Who is Theo Paphitis and what’s his net worth? Dragons’ Den star and former Millwall chairman
HE's the discerning Dragons Den entrepreneur who made his millions in the retail sector.
But who is Theo Paphitis and what is his net worth? Here's the lowdown on the business man.
Who is Theo Paphitis?
Theo Paphitis is an entrepreneur who was born in Cyprus.
He is 60-years old and lives in Weybridge, Surrey.
Despite his success, Theo actually left school at the age of 16 with no qualifications and took up a job as a filing clerk in a Lloyds of London brokerage.
From there, the entrepreneur set up a finance company at aged 23 - proving he has always had what it takes to make it in business.
He earned his first money on the rise of the 1980s property market, but it was in the retail sector that the mega bucks began to roll in.
Theo revived a number of well known retail brands, including Ryman, Partners the Stationers, Stationery Box, La Senza, Contessa Lingerie and more recently the home and garden retailer Robert Dyas.
As chairman of Millwall football club, he also took them out of administration and on to the 2004 FA Cup final at the Millennium Stadium.
When did Theo join Dragons Den?
After appearing on BBC Back to the Floor series while chairman at Millwall FC, Theo was approached to be on Dragons Den in 2005, and left the programme after the 2012 season.
As each of the dragons have their own individual quirks, Theo became known as a straight-talking but approachable and sincere 'dragon' who made many investments over the course of the series.
In 2013, he announced he would be leaving the show, but has since returned for four episodes in September 2019.
This is because he was covering for Touker Suleyman, who had been recovering from a short term illness.
Is Theo married?
Theo is married to Debbie Paphitis.
The pair have a large brood consisting of two sons and three daughters.
This includes twins and four grandchildren.
However, Theo has been criticised for some of his views on women in the past.
In 2008, he was quoted by Kira Cochrane from The Guardian newspaper as saying that although women may refuse to take maternity leave maternity leave,"their brains turn to mush" after the pregnancy and "they take three months off."
What's his net worth?
The retail tail magnate had an estimated net worth of £301 million in 2013.
This is fortune amounted from his retail investments, Millwall football club and television appearances.
He is the third richest of the dragons - behind Duncan Bannatyne and Peter Jones.