Deborah Meaden

Both my parents were entrepreneurs and built a nice leisure business. But money was tight when I was growing up. ”

People who buy your product or use your service don't care how tall or short you are, or what gender you are, or your age. It is irrelevant. That is not the basis on which your product is judged. ”

I'm not a woman in the 'Den,' I'm a Dragon, we're all there to invest, it has nothing to do with gender. ”

I'm always asked about how women get on in the boardroom and my answer is always, 'Never acknowledge that you are a woman. Your gender is not the point.' ”

You need emotional intelligence; to be happy to take risks; to be competitive and to look forward not backwards. ”

As an entrepreneur and employer, in the fairly recent past I have been astonished at how difficult it has been to get young people to take the idea of getting a job seriously. ”

My parents are not nurturers. They're a bit like me: do a good job and move on. ”

You need to tell people where they stand. If someone's done a good job, you should tell them they've done damn well. But if they haven't, you should take the same attitude. ”

My parents felt I should earn my money because I would then value it. So they would pay me a shilling or two to do jobs such as washing the car, cleaning and washing up. ”

It is what you can do with your money that matters because money has no value in itself. ”