Alec Reed

Sir Alec Edward Reed, CBE, FCMA, FCIPD (born 16 February 1934) is the founder of Reed Executive Ltd, one of the UK's largest private businesses. Knighted for services to business and charity in 2011, Reed is a high-profile charity donor and organiser. His various charitable initiatives have given away over £60m, mostly in support of women, addiction, overseas development, education and the arts. Reed has founded seven charities, several companies, two schools and is the author of four business books. His current job title at Reed is founder at large.

Reed was born in 1934 in Hounslow, Middlesex. His father Leonard was a lithographic artist for the UK's Ministry of Information during WWII, supervising the production of a number of government information posters, including the original version of the Ministry's "Keep Calm and Carry On" poster. Reed's mother Nancy was a housewife and former employee of the Prudential Insurance firm. In his autobiography, Reed writes that his earliest memory is listening with his family to Neville Chamberlain's 1939 speech declaring war on Germany, a speech that so alarmed his parents that they fled London in a neighbour's car the same day, thinking invasion imminent, only to return "...before teatime" after concluding that nowhere in the country would be safe.

A child of The Blitz, Reed has described his childhood as generally "secure", though he has also said that much of his early motivation came from feeling overshadowed by his older brother. Reed's first business venture was started alongside his brother while both were still children: the pair made and sold toy soldiers forged from lead that had been salvaged from local bombed-out houses.

Reed attended Drayton Manor Grammar School. At the end of his first year his school report said: "Conduct very unsatisfactory. He is lazy, inattentive and exerts himself to prevent his neighbours from working. He could do much better if he were more ambitious". Reed failed his 11-Plus exam; he left school aged 16 to work for a motor vehicle exporter in London's Fenchurch Street, having also failed to get the grades to enter agricultural college and pursue his ambition of becoming a farmer. Reed's mother encouraged him to study a Chartered Secretary's course in the evenings during his day job at the exporters.

...
Wikipedia