Karren Brady, Baroness Brady

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Karren Brady, 2008

Karren Rita Brady, Baroness Brady , CBE (born April 4, 1969 in Edmonton , London ) is a British businesswoman and life peeress . From 1993 to 2009 she was managing director of the English football club Birmingham City , and since 2010 she has been vice chairman of West Ham United . She became known to a broad British public as a com presenter of the British reality show The Apprentice , an offshoot of the American program of the same name . In 2014 she was made a baroness and has since sat in the British House of Lords .

Life and family

Brady grew up with her family in Edmonton, Middlesex . Her father, Terry Brady, is from Ireland and made a millionaire as the owner of a printing company. Brady says he learned from him that it takes hard work to be successful. Her mother is from Italy and was a housewife. Brady also has an older brother.

Brady attended Poles Convent , a Catholic boarding school in Ware , Hertfordshire , and then Aldenham School in Elstree . The latter school was also a boarding school and originally an all-boys school, which only admitted girls from high school ( sixth form ). There she faced about 600 male students with five other girls. An analogy of the numerical relationships in her later career as a football official has been noted on various occasions.

In 1993 she met the Canadian soccer player Paul Peschisolido , who was active at Club Birmingham City at that time . The two became a couple at the club's Christmas party that same year, and they married in 1995. The couple has a daughter and a son.

In early 2006, Brady was diagnosed with a cerebral aneurysm , a life-threatening thickening of the arteries in the brain, which is why she had to undergo an operation. Your chances of survival were placed at about 70 percent, but the operation was successful and Brady was able to get back to work a short time later.

Entrepreneurship

First steps

At 18, Brady dropped out of school with top grades and applied to Harlow Journalism College , but was turned down. She then entered a graduate program at the Saatchi & Saatchi advertising agency , although she had not attended college. She worked on advertising campaigns for the Forte Group hotel chain and the French cheese brand Boursin . However, her career progress seemed to be too slow there, so she accepted an offer from the London radio station LBC . There it was their job to sell advertising space for the radio show Asian Hour , which was broadcast daily from four to five in the morning.

Through her position at LBC, she came into contact with publisher David Sullivan . She convinced him to buy advertising time from her, arguing that he would get his money back if his sales did not increase as a result. Sullivan invested about £ 2 million in radio advertising for his Daily Sport magazine in half a year, and when his sales actually went up he offered Brady a chance to join his sports media empire. Brady spontaneously accepted this offer.

Birmingham City

Shortly after joining Sullivan, Brady found an advertisement in the Financial Times that the English football club Birmingham City was for sale. She persuaded Sullivan to buy the club and let her run the club. He complied with the request, acquired the association and appointed Brady as managing director . At the time she was just 23 years old and is still the youngest person to ever run a British professional football club; she is also the only woman who has ever held such a position.

She approached her new task with commitment. After only two years, she managed to bring the club, which was in dire financial straits at the time of the takeover by Sullivan, into the black. They built new stadium stands, a new training ground, office buildings and bars, and tried to make the football club more family-friendly. When Birmingham City went public in 1997 , she was the youngest director of a public limited company in the UK. Her personal willingness to make sacrifices for Birmingham City was very great, for example it is variously reported that she returned to work regularly three days after the birth of her daughter.

Their approach in the search for new sponsors for the association was considered unorthodox, some media even saw the limit to blackmail reached. Due to disputes over ticket allocation for away games, she even had to answer to court at the end of 1996. She was in contact with the UK judiciary again in 2008 and 2009 when she was arrested twice on suspicion of fraud and false testimony in the course of an investigation into corruption in English football. Ultimately, however, the allegations against her proved to be baseless.

Finally, in 2009, when Sullivan and entrepreneur David Gold , who had since become co-owner, decided to sell Birmingham City, Brady also left the club. Your contribution to the club is generally considered great. When you started you had fought against relegation to the third division, she left a Premier League team. The £ 700,000 Sullivan bought the team for in 1993 was offset by a sales price of £ 82 million.

Engagement with The Apprentice

The Apprentice (in German The Apprentice ) is an American reality show in which candidates apply to get a lucrative position in a company run by billionaire Donald Trump . In Germany, a comparable program ranon RTL in 2004 under the name Big Boss . The British branch of the show is also called The Apprentice and ishostedby Alan Sugar .

