 Fred is the founder and Chairman of Done Bookmakers, the world's biggest independent bookmaker. He is one of the most respected figures in the British bookmaking industry and a director of the Association of British Bookmakers (ABB).
He was born in Salford, Greater Manchester and raised on the city’s tough Ordsall estate. His father was a bookmaker in some of the most uncompromising areas of Manchester prior to the legalisation of off-course betting and Fred learned the ropes from him before going on to work for another bookmaker during the early years of legalised gambling in the UK. In 1967, Fred and his younger brother Peter purchased a shop in Cromwell Road, Salford and this marked the birth of Done Bookmakers.
As a hugely successful businessman in a number of areas, Fred, in partnership with Peter, also owns Penninsula business services, the UK’s leading Personnel, Health & Safety, Employment Law and Employment Tribunal consultancy. Also in the brothers’ portfolio is Sportstours International, one of the largest specialist sports travel companies in the UK who have as one of their impressive list of destinations, the prestigious Club La Santa resort in Lanzarote.
Fred has a real passion for horse racing and, with his wife Mo, owns several horses including The Bonus King. He also sponsors one of the most prestigious events in the racing calendar, the Betfred Gold Cup (formerly the Whitbread Gold Cup) at Sandown in April. By doing so, he feels able to ‘give something back’ to the sport that he loves and has served his business well.
Another of Fred’s passions is Manchester United. He has been watching his beloved Reds since he was a small boy growing up near their Old Trafford ground and his enthusiasm has never waned. A long-time season ticket holder, Fred still attends as many matches as he can and famously paid out early on them to win the English Premier League title in 1998, only for Arsenal to eventually win it resulting in a £1/2 million loss for Fred! Betfred is now the official bookmaker to Manchester United and the new Wembley Stadium.
Fred is proud to be 'one of the traditional bookies, not part of a PLC' but it is his forward thinking and desire to remain at the cutting edge of an ever-changing business that has been the cornerstone of his success. He best sums up the Betfred philosophy himself:
"There's only one person you have to please and that is the customer. He's the guy we can't do without. I've always bent over backwards for the customer but in some companies it's an afterthought." |
