British billionaire John Caudwell might be worth a cool $4 billion, but this businessman does not believe in spoiling his children. The English billionaire founded the now defunct mobile phone retailer Phones 4u and Singlepoint, both businesses which he later sold. He now focuses his time on real estate investing while raising three children with his partner Modesta Vžesniauskaitė.
According to Forbes, Caudwell has a net worth of $4.2 billion.
John Caudwell’s parenting philosophy
Caudwell has eight children, including one stepchild, ranging from ages 2 to 47. In an essay for Business Insider, the 73-year-old billionaire explained that he grew up with “next to nothing”, but does not want to overcompensate for the fact by pampering his children too much.
“I don’t want my kids to have next to nothing, but I don’t want to overcorrect the way that some rich people do,” he said.
(Also read: Narayana Murthy flew economy, carried his own luggage, reveals Tejasvi Surya)
In fact, life in the Caudwell household might be more grounded than one might imagine. For one thing, they don’t have a large staff. “We do most of the parenting and don’t have nannies. I have two housekeepers who help out, but school is the real answer, from 9 am until 4 pm. That gives them discipline, entertainment, interest, and education,” Caudwell said.
Flying economy, no designer clothes
The billionaire businessman revealed that he does not buy designer clothes for his children, and they do not fly in private jets. In fact, while he often books business class tickets for himself, his children and his partner fly economy.
“For instance, when we go on the superyacht for a family holiday, that’s mainly a treat for me,” he explained.
“The adult children have to make their own way to the boat. The younger ones travel in economy with Modesta — I’ll take business class most of the time — and we take the budget airline easyJet. We have to demonstrate to them what normal life is like,” he elaborated.
(Also read: Bill Gates says his kids will only inherit 1% of his multi-billion fortune: ‘It’s not a dynasty’)
The same philosophy applies to their clothes. According to Caudwell, he does not buy designer clothes for his children.
“They have virtually no designer clothes — maybe some that they got as presents, but we buy them clothes from Zara and Primark. If you go to Gucci and pay a thousand pounds, are the kids any happier? No, they’re not. Do they end up having a very spoiled attitude? Yeah, they probably do,” he said.