In March 2006, Brady took part in a special edition of the British program with prominent candidates. As the captain of her team, she managed to claim victory and raise over £ 750,000 for the benefit of the Comic Relief charity over the course of the show . Due to her convincing performance there, she was allowed to conduct candidate interviews in a later season. In 2010, with the beginning of the sixth season, she replaced Margaret Mountford and has been Sugars' constant advisor on the show ever since.

West Ham United

In January 2010, David Sullivan and David Gold, under whom Brady had already worked as Managing Director at Birmingham City , acquired the majority in the Premier League club West Ham United . Brady also got back in, officially as deputy chairwoman, but de facto in the role of managing director.

Immediately after joining, she began working on a large project; she was aiming to move the club to the London Olympic Stadium . After some tug-of-war with other clubs ( Tottenham Hotspur also showed interest in the meantime) and the clarification of financing issues, West Ham was actually awarded the contract in March 2013 and will now play its home games in the Olympic Stadium from the 2016/17 season .

Brady had considered changing the club name as part of the move from West Ham United to West Ham Olympic . However, the proposal met with little approval and was therefore soon rejected.

Further engagements

In 2008 Brady became a member of the board of directors of the UK bid to host the 2018 World Cup . However, the application was not successful, in December 2010 it was announced that the World Cup will take place in Russia .

Brady is and has been a board member of various companies. In 2010 she became a non-executive director at the UK retail chain Arcadia , having previously served on Mothercare 's board of directors for seven years . She also sits on the board of Simon Cowell's entertainment company, Syco Entertainment, and has served on the executive floor of Sport England , Channel 4 and Kerrang! .

Brady is a big advocate for more women on top of big companies. She sits in several foundations that are dedicated to this goal and says she does not invest in companies that do not have female board members. When she left Birmingham City in 2009, 75 percent of the club's senior management positions were held by women.

She is also the author of five books. In Brady Plays the Blues she reports on her first season with Birmingham City. United and Trophy Wives are novels, and in Playing to win they address successful women in the entrepreneurial world. Her latest book was published in 2012. She describes Strong Woman as half an autobiography and half a guide to becoming an entrepreneur. Brady also wrote columns for The Sun , The Evening Mail and The Guardian .

Political career

Brady has been a supporter of the Conservative Party since she was eighteen and has also been a party member since 2003 at the latest. She gave the introductory speech for George Osborne at a party meeting in 2013, and in the same year she was appointed Official Ambassador for Small Businesses by Prime Minister David Cameron .

In the past, speculations about Brady's possible candidacy in the House of Commons elections or the London Mayoral elections in 2016 have repeatedly arisen in the British press . None of the speculations has been confirmed so far.

In 2014 she was raised to the status of a Life Peeress . Since then she has officially been named Baroness Brady, of Knightsbridge in the City of Westminster and has a place in the House of Lords .

Awards and honors

  • Brady has been ranked among the most influential , powerful or inspirational women in Britain by various newspapers and magazines .
  • In 2006, she was the magazine Cosmopolitan for Woman of the Year chosen.
  • In 2007 she received the Businesswoman of the Year award .
  • In 2008 she was awarded the NatWest Spirit of Everywoman Award .
  • In 2010 she received an honorary doctorate from the University of Birmingham .
  • In 2011 she was named Best Female Judge in a Reality Format at the National Reality TV Awards .
  • In 2014 she received the Order of the British Empire as Commander .

