Mark Campbell
GEM Lifestyle founder Mark Campbell has a glittering track
record of wealth creation in the oil additive, telecoms and
gaming sectors. The ‘serial entrepreneur’ provides an insight
to the twists and turns of his career path.
School Oil
I genuinely believe that my career as an I joined the oil business where I met my other
entrepreneur can be traced to school. My father’s mentor in life GEM Founder Associate Chris
work with Thomas Cook took us to Rome where Copeland. After seeing how much money the sales
my parents had the foresight to send me to a guys were clearing I decided to start my own
Montessori style school which encouraged pupils to refinery and launch my own brand of oil additives
think creatively, be receptive to new ideas and which I called Lubetec. Three years on I sold the
always ask questions. It was quite radical for its UK operation and started an international division in
time and gave me a different way of viewing life. It Antwerp, selling the business in 1990.
was my parent’s greatest legacy to me.
Spain
Australia I don’t know of any entrepreneur whose career has
At 18-years old and having gained a place to study been smooth and trouble free and I’m no exception.
at the London School of Economics, I took a gap The early 1990’s were not kind to me, but when you
year in Australia. I got a job on the New South take a knock the only meaningful response is to
Wales railways because it provided staff dust yourself down, get back on your feet and
with free first class travel. Out of rediscover your hunger for success. Ironically that
curiosity I also became a trade’s union hunger took me to the company responsible for the
representative – the youngest in Wimpy hamburger franchise in Spain. We changed
Australia! It was during my time in perceptions of the brand by thinking laterally and
Australia that I met my mentor Pajet introducing initiatives such as in-restaurant
Bellin who worked across a range of children’s play centres – amazingly we were the first
industry sectors including the to do that in Europe.
oil industry. Pajet convinced
me to postpone my Interworld
academic career and This was my first connection with telecoms. We
instead enrol at the introduced phone cards to Spain and the Call-Back
‘University of Life’. initiative which gave customers cheap calls by
routing them via the United States. It was hugely
successful and great fun.
www.GEMLifestyle.com
‘Integrity is the foundation upon which all other values are
built.’
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