Chris Dawson Blog

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Plymouth businessman takes on the energy giants (Comment on this article) 05.01.09 Evening Herald

A PLYMOUTH entrepreneur is taking on the energy giants with the promise of cheaper electricity and gas rates for customers. Chris Dawson, owner of The Range Home, Leisure and Garden chain of stores, as well as an award-winning waste management company and an interior design and shop-fitting operation, plans to enter the national energy market with an internet-based utilities provider.

Speaking to The Herald from Barbados, the millionaire businessman said his new project would be launched in two weeks' time. Customers will be able to sign up to the service on The Range's website and the utilities company will trade under the same name. Details will also be available over the phone and in Range shops. Mr Dawson said: "It's the obvious thing to do. I have a big retail operation, and this fits with the brand. We've got access to millions of customers." Mr Dawson said his energy company would be unique because it would update its prices far faster and more often than existing energy suppliers, to exploit changes in the market.

"We buy massive blocks of gas and electricity and can change our prices extremely quickly," he said. Mr Dawson said his company would not be drilling for gas or actually generating electricity, simply buying the energy on the open market as cheaply as possible and passing on the saving to customers, who would get the cheapest possible price every day. The businessman said there were enough savings to be made to bring bills down and also make him a profit at the same time.

The system, which relies on sophisticated software to change prices automatically, has been tested using both staff at The Range and members of the public. Mr Dawson said: "We tested it on 100 people and 100 bills were reduced." Test customers had also found the system very easy to sign up for and use.

The new company will be rolled out nationally with an advertising campaign and run from The Range's Plymouth headquarters by just five or six people. "You don't need a lot of people because the system's so sophisticated," Mr Dawson said, adding that he hoped the energy company would soon be ready to start selling to other businesses as well. Dubbed 'Plymouth's deluxe Del Boy', Chris Dawson launched a 'pre-paid credit card' with MasterCard earlier in December for customers of his 41 The Range stores, bringing a further 20 jobs to Plymouth. This week the city-based entrepreneur has been enjoying a trip to Barbados, but it's not what most people would call a holiday; he takes a laptop and two phones to the beach. "I'm still working, but it's in the sun," he said.
The Range reportedly enjoyed its best week for 20 years before Christmas.

"I'm going to make this a massive brand," Mr Dawson said.

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'Deluxe Del Boy' is bucking recession with new pay card (Comment on this article) 15.12.08 Evening Herald

MULTI-MILLIONAIRE Chris Dawson has taken his Range company's first step into the finance sector, writes Business Reporter Matt Fleming. The retailer – dubbed 'Plymouth's deluxe Del Boy' – has launched a prepaid MasterCard at his The Range Home, Leisure and Garden business. The card is like a bank card with a difference – customers can only spend the amount of money they have loaded onto it. Mr Dawson, who owns the 38-store The Range chain, said the card will make it easier for holders to 'keep track of their spending and not find themselves in financial difficulty due to overspending'.

He said: "People would think that I am mad to be moving into the finance sector at present, but the opportunities could not be greater.

"People are looking to better manage their money and a Range Card provides you with the ability to do just that."

After reported success in the US and Europe, The Range is one of the first retailers in the UK to launch a prepaid MasterCard. Mr Dawson said the Range card will be accepted wherever MasterCard is displayed. He said: "We have taken the prepaid card concept, but added our own twist to it. "We wanted to give everyone the opportunity to have a Range prepaid MasterCard, so we incorporated telephone applications.

"On top of this, people can also manage their accounts by using mobile phones and sending text messages." Mr Dawson acknowledged this is a time where customers and retailers in the UK are facing doom and gloom in the tough economic climate – but, for The Range, he said, it is a time for prosperity. He said that last week was the 'best in the past 20 years' with record takings on Saturday at The Range store in Plymstock – and nationally. He said: "We had an all-time best last week, which was brilliant. I thank all my staff for their work."

Mr Dawson said his waste management and shop fitting design arms of The Range were on the up this month, as well as his new price comparison websites. He also said there will be 'half a million pounds worth of bargains coming to Plymouth and the nation' in the New Year under plans being made in the wake of companies like Woolworths and MFI going into administration.

He said: "I know there's a credit crunch but you can't pull your socks up if you can't reach them. "Our business is run as if it's always in a recession." Customers with a Range Card will be invited to exclusive discount days where they can earn up to 10 per cent off anything in any Range store. Mr Dawson said the new financial arm of The Range will create 20 full-time jobs in Estover next year.

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Interview with Chris Dawson live on The Bay radio station in Barrow-in-Furness just before the store opened on the 31st of October 2008. The Breakfast team did the entire morning show live from the new store and caught Chris just before he cut the ribbon! (31.10.08)

Click here to play sound 

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Lost everything? "You're to blame!" says entrepreneur - (17.10.08 Real Business Magazine) (Comment on this article)

There has been much postulating over the culprits of this current credit crisis. Fingers are pointing every which way. But could it be us, the borrowers, who are truly to blame? Speaking yesterday at Barclays Commercial's "Beating the downturn" event at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower hotel, Chris Dawson, multi-millionaire founder of The Range, had some harsh words for the assembled entrepreneurs.

