Philanthropy and investments have seen Ayrshire-born Tom Hunter, 55, fall in and out of billionaire status, although his net worth is currently calculated at £1.1billion. He has given away huge chunks of his r etail-based fortune – Band Aid, Comic Relief and Bill Clinton’s foundation in Africa have all had seven-figure donations. He also takes business education extremely seriously, endowing the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship at the University of Strathclyde and Entrepreneurial Spark in Ayrshire. But he also lost a good chunk of his cash in the financial crisis, reckoning he emerged from 2008-9 £250million down. Hunter’s careers officer in New Cumnock advised him to go down the pit but he helped out in his dad’s grocer’s shop. In 1984, he started out selling trainers from the back of a van. By 1998, he had built Sports Division, then sold the firm to JJB Sports for £290million. Since then, he has diversified into fund management and investment. He has also pledged to give away £1billion in his lifetime.
| Types | Person, Business Person |
| Gender | Male |
| Birthday | 1961 |
| Aliases | Sir Tom Hunter, Tom Hunter |