Dave West (entrepreneur)
Encyclopedia
Dave West is a British entrepreneur. He started off his working life as a market trader barrow boy in the East End of London
. West built a family tobacco business in Belgium with his wife and children. In the 1980s Dave founded a wholesale business on a double decker bus in Calais selling cheap alcohol and cigarettes. His business moved to permanent premises and was named EastEnders, which is now a part of the largest British owned cash and carry group in Europe. It also has its own house wine label, "The Dogs Bollocks".
He is the owner of the Mayfair
night club HeyJo and the Abracadabra restaurant, both located on Jermyn Street
. West became the subject of a BBC documentary in 2005 about this project, called 'Trouble at the Top'. West describes himself as a libertarian
and is an active protester of the smoking ban
: in August 2007 he hired Cherie Blair in his bid to challenge the ban (introduced by her husband and Prime Minister at the time, Tony Blair
). He declared the ban was an infringement of his customers’ rights to smoke in his club and restaurant.
The following year he paid more than £100,000 to attend David and Victoria Beckham's charity World Cup party, and said that he was subject to such an unwelcoming pre-party briefing that he chose to boycott the event. After winning the bidding for the two tickets in an online auction, he was instructed to sign a confidentiality agreement, as well as being banned from handing out his business cards to guests or taking his mobile phone and camera to the party. According to The Independent
newspaper, he said: "The confidentiality agreement would mean that, had I signed it, I couldn't talk about the party even to my friends."
In 2006 West purchased the title "Lord of the Manor of Hollesley" after it was advertised on eBay
. The title means West is now known as Lord Dave West of the Manor of Hollesley.
West has a number of businesses in addition to Eastenders including Ultimate Characters Talent Management and Abracadabra Photostudio. He also has stakes in PR firm Forbidden London
, Archie Eyebrows shoes, Bloomsbury Ballroom, the Pigalle Club and Granite World, as well as lap dancing/ gentlemen's club Mandy's, which claims to be the oldest in London.
In 2009 West was charged with the assault of a 14 year old girl in his flat above the HeyJo club. At the conclusion of the case, all charges were dropped and West was awarded £37,000 in costs.
East End of London
The East End of London, also known simply as the East End, is the area of London, England, United Kingdom, east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames. Although not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries, the River Lea can be considered another boundary...
. West built a family tobacco business in Belgium with his wife and children. In the 1980s Dave founded a wholesale business on a double decker bus in Calais selling cheap alcohol and cigarettes. His business moved to permanent premises and was named EastEnders, which is now a part of the largest British owned cash and carry group in Europe. It also has its own house wine label, "The Dogs Bollocks".
He is the owner of the Mayfair
Mayfair
Mayfair is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...
night club HeyJo and the Abracadabra restaurant, both located on Jermyn Street
Jermyn Street
Jermyn Street is a street in the City of Westminster, central London, to the south, parallel and adjacent to Piccadilly.It is well known as a street where the shops are almost exclusively aimed at the Gentleman's market and is famous for its resident shirtmakers Jermyn Street is a street in the...
. West became the subject of a BBC documentary in 2005 about this project, called 'Trouble at the Top'. West describes himself as a libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
and is an active protester of the smoking ban
Smoking ban
Smoking bans are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, which prohibit tobacco smoking in workplaces and/or other public spaces...
: in August 2007 he hired Cherie Blair in his bid to challenge the ban (introduced by her husband and Prime Minister at the time, Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
). He declared the ban was an infringement of his customers’ rights to smoke in his club and restaurant.
The following year he paid more than £100,000 to attend David and Victoria Beckham's charity World Cup party, and said that he was subject to such an unwelcoming pre-party briefing that he chose to boycott the event. After winning the bidding for the two tickets in an online auction, he was instructed to sign a confidentiality agreement, as well as being banned from handing out his business cards to guests or taking his mobile phone and camera to the party. According to The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
newspaper, he said: "The confidentiality agreement would mean that, had I signed it, I couldn't talk about the party even to my friends."
In 2006 West purchased the title "Lord of the Manor of Hollesley" after it was advertised on eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
. The title means West is now known as Lord Dave West of the Manor of Hollesley.
West has a number of businesses in addition to Eastenders including Ultimate Characters Talent Management and Abracadabra Photostudio. He also has stakes in PR firm Forbidden London
Forbidden London
Forbidden London or Forbidden London Clubs, as it is commonly known, is a public relations company based on Jermyn Street in the London district of St James's.-History:...
, Archie Eyebrows shoes, Bloomsbury Ballroom, the Pigalle Club and Granite World, as well as lap dancing/ gentlemen's club Mandy's, which claims to be the oldest in London.
In 2009 West was charged with the assault of a 14 year old girl in his flat above the HeyJo club. At the conclusion of the case, all charges were dropped and West was awarded £37,000 in costs.