John Roberts is one of Britain's most successful and energetic businessmen, a lad from Bolton who turned a one pound bet with a friend into a billion pound success story. 

In this special Business episode, John joins Andy to share the invaluable lessons behind building one of Britain’s most trusted brands. From selling deformed gingerbread men in school to pioneering e-commerce out of Bolton, John reveals how cheek, grit and imagination shaped AO, but the journey to success has not been a straight road. He talks openly about the crushing lows — including losing a £160 million gamble in Germany, navigating the chaos of early online retail, and how singing Queen’s Don’t Stop Me Now on loop helped him show up for his team during the darkest moments.

Here is John's Crisis Compass - his points of navigation for when trouble comes.

X: @johnrobertsAO

Host: Andy Coulson 

CWC team: Jane Sankey, Hana Walker-Brown, Bill Griffin

With special thanks to Ioana Barbu and the brilliant people at Global 

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