fund the business.

Initially, in order to compete with the existing real estate agents, they started working for more number of hours in a week and also charging 0% commission for the first 3 months in order to stimulate the business. Once the customers started flowing in , they charged competitive commission, sometimes charging higher than their competitors.

During 1988–1994, the property market saw a downfall and had a very bad impact on Foxtons. After recovering from the turmoil, Hunt said that it was one of the toughest days for his business and the recovery for the Firm was a big achievement.

London is one of the most sought after and important property market. Foxtons aggressively entered the property market and the do or die attitude displayed by the firm was highly appreciated by the customers.During Hunt’s tenure Foxtons grew to about 20 branches and over 1,600 employees in the UK and USA .

In the year 2007, Hunt sold Foxtons to private equity group BC Partners for reported £375 million.

In 2011, he co-founded Pavilion with his daughter Emma. Pavilion is a British business members’ club offering premium services to its members. Even though Jon Hunt is said to be one of the most successful entrepreneurs of England, he is publicity shy. Well, his work speaks for him.

Team TOS

Image Source : Standard.co.uk