COVER STORY
to make good decisions and you are going to make no decisions, sometimes you are going to sit on the fence. But there is no excuse for you never working as hard as you possibly can and giving in.” With that, Neville is off to his next
Gary Neville and his manager at Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson
is unusual. I was surrounded by that (at United) for 20 years so now, when people in the businesses that I work in drop below a standard, I find it really difficult to accept the problem.” Neville, who was speaking at an
SME business event organised by Intuit QuickBooks, is currently involved in developments in Salford (football club) Trafford (university and hotel) and Manchester. “We are passionate about the area,” he says. “We invest our time, we create the idea and we invest our money. There isn’t one business we are in where it’s just a badge on the shirt. We are the business, we are the shareholders, we’re active, we’re operational. The buzz is in trying to create things that are different and in projects that we are passionate about.” Neville’s final piece of advice for start-
ups? “Work as hard as you can, every single day and make sure you never give in. They were the only two things I was every asked of as a player at Manchester United and by my parents. If you do that, you cannot do any more and everything else is a little bit uncontrollable. You are going to make bad decisions, you are going
❝ 22 SME
• With Ryan Giggs owns a stake in four Cafe Football restaurants; two in Manchester, one in London, and one in Singapore
I LIKED THE IDEA OF WORKING IN A DIFFERENT TYPE OF TEAM – THE TEAM IN THE MORNING AND THEN THE TEAM IN THE AFTERNOON
• Is hoping to develop the Grade II listed Manchester Stock Exchange building into a 35-room hotel
• Is seeking planning permission for St Michael's, a major property development project in Manchester city centre but it is proving controversial
• Co-owns non-league Salford City FC • Is a shareholder in E3 Creative, a digital agency that includes website design and app development
• With former Manchester United team-mates plans to open a university in conjunction with Lancaster University
www.smeweb.com
engagement and I’m reminded of one of his former boss’s well-known quotes. “The work of a team should always embrace a great player but the great player must always work,” Sir Alex once said. He could well have been talking about Gary Neville.
GARY NEVILLE’S BUSINESS INTERESTS
• Several hospitality businesses in Manchester in conjunction with partners Peter Lim and former Manchester United team-mates Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and brother, Phil Neville
• Launched GG Hospitality management company in 2013 • Opened Hotel Football, a football-themed hotel opposite Old Trafford in 2015. It includes a supporters' club bar, which he promised to build for fans after his playing days ended
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