"Sure, the banks shouldn't have lent money to people who didn't have a hope in hell of paying it back," he said. "But they can't take all the blame. If you recklessly over-borrow, it's as much your fault as it is theirs."

His words come in the wake of stern criticism of the banks' over-lending. Off balance-sheet investments and the 125 per cent mortgage are cited as prime examples of the "age of irresponsibility". Last year UK consumers borrowed some £228m every day. And despite Labour's assertion that the pattern of "bust and boom" was broken, the days of cheap flights, easy credit and souring house prices surely could not go on forever?

Click here to read the article.

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The Range heads to town (21.07.08) (Comment on this article)

AROUND 150 jobs will be created when a new superstore opens in Barrow. The old B&Q building will become the new site for Range, which plans to open on October 10 Recruiting interviews will begin in the next few weeks for the store, which is planned to open on October 10.

It is another boost for Barrow’s economic microclimate in which local unemployment is falling while nationally it is rising. Chris Dawson, founder and managing director of the group, said: “We are spending £1.7m on that building and will probably reclad it. Click here to read the article.

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New Cornish Range cooking up interest: (11.07.08) (Comment on this article)

PLYMOUTH'S millionaire 'Delboy' Chris Dawson is opening a new The Range store in Cornwall today. The rags-to-riches businessman is expanding his retail empire by opening the 34th store in the chain in Truro. He also revealed to The Herald that workers are onsite preparing for a new store which will open in Halifax, and will also be onsite in four weeks time at a new store in Barrow-in-Furness.

He added that further new stores should open in Chesterfield, Derby and Gillingham next year, followed by a 'flagship store' in Southampton. That will be followed by the launch of a 'banking-ish business' in Plymouth, which he is keeping under wraps at the moment.

He was asked about how tough the past 12 months had been, due to the credit crunch.

He said: “It is tougher than a year ago, but I see lots of opportunities in a crisis. We will continue to give it 110 per cent.”

Since founding CDS in 1980, Chris Dawson has developed it from humble beginnings on a market stall into an ever-expanding chain of now 34 superstores. A spokesman for The Range said that the Truro store opening has not been without some “unplanned issues”. From as early as last weekend, hundreds of customers have made their way down to it, demanding to be let in, based on a misplaced assumption that it was already open. Mr Dawson had to release statements during the week urging customers not to go down to the store until today, when it officially opens for trading.

Andrew Hewson, health and safety representative for The Range, said: “I have been down at the store for the past week or so and literally hundreds of people have been coming down to it shocked to find that it is not yet open.

“This has created health and safety issues for us, as the store is still classed as a building site. “Local authorities do not seem to see the humour in ladies pushing prams on site while we still putting signage up on the store front.”

Temporary fencing was erected around the store to ensure that eager customers did not get too close to the site.

Mr Dawson – said to be the 476th wealthiest man in Britain with a fortune of £155million – said: “In a way, opening a store in Truro is like getting up and going to work 25 years ago, when I traded there at the Three Milestone Market. “It was one of the places where I started out all those years ago, and I have not forgotten about Cornwall.

“I am happy to see so many people excited at the prospect of grabbing a deal in our new store.”

Mr Dawson will be at the store over the weekend. He will give free business advice to budding entrepreneurs.

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Tycoon to return with new store and 150 jobs: (25.06.08) (Comment on this article)

AN award-winning entrepreneur who started out trading from the back of a lorry at Truro 25 years ago is returning – and bringing 150 new jobs with him. Rags-to-riches chain owner Chris Dawson is set to open a branch of his successful The Range stores at Threemilestone next month. And the outlet at the former Focus DIY store premises is due to employ about 150 local staff, having also used contractors and materials from the area in the run-up to the official launch on July 11. Click here to read the article.

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The Sun: (25.06.08) (Comment on this article)

Meet the man who has gone from market trader to millionaire…Chris Dawson has gone from being a Del Boy market trader with the gift of the gab to a multi millionaire with the golden touch. The cheeky chappie became the main attraction at outdoor markets with his perfect pitch for selling everything from gold-ish candelabras to Royal Doulton-ish dinner services. Click here to read the article.

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New Store Opening in Truro (24.06.08) (Comment on this article)

The Range reaches 34 stores! With the opening of Truro in Cornwall, The Range reaches 34 stores across the UK. And to mark this event Chris Dawson will be at the opening on July the 11th to answer questions and give advice to any budding entrenepeur's. The new store's address details can be printed off by visiting here.

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If you cant see the above video, click here to view.

