Rachel Elnaugh
{{short description|British entrepreneur (born 1964)|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{Infobox person
| image = Rachel Elnaugh - May 2023.png
| caption = Elnaugh in 2023
| name = Rachel Elnaugh
| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1964}}
| birth_place = Essex, England
| death_date =
| death_place =
| education = Chelmsford County High School for Girls
| occupation =
| known_for = Red Letter Days, Dragons' Den, Anti-vaccine activism
| networth =
| website = https://rachelelnaugh.com
| spouse =
| children = 5
}}
Rachel Elnaugh (born 1964) is a former British entrepreneur who founded the UK gift company Red Letter Days. She was one of the investors participating in the first two series of BBC Two's reality TV show Dragons' Den.
Early life
Elnaugh was born in Essex in 1964. When she was young she lived above her father's electrical shop, 'Elnaugh and Son' in Chelmsford. Rachel attended Chelmsford County High School for Girls, a grammar school in Essex. She originally wanted to take art history, but she was rejected by five universities.{{cite news |first=Sam |last=Parkhouse |url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,6903,1664407,00.html |title=Dragon back in her den |newspaper=The Observer |date=11 December 2005 |access-date=8 July 2009}} Before she founded her own company, she worked for the accountancy firm Arthur Andersen.{{cite news |last1=Womersley |first1=Tara |title=Bosses who proved sceptics wrong |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000540/20020417/056/0005 |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=The Scotsman |via=British Newspaper Archive |date=17 April 2002}}
Career
=Red Letter Days=
{{main|Red Letter Days}}
In 1989, Elnaugh founded Red Letter Days, one of the first UK companies to sell experiential gifts, such as motor racing days, hot air ballooning and health spa days.{{cite web|url=http://www.celebpreneur.com/2007/08/rachel-elnaugh-interview/|title=Interview with Rachel Elnaugh|publisher=celebpreneur.com|date=11 August 2007|accessdate=8 July 2009|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071014205132/http://www.celebpreneur.com/2007/08/rachel-elnaugh-interview/|archivedate=14 October 2007}} (link via Internet Archive) She could not get a bank loan at the time, so friends and family contributed £7,000 to the budget.
The company grew to an £18 million annual turnover and led to Elnaugh being a 2001/2 finalist in the Veuve Clicquot Businesswoman of the Year and Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year.{{Cite web |title=Rachel Elnaugh |url=https://www.therightaddress.co.uk/rachel-elnaugh/ |access-date=2023-11-19 |website=The Right Address |language=en-GB}}
In 2005, the company went into administration, and the remaining assets and inventory were bought by her fellow Dragons' Den entrepreneurs Theo Paphitis and Peter Jones.{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2919969/Red-Letter-Days-experiences-a-plunge-into-administration.html|title=Red Letter Days experiences a plunge into administration|last=Osborne|first=Alistair|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|date=1 August 2005|access-date=10 January 2024}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/markets/2809694/Red-Letter-Days-7.2m-in-red-despite-TV-dragons-efforts.html|title=Red Letter Days £7.2m in red despite TV dragons' efforts|last=Brodie|first=Sophie|journal=Daily Telegraph|date=28 May 2007|access-date=10 January 2024|language=en-GB|issn=0307-1235}} ITV1's Tonight programme criticised the business model of Red Letter Days, which included unpaid suppliers and disappointed purchasers. The programme suggested that the company failed to escrow or earmark supplier payment equity, using it instead as working capital.{{sfn|Elnaugh|2008|p=169}}{{cite news |last1=Dee |first1=Johnny |title=Dragons' Den: will new boss Hilary Devey breathe fire into the show? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2011/jul/29/dragons-den-boss-hilary-devey |access-date=10 January 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=29 July 2011}} However, Elnaugh blamed Red Letter Days' bankers,{{sfn|Elnaugh|2008|p=169}} and stated that the decision to go into administration was made to minimise job losses at the company.{{cite news |title=Dragon still has fire in her belly |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2005/sep/29/businesssense.businesssense8 |access-date=10 January 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=29 September 2005}}
=''Dragons' Den''=
In the mid 2000s, Elnaugh joined the BBC's reality series Dragons' Den. She was one of the five investors ("Dragons") in the first two series of the show, being the only female dragon at that time.{{cite web |title=The dragon lady strikes back |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/alternative-medicine/3342292/The-dragon-lady-strikes-back.html |website=The Telegraph |access-date=6 January 2024 |language=en |date=7 August 2006 |last=Moir|first=Jan}} During her tenure on the show, she made five agreed investment offers{{cite news |last1=Young |first1=Helena |title=Dragons' Den Series One: Where Are They Now? |url=https://startups.co.uk/news/dragons-den-series-one-lookback/ |access-date=22 September 2024 |work=Startups.co.uk |date=17 September 2024}}–in Grails,{{cite news |title=BBC under fire as Dragon firm goes down the drain |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/4199822/BBC-under-fire-as-Dragon-firm-goes-down-the-drain.html |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=The Telegraph |date=19 