A Life Well Spent

A LIFE WELL SPENT Most of us know him as the $30 billion man, the energy behind a modern-day revolution in travel retail. But who is Colm McLoughlin really? Where is he from? Where is he going? What led him to dream up this empire? Could he really be the gentle leader that his public persona suggest? The old adage goes that 'nice guy's finish last', yet the Irishman bas consistently seemed to defy this truism, known for a mischievous twinkle in his sea- blue eyes and always ready to share a smile. Alongside a passion for his adopted nation, what emerges is a fidelity to his homeland. From an idyllic childhood in County Galway, he left behind the tranquilly of everything he knew for the bright lights of London. It was there that retail caught his eye. Within eight years of joining High Street giant Woolworths, he had broken century old company records to become the youngest and fastest qualified 'ready man'. `````