Moores, Sir John

▪ 1994

      British entrepreneur (b. Jan. 25, 1896, Eccles, Lancashire, England—d. Sept. 25, 1993, Freshfield, Merseyside, England), parlayed a small football pools business into the U.K.'s largest private company; with a fortune estimated at over £ 1.5 billion, he was reputed to be the second wealthiest man in Britain and the ninth wealthiest person in the world. His Littlewoods Organisation comprised more than 120 stores and employed some 30,000 people. Moores left school at age 14 and became a post office messenger, studying telegraphy at night. At 16 he went to work for the Commercial Cable Co. and, after spending part of World War I in the Royal Navy, he was posted (1921) to an isolated cable station in Ireland. There he began importing goods to sell to co-workers. Back in England in 1923, Moores and two partners set up a football pool in Liverpool. When at first it lost money, Moores bought out his partners. With the help of family members, he persevered, however, and by 1932 he was a millionaire. He left the pools in the hands of his brother, Cecil, and launched Littlewoods Mail Order. Business boomed, and he organized a division of chain stores in 1936, with the first one opening in Blackpool the following year. During World War II he concentrated on manufacturing war equipment, eventually employing 44,000 people in 16 factories. After the war his attention returned to the retail empire, which continued to grow and thrive. Moores retired as chairman of Littlewoods in 1982 but remained president for life. He was also a notable philanthropist and art patron. Moores was made Companion of the Order of the British Empire in 1972 and was knighted in 1980.

* * *