Julian Dunkerton
Dunkerton in June 2014
BornMarch 1965 (age 58)
London, England
EducationIbstock Place School
Orleans Park School
Minster School
OccupationBusinessman
Known forCo-founder of Superdry
Spouses
  • Charlotte Abbot (divorced)
​
(m. 2018)​
Children3 daughters, 1 son

Julian Marc Dunkerton (born March 1965) is a British businessman, and the co-founder of the fashion label Superdry.

Early life

Dunkerton's father Ivor and stepmother Susie founded and ran Dunkertons Organic Cider.[1][2] Dunkerton moved to Herefordshire from London at the age of 14.[3]

He was educated at Ibstock Place School, London, Orleans Park School, Twickenham, from 11 to 14, and then the Minster School, Herefordshire.[4]

Career

At the age of 19, Dunkerton, along with his then business partner Ian Hibbs, founded the fashion retail chain Cult Clothing Co with a £2,000 loan.[1]

In 2014, Dunkerton took control of his family's cider company, and brought in business partner Jeremy Benson (aka Bean), to work alongside his father Ivor, developing his palate and learning the craft of organic cider and perry making. In 2016, Dunkertons Organic Cider was moved from Herefordshire to a brand new cidery at the 250-acre Dowdeswell Park, near Cheltenham in Gloucestershire.[1]

In 2015, Dunkerton stepped down as chief executive of Superdry and was replaced by Euan Sutherland.[5]

Dunkerton left Superdry in April 2018 to concentrate on his other business interests. He owns The Lucky Onion group, which operates a small group of hotels, restaurants and pubs in the Cotswolds, England.[6]

In April 2019, Sutherland resigned as CEO of SuperGroup plc after Dunkerton won a bid to be reinstated to the SuperGroup plc board.[7]

Political activism

In the early 1990s, Dunkerton stood three times as a Labour Party candidate in the Cheltenham Borough Council elections. He stood in the St. Peter's ward in 1990,[8] and in the Park ward in 1991[9] and 1992.[10]

In August 2018, Dunkerton donated £1 million to People's Vote, a campaign group calling for a public vote on the final Brexit deal between the UK and the European Union.[11][12] He believes that the success of the Superdry business could not have occurred if Britain had been outside the European Union at the time.[11]

In the 2019 general election, he voted for the Liberal Democrats.[13]

Personal life

Dunkerton lives in Cheltenham.[14] In February 2016, he sold just under £50 million of shares to fund his divorce settlement with his wife, Charlotte Abbot.[15] They had two children, one stepdaughter and one daughter.[15][4]

In 2016, Dunkerton began dating fashion designer Jade Holland Cooper after they met in the bar at one of his hotels in Cheltenham.[16] They went on to marry in August 2018 in the Cotswolds where Craig David sang and Idris Elba deejayed.[14][17][16] They have two children, Saphaïa Isabella Dunkerton, born November 2020, and Jamie Dunkerton, born December 2022.[18]

He owns a private jet, which he describes as "a tool rather than an indulgence".[4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Parford, Lucy. "CEO Interview: Julian Dunkerton, Superdry and the Lucky Onion Group". Cotswold Life. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  2. ↑ "Julian Marc DUNKERTON – Personal Appointments (free information from Companies House)". Companies House, Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  3. ↑ "Julian Dunkerton: All you need to know about the Superdry co-founder who has just married designer Jade Holland Cooper". Gloucestershire Live.
  4. 1 2 3 Hester Lacey (22 September 2017). "Q&A with cider maker and Superdry founder Julian Dunkerton". Financial Times. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  5. ↑ "Superdry founder replaced as CEO role by ex-Co-op boss". BBC.
  6. ↑ "The Lucky Onion | Hotels, Restaurants, Pubs | Cotswolds, England". The Lucky Onion. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  7. ↑ Wood, Zoe; Butler, Sarah (2 April 2019). "Superdry: Julian Dunkerton wins battle to rejoin firm – and entire board resigns". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  8. ↑ "Borough election results – 1990 results". Cheltenham Borough Council. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  9. ↑ "Borough election results – 1991 results". Cheltenham Borough Council. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  10. ↑ "Borough election results – 1992 results". Cheltenham Borough Council. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  11. 1 2 Staff writer (19 August 2018). "Brexit vote campaign gets £1m from Superdry co-founder". BBC News. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  12. ↑ Savage, Michael (18 August 2018). "Julian Dunkerton: the man who gave £1m to the People's Vote campaign". The Observer. Front page. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  13. ↑ "Dozens of business leaders back Lib Dems as party tries to outflank Tories". inews.co.uk. 29 November 2019.
  14. 1 2 Savage, Michael (18 August 2018). "Julian Dunkerton: the man who gave £1m to the People's Vote campaign". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
  15. 1 2 "Superdry guy Julian Dunkerton weds designer Jade Holland Cooper". The Times.
  16. 1 2 Gowans-Eglinton, Charlie. "Inside Jade Holland Cooper and Julian Dunkerton's Cotswolds estate". ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  17. ↑ "Fashion entrepreneur Jade Holland Cooper on her Scottish influences". The Scotsman. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  18. ↑ Krayem-Wood, Sam. "In pictures: Jade Holland Cooper and Julian Dunkerton celebrate birth of baby girl". Stroud News & Journal. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
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