Fonts

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Profile on bbc.co.uk accessed March 1, 2015
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g A dame of two halves Article on independent.ie from June 14, 2008, accessed on March 1, 2015
  3. ↑ My family values article on theguardian.com from August 13, 2011, accessed March 1, 2015
  4. ↑ a b c d e Karren Brady: 'Emotion is not part of my make-up' Article on telegraph.co.uk from April 25, 2012, accessed on March 1, 2015
  5. ↑ a b c d e 'I don't see my future in football' article on theguardian.com from January 28, 2008, accessed on March 1, 2015
  6. ^ A b Strong Woman: Ambition, Grit and a Great Pair of Heels by Karren Brady - review book review on theguardian.com from April 8, 2012, accessed March 1, 2015
  7. ↑ Glorious goals and credit without limit: Susan De Muth in bed with Karren Brady Article on independent.co.uk of August 24, 1994, accessed March 1, 2015
  8. ↑ a b c Karren Brady: Not your average footballer's wife Article on independent.co.uk from October 2, 2010, accessed March 1, 2015
  9. ↑ My first boss: businesswoman Karren Brady and advertising executive Bill Muirhead Article on theguardian.com of April 5, 2014, accessed March 1, 2015
  10. ↑ The game's first lady departs after winning her Blue riband Article on independent.co.uk of September 26, 2009, accessed March 1, 2015
  11. ↑ a b A Brum deal Article on theguardian.com from November 5, 2006, accessed on March 2, 2015
  12. ^ Bunhill: Peace at Birmingham City football club Article on independent.co.uk, February 27, 1994, accessed March 1, 2015
  13. ↑ Football: Golds keep City options open Article on independent.co.uk from October 6, 1996, accessed March 1, 2015
  14. ↑ Football: Birmingham ban supporter article on independent.co.uk from November 25, 1996, accessed March 1, 2015
  15. ↑ Brady re-arrested in corruption investigation Article on theguardian.com of February 10, 2009, accessed March 1, 2015
  16. ↑ Birmingham duo Karren Brady and David Sullivan cleared in police probe article on telegraph.co.uk from August 7, 2009, accessed March 1, 2015
  17. ^ The Apprentice in the Internet Movie Database , accessed March 1, 2015
  18. ^ Cheap copy article on welt.de from May 11, 2005, accessed on March 1, 2015
  19. ↑ Short biography on bbc.co.uk , accessed on March 1, 2015
  20. ↑ You're hired: Karren Brady to replace Margaret Mountford on The Apprentice Article on theguardian.com from August 30, 2009, accessed March 1, 2015
  21. ↑ 'Superwomen? It's absolute bull, frankly ' ( Memento of the original dated August 12, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Article on ft.com from March 15, 2012, accessed March 1, 2015 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.ft.com
  22. ↑ Tottenham also wants to go to the new Olympic Stadium ( Memento of the original from April 3, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Article on zeit.de from October 10, 2010, accessed on March 1, 2015 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.zeit.de
  23. ↑ West Ham get Olympic Stadium after government ups funding Article on bbc.com from March 22, 2013, accessed on March 1, 2015
  24. ↑ Karren Brady proposes Hammers be renamed West Ham Olympic Article on theguardian.com from January 23, 2010, accessed March 1, 2015
  25. ↑ Gold says no to West Ham Olympic Article on tribalfootball.com, accessed March 1, 2015
  26. ↑ Karren Brady and Paul Elliott join 2018 World Cup bid board article on theguardian.com from October 13, 2008, accessed March 1, 2015
  27. ↑ Russia and Qatar will host the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup respectively from Article on de.fifa.com from December 2, 2010, accessed on March 1, 2015
  28. ↑ Karren Brady to join Topshop board Article on telegraph.co.uk, May 30, 2010, accessed March 1, 2015
  29. ↑ a b Karren Brady interview: The first lady of football's big goal: help for small firms Article on independent.co.uk from May 1, 2014, accessed on March 1, 2015
  30. ↑ Karren Brady: 'I don't invest in companies that don't have women on their board' article on telegraph.co.uk from March 19, 2011, accessed on March 2, 2015
  31. ↑ Karren Brady - that's what a real feminist looks like Article on telegraph.co.uk from November 8, 2014, accessed on March 2, 2015
  32. ↑ a b Birmingham City FC's Karren Brady joins Lord Sugar on The Apprentice Article on bmmagazine.co.uk from August 30, 2009, accessed March 2, 2015
  33. ↑ [1] Article on theguardian.com of October 3, 2013, accessed on March 2, 2015
  34. ↑ Karren Brady Rebuff's 'Six' Offers To Stand As Tory MP Article on hufflingtonpost.co.uk from December 23, 2013, accessed March 1, 2015
  35. ^ Announcement in the London Gazette
  36. ↑ a b List of awards ( Memento of the original from February 21, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on Brady's homepage, accessed March 1, 2015 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.karrenbrady.com
  37. ↑ Karren Brady: In a league of her own article on theguardian.com from June 6, 2010, accessed March 1, 2015
  38. ↑ list of winners on everywoman.com (Engl.) Called on March 1, 2015
  39. ↑ Karren Brady awarded honorary degree from University of Birmingham Article on birminghammail.co.uk from December 16, 2010 accessed on March 1, 2015
  40. ↑ West Ham's Karren Brady among those awarded a Queen's New Year Honor Article on wharf.co.uk December 31, 2013, accessed March 1, 2015
personal data
SURNAME Brady, Karren, Baroness Brady
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Brady, Karren Rita, Baroness Brady (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British businesswoman and life peeress
DATE OF BIRTH 4th April 1969
PLACE OF BIRTH Edmonton , London