Buy, Run, Build

Most business books are poorly written, difficult to follow, and not worth the purchase price. This book is fun to read, exciting to apply, and profitable to implement. – John Kay * economist *Charles Skinner is a veteran corporate turnaround specialist who is as frank about his disasters as he is modest about his triumphs. The very opposite of the boastful tech-bros who tell us how to change the world, Skinner makes a persuasive case in Buy, Run, Build for what he’s good at – finding hidden value in unfashionable businesses – with honesty and humour. I treasure especially his image of the struggling chief executive as the embattled ambassador played by Sid James in “Carry On Up The Khyber”. – Martin vander Weyer * Business Editor, The Spectator *This is more than just a refreshingly honest guide to growing by acquisition – it is a common sense bible for how to run a business, written by someone who has nothing left to prove. Thoroughly recommended. – Michael McLintock * Chair, AB Foods plc *I started and sold a publishing company but if I’d taken advice from Charles Skinner, I could have easily built a business many times larger. As someone now involved in government and higher education, I wish more people understood how powerful and practical this route to leading business success could be. – Lord Mendoza * HMG Commissioner for Cultural Recovery and Renewal *This book is an excellent manual for any entrepreneur or could-be business owner. It is written by a practitioner who understands the tough realities of actually investing in and managing businesses. The book provides practical advice and fascinating case studies of all the pitfalls would can happen to anyone brave enough to embark on an enterprising journey. I strongly recommend it to anyone who has the fortitude and vision to seize the day. – Luke Johnson * entrepreneur, former Chair of the Royal Society of Arts *Management is difficult. This book is essential for anyone who wants to do it well. Clear, insightful, and thought-provoking in equal measure. And, unlike most management books, a good read. – Sir Alex Beard * CEO, Royal Opera House *Charles Skinner is a businessman with vast experience of finding, acquiring, growing and (mostly) successfully selling over 100 businesses. This engaging and at times very funny book is one that I wish that I had read much earlier in my career and which I have told my children and my students is essential reading for anyone who wants to be a successful entrepreneur. – Mungo Wilson * Professor of Financial Economics, Said Business School, University of Oxford *

Charles Skinner is an industry specialist in ETA. As CEO, he took one company worth £3m and built it into a business which sold for £100m. With another company he ran, the share price went up 40-fold and the business is now worth £300m and was AIM company of the year. Charles is an adviser to an ETA search fund, Mentmore Associates, and he currently chairs five private companies. In addition to this, Charles was editor of the magazine, Management Today.