April 2006 |language=en|last=Davies|first=Catriona}} Le Beanock,{{cite news |title=Surviving the Dragons' Den |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4265145.stm |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=BBC news |date=22 February 2005}} Snowbone,{{cite news |title='Grandma' shows she knows best |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/sunday-telegraph-grandma-shows-she-kno/138157100/ |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=Sunday Telegraph |date=13 February 2005 |pages=64}} Elizabeth Galton{{cite news |last1=Brass |first1=Richard |title=Dragons' Den fired investors' interest |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/yourbusiness/2922418/Dragons-Den-fired-investors-interest.html |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=The Telegraph |date=19 September 2005 |language=en}} and Bedlam Puzzles.{{cite news |title=Puzzle creator says no to dragon cash |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-telegraph-puzzle-creator-says/138157517/ |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=29 November 2005 |pages=38}}{{cite news |last1=Thorp |first1=Liam |title=Businessman who rejected £100,000 from Dragons' Den launches movement that says 'no' to party politics |url=https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/news/12911989.businessman-who-rejected-100000-from-dragons-den-launches-movement-that-says-no-to-party-politics/ |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=The Bolton News |date=24 April 2015 |language=en}} After Red Letter Days went into administration, between the filming and release of the second season, her "position became untenable" according to Elnaugh, and she was replaced in the third season by Deborah Meaden.{{cite news |last1=Ellen |first1=Barbara |title=Spare me the alpha males |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2006/jul/09/features.review27 |access-date=10 January 2024 |work=The Observer |date=8 July 2006}}{{cite news |last1=Dowell |first1=Ben |title=I'm out: dragon dropped from den |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2007/may/18/bbc.broadcasting1 |work=The Guardian |date=18 May 2007}}
=After ''Dragon's Den'' and Red Letter Days=
In 2005, she was head of a company called Easyart. The following year, she produced a double CD pack consisting of "positive business thinking", The Life Changers, with hypnotherapist Glenn Harrold. In her book Business Nightmares - When Entrepreneurs Hit Crisis Point (2008), she wrote of her Red Letter Days experiences.{{cite news |last1=Kasumu |first1=Barbara |title=Ladies and gentlemen, it's OK to fail at business |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-business/9580787/Ladies-and-gentlemen-its-OK-to-fail-at-business.html |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=2 October 2012 |language=en}}{{cite news |last1=Gatens |first1=Katie |title=The Dragon's Den star who built an anti-vax outpost in the Peak District |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/the-dragons-den-star-who-built-an-anti-vax-outpost-in-the-peak-district-cxzqn0f98 |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=The Sunday Times |date=23 April 2023 |language=en}} The Evening Herald{{'}}s reviewer said "A novel and more original approach to the jaded "how to get ahead in business" manuals, even for the casual browser, Business Nightmares makes for a surprisingly entertaining and accessible read."{{cite news |last1=Galvin |first1=Tom |title=Tales of bad business from 'Dragon' lady |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001730/20080524/119/0020 |access-date=6 January 2024 |work=Evening Herald |via=British Newspaper Archive |date=24 May 2008 |pages=20–21}} Elnaugh founded the digital publishing and marketing platform Source TV in 2013. Her book Prosperity was published in 2016. She described it as "a summary of Rachel's key teachings around money, flow and abundance drawn from her years as a business mentor".
Political activism
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she aired her views on the vaccination programme, calling COVID vaccinations of those aged 12–15 years "child abuse". She was criticised when she called for Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Adviser to the UK Government, to hang.{{cite news |last1=Rodger |first1=James |title=BBC Dragons Den star under fire over 'vile' Chris Whitty tweet |url=https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/showbiz-tv/bbc-dragons-den-star-under-21572970 |access-date=21 December 2023 |work=Birmingham Live |date=15 September 2021 |language=en}}{{cite web |last1=Wells |first1=Andy |title='Dragons' Den' star Rachel Elnaugh says Chris Whitty 'will hang' after recommending vaccines for children |url=https://uk.news.yahoo.com/chris-whitty-covid-vaccine-children-dragons-den-star-rachel-elnaugh-102433115.html?guccounter=1 |website=Yahoo News |access-date=21 December 2023 |date=15 September 2021}}
