Jenny Campbell is a British entrepreneur and ex-banker. She joined BBC Two TV business Dragons’ Den in 2017 participating in two series before embarked on another project. Jenny Campbell is known as the queen of cash.
Jenny Campbell’s net worth is about £30 million. Her earning is from her business, investments on Dragons’ Den businesses and appearance on the show.
The women who have been on Dragons’ Den show have been outstanding in their businesses. She is the sixth female dragon to appear on the business TV show sitting alongside Deborah Meaden who is the only women to consistently remain on the show since her first appearance as a “dragon”. Unlike Deborah Meaden, who came from a poor background to attain great business success by leveraging on her family business, Jenny Campbell came from a family business-minded persons and professional. Here is an insight into the life of Jenny Campbell’s net worth, husband, children and investments in Dragons’ Den.
Early Life
Jenny Campbell was born Jennifer Bernice Campbell on 5 October 1960 in Hyde, Cheshire, England. Her father was a career banker and spent 40 years with the banking sector, and her mother was a secretary who taught shorthand at night school. Campbell attended Manchester High School for girls. Campbell is someone who the notion of hard work was instilled into her from an early age.
At 16, she decided to leave school and take a job at NatWest bank branch for the position of a cash counter and cashpoint filler. Campbell negotiated with her father to quit school. The negotiation allowed her the freedom to get formal education alongside a job on the condition she would end up as a professional banker. Five years later, at 23, she completed her education in night school and became a professional banker. Her decision to negotiate with her father shows her confidence to face life risk right from an early age.
On completion of her banking qualifications and been awarded a Chartered Institute of Bankers prize she moved to NatWest’s head office in London. While working with NatWest, she played a vital role in the integration of NatWest into the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in 2006.
Banking Career
Between 2006 & 2007, she transitioned from the banking sector to Hanco ATM Systems, a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). She took up the position of the Director of Operations at Hanco System ATM Systems in an attempt to use her years of experience in the banking sector to save the firm. Her duty was to turnaround a company at a loss, which she successfully did.
However, in 2007, RBS was pressured into selling Hanco ATM System because of the bite of recession. Campbell launched significant operational structures which immediately yielded results and changed the fate of the company. She moved the company from a company making an annual loss of £7 million to making a yearly revenue of £7 million and more.
In 2010, Campbell took another giant management step by grabbing the opportunity to lead the buy-out of Hanco System from the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). Part of the risk she took was re-mortgaging her home to finance the purchase of Hanco Systems. Campbell re-launched the company and named it YourCash. As the buy-out was not enough, in 2013, she led another successful secondary buy-out to exit the non-management shareholders through a debt financing structure. In the words of Campbell, “It was a bigger jump than re-mortgaging because I put a £17 million debt structure over the business. That’s when I really needed self-belief.’
Within ten years, under her control, the business expanded quickly becoming a leading provider of ATM services in the UK, Netherlands, Belgium and Ireland. YourCash efficiently handled millions of ATM transactions across the European retail market all under the management and control of Campbell. In 2016, she sold the business to Euronet Inc., a global leader in processing secure electronic financial transactions after Campbell quoted YourCash on the New York Stock Exchange.
Jenny Campbell’s Charity Work
Just like other entrepreneurs, Jenny Campbell works with charities and humanitarian projects that support the growth and harnessing of young entrepreneur across the UK. She is involved in the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur Competition and is a Director of the Board of Women of The Year (WOTY).
In 2015, Campbell joined the Guild of Entrepreneurs, a project which aims to foster the development of founders and new business owners. She also supports the New Entrepreneurs Foundation. In 2019, she became the Vice-Chair of the Prince’s Trust Enterprise Fellowship Program, which is a network of UK’s leading entrepreneurs who are committed to supporting and inspiring the next generation of leaders.
Jenny Campbell Dragons’ Den role
Jenny Campbell became a dragon in 2017. She succeeded Sarah Willingham MBE in the quest to find exciting start-ups and small businesses to back. During her appearances on the show, she brought her favourite business motto ‘Live by corporate standards, but breathe like an entrepreneur’, probably that was why she invested on a few start-ups than the rest of the Dragons.
Campbell left the Dragons’ Den show at the end of 2019 series. In her final statement, she said, “Having been a fan of Dragons’ Den…, I was absolutely delighted and proud to have the opportunity of becoming a Dragon myself. I have invested in businesses and entrepreneurs who I believe I can add real value to personally, and I look forward to working with each of them closely over the new few years. It has been a tough decision to step down, but I now want to focus on my role with the Prince’s Trust Enterprise Fellowship Programme … as well as help my sons Rik and Tom on their own entrepreneurial journeys.”
Campbell’s investments on Dragons’ Den are on Didsbury Gin, Parking Perx, DrivenMedia, Carun and Look After My Bills. She sold her stake in Carun while Look After My Bills got sold to another company as well.
Jenny Campbell husband and family
Jenny Campbell is married to Andrew, and they have two children together. Their two sons are Rik and Tom. In 2014, they assisted Rik, their eldest son, to set up an Indian restaurant chain known as Kricket. Presently, the restaurant has two locations in London and Soho with plans of setting up another site. Campbell has pension fund from her time at NatWest which she intends to pass on to her grandchildren since she is currently financially buoyant.
Jenny Campbell Net Worth
Jenny Campbell’s net worth is estimated at £30 million. Her earning is from her business, investments on Dragons’ Den businesses and appearance on the show.