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Plymouth entrepreneur receives top award (23.06.08) (Comment on this article)

Friday 20 June 2008: One of Plymouth’s leading entrepreneurs scooped the top accolade at the South Region final of Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year awards last night.

Chris Dawson of CDS (Superstores International) Limited fought off competition from 52 of the region’s finest business men and women to win the Entrepreneur Of The Year award in the Consumer Services category, at a glittering ceremony held at the London Hilton Metropole Hotel.

The Managing Director of a chain of out-of-town superstores, that sell home and leisure goods under the brand of ‘The Range, was described by the independent judging panel as the embodiment of true ‘entrepreneurial spirit’.

Founded in 1980, Chris Dawson has developed CDS from humble beginnings on a market stall in to an expanding chain of 33 superstores. The business continues to grow at a rate of around nine new outlets every year, with the aim of eventually becoming a 160 store chain in the UK.

To read more of this press release click here

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We are on Wikipedia! 08.06.08) (Comment on this article)

The Range is recognised for its unique variety, and for offering affordable quality in its range of products. The Range concept is to offer 'mid-price' home, leisure and garden products, drawing together everything that could be needed for the stylish home at affordable prices.

To read more of this press release click here

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Your Hired! (01.06.08) (Comment on this article)

Chris Dawson is a self made millionaire.  He began trading in the markets of the Southwest in the early 1980s, and founded CDS (which operates The Range chain of Superstores) in the 1990s.  CDS currently has a turnover of in excess of £150million and is one of the UK’s fastest growing retailers.  Chris has featured regularly in the Times Rich List and has also been placed 15th in Management Today’s Top 100 Entrepreneurs in the UK.

To read more of this press release click here

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Financial Times and The Severnside Annual Recycling Awards: (21.04.08) (Comment on this article)

From zero, The Range is now recycling 56 tonnes of cardboard and 8 tonnes of plastic every week. This change in ethos becomes doubly important when you consider The Range plans to increase its estate by 130 stores in the coming years.

Mr Chris Dawson, owner of the Range, commented, “The time has come for businesses, no matter their size, to realise that we have an impact on the sustainability of the environment and that through simple initiatives, we can all accept responsibility and contribute towards a bright future for both retailers and the communities in which our customers live.”

To read more of this press release click here

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It's tough at the top: (01.12.07) (Comment on this article)

Insider decided to chase the entrepreneurial vibe this month and in doing so it managed to catch up with Plymouth's very own "Deluxe Delboy', Chris Dawson. Known for his no nonsense approach to business and to life in general, he tells Peter Jump why things are only getting better for those in the South West.

To read more of this press release click here

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Financial Times Rich List: (12.09.07) (Comment on this article)

In 1988 Dawson, 52, a former market trader, opened his first discount superstore, the Range, which sells everything from DIY products to textiles. His CDS (Superstores International) company is now on course to make a profit of more than £10m in 2004-05. With 13 stores already and more coming on stream, the Plymouth-based business is worth at least £100m.

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The Range in York opens: (01.12.06) (Comment on this article)

ALMOST 200 jobs are being created with the opening of a massive new store in York next week. The Range - claimed to be "England's answer to IKEA" - stands on the site of the former Asda store at Huntington, which has lain empty for the past five years.

But managing director Chris Dawson said at 150,000 square ft, the home and leisure store is more than double the size of the 61,000 square ft old supermarket.

To read more of this press release click here

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Chris Dawson Live at Business to Business Southwest (Exeter): 17.08.06) (Comment on this article)

'Plymouth's Delux Delboy' gives an insight into his personal journey. Visit and view the video by clicking here.

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The MT Interview - Chris Dawson: (28.07.05) (Comment on this article)

A stereotype of the rags-to-riches entrepreneur, Chris Dawson started trading stuff while still at school, which he left with no qualifications.

A couple of months ago, MT ran a round table discussion about entrepreneurialism at the Dorchester Hotel in central London. We collected together eight leading self-made men and women worth a total of a quarter of a billion pounds in an attempt to get to the bottom of what makes them tick and discuss whether the fuel that drives them could be bottled.

One of the opening comments was made by Adrian Atkinson, a corporate psychologist and expert on the phenomenon. He expressed the belief that male entrepreneurs were made by difficult childhood circumstances, often including failure at school. Nearly half of entre- preneurs are dyslexic; they are rarely easy-going people and never stop working.

To read more of this press release click here

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Profit Track 100: (21.05.05) (Comment on this article)

Chris Dawson has been described as "Plymouth's deluxe Del Boy", a reference to a past career that included market trading, motorbike racing and auctioneering. He opened the first CDS superstore, branded The Range Home & Leisure, in 1989. There are now 18 stores in southern England and Wales, each selling 70,000 different products at knockdown prices. The company plans to open seven more this year. Its profits have grown 51% a year from £1.7m in 2001 to £6m in 2004.

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