Elnaugh was subsequently part of a group called 'Phoenix Rose' which bought 72 acres of land in Cressbrook Dale, Derbyshire, in an attempt to create a "safe haven away from the threat that humanity [is] facing". The scheme, that has been described as an 'anti-vax outpost', proved controversial with locals.{{cite news |last1=Wilson |first1=Katie |title=Dragons' Den star ordered to tear down 'anti-vaxxer sanctuary' in Peak District |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/dragons-den-star-ordered-tear-29749494 |access-date=21 December 2023 |work=The Mirror |date=19 April 2023 |language=en }}{{cite news |last1=Ball |first1=Tom |title=Dragons' Den star loses planning battle over 'shamanic' commune |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/dragons-den-star-loses-planning-battle-over-shamanic-commune-2sqf0q0lb |newspaper=The Sunday Times |access-date=21 December 2023 |date=21 December 2023 |language=en}} The group was served with an enforcement notice in August 2023, but took no action, causing the Peak District National Park Authority to forcibly remove the structures at the site, in December of that year.{{cite news |last1=Ash |first1=Joseph |title=Residents 'delighted' after removal of TV star's Peak District sanctuary |url=https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/local-news/residents-delighted-after-removal-dragons-8988354 |access-date=10 January 2024 |work=Derbyshire Live |date=28 December 2023}}
In May 2023, Elnaugh stood for a seat on the Derbyshire Dales District Council, under a party that she co-founded earlier that year called the LOVE Party. However, the party is not registered with the Electoral Commission,{{cite web |title=Heart |url=https://www.love-party.co.uk |website=Love Movement |access-date=16 December 2023}} so she appeared on the ballot as an independent. She came in sixth place with 175 votes, being beaten by Conservative Party candidates Mark Wakeman and Gareth Bryn Gee.{{cite web |title=Election results for Bakewell, 4 May 2023 |url=https://democracy.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/mgElectionAreaResults.aspx?XXR=0&ID=37&RPID=1178138&TPID=1178141 |website=democracy.derbyshiredales.gov.uk |access-date=16 December 2023 |language=en |date=4 May 2023}} In February 2024 she stood in a local council by-election and placed last with 36 votes, the seat was won by Labour candidate Bob Butcher.{{cite news |last1=Bisknell |first1=Eddie |title=Labour gains seat in traditional Conservative territory and Tories retain a spot following two Derbyshire by-elections |url=https://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/people/labour-gains-seat-in-traditional-conservative-territory-and-tories-retain-a-spot-following-two-derbyshire-by-elections-4533225 |access-date=5 March 2024 |work=Derbyshire Times |date=26 February 2024}}
In February 2024, she announced her intention to stand in that year's East Midlands mayoral election, under the name "Rachel Elnaugh-Love".{{cite news |last1=Dingwall |first1=Ed |title=Ex-Dragon's Den star joins election race as Derbyshire police investigate previous campaign |url=https://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/politics/ex-dragons-den-star-joins-election-race-as-derbyshire-police-investigate-previous-campaign-4536031 |access-date=1 March 2024 |work=Derbyshire Times |date=28 February 2024}} However, after the deadline for candidates to be officially registered, on the 6 April, had passed, her name did not appear on the final list.{{cite news |last1=Pridmore |first1=Oliver |title=Final list of East Midlands Mayor candidates ahead of crucial election |url=https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/local-news/final-list-east-midlands-mayor-9209740 |access-date=9 April 2024 |work=Derbyshire Live |date=6 April 2024}} She again stood under that name in the 2024 general election for the Derbyshire Dales constituency.{{cite news |title=Reform UK candidate made 'low IQ' comments about minorities |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgxxjzn738go |access-date=19 June 2024 |work=BBC News |date=18 June 2024}}{{cite news |last1=Coyle |first1=Simon |title=Derbyshire general election 2024 candidates in full for all constituencies - Manchester Evening News |url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/uk-news/derbyshire-general-election-2024-candidates-29394503 |access-date=24 June 2024 |work=Manchester Evening News}} She said her focus locally would be on promoting farming, tourism, affordable housing and reopening railways; and nationally on opposing "big corporations" and "involvement with overseas wars."{{cite news |last1=Cooper |first1=Jon |title=Derbyshire Dales General Election candidates have their say on the campaign trail |url=https://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/people/derbyshire-dales-general-election-candidates-have-their-say-on-the-campaign-trail-4683323 |access-date=29 June 2024 |work=Derbyshire Times |date=28 June 2024}} She came sixth with 369 votes.{{cite news |last1=Coyle |first1=Simon |title=Derbyshire Dales general election 2024 results in full |url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/uk-news/derbyshire-dales-general-election-2024-29238868 |access-date=5 July 2024 |work=Manchester Evening News |date=4 July 2024 |language=en}}
Personal life
Books
- {{cite book |last1=Elnaugh |first1=Rachel |title=Business Nightmares: The Unseen Moments When Successful Business Personalities Hit Crisis Point and How They Faced the Dawn |date=2008 |publisher=Crimson |isbn=978-1-85458-409-0 |url= |language=en}}
- {{cite book |last1=Elnaugh |first1=Rachel |title=Prosperity |date=2016 |publisher=Source Publishing |isbn= |url= |language=en}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.rachelelnaugh.com/ Rachel Elnaugh's website]
- [https://www.dragonsdeninvestors.com/rachel-elnaugh/ Dragons' Den Investor Rachel Elnaugh Proves That Failures Are The Pillars of Success], article at dragonsdeninvestors.com
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elnaugh, Rachel}}
Category:English businesspeople
Category:People from Chelmsford
Category:British women company founders
Category:People educated at Chelmsford County High School for Girls