Growing up in one of the UK’s poorest estates made Richard Dickson determined to turn his life around – and after training as a plumber and a stint as an MMA fighter, one industry turned him into a millionaire
A man who was brought up on a drug-ridden council estate worked hard to turn his life around and become a multi-millionaire.
One of Scotland’s most successful entrepreneurs, Richard Dickson made his fortune in the property industry and now coaches young people to build their own businesses. However, life wasn’t always glamourous for Richard – he lived in South Glasgow, an area that once had the highest number of millionaires per square kilometre in the city – but his family were not among them.
He told the Daily Star: “[We] stayed in the only block of council housing flats in the whole of the area. “It was a very interesting place to grow up because we were living in our very rough council state where you walked down the street and Rolls Royces drive past, and Lamborghinis. It was quite an interesting contrast of a place to live.”
Richard said that while he loved growing up in such a tight-knit community, the area was was full of drug issues. He said: “I lost my own cousin to a overdose. She was a very young woman and passed from an overdose. A friend as well also passed from a drug-related death.”
Richard trained as an electrician, hoping to follow in his dad’s footsteps, and competed as a junior MMA fighter. However, neither job saw him earning the money he yearned for. He said: “I sat with a copy of the Sunday Times Rich List and I did a tally. I went through all these different things that would be someone’s reason for having wealth. I wanted to see what was creating the richest people in the United Kingdom and property was the strongest out of all of them by far.
Richard made his first steps into the business world after meeting Paul McFadden, an educator in all things housing. It was then Richard started property sourcing and deal trading, which saw him take on the role of a broker for people who wanted to purchase and refurbish property. His business ended up selling more than £10 million in residential property, and was a gateway for him to follow other interests.
In 2021 he founded his passion project, the Young Entrepreneur Society, which helps other young people around the UK learn how to build and scale their own businesses. He told the Daily Star: “My validation comes from the lives I can impact through my training.” Richard added many of those who had gone through the programme were now part of the “100K club” – earning a yearly salary of £100,000 or more.
But Richard also says he’s gone through a recent personal transformation. He said: “I [used to be] so, so, so net worth motivated. I went through such a funny phase over the past couple of months – I sold all my cars, minus my Range Rover SVR. I am the least financially-motivated, in terms of material things, I have been in a long time. Which I feel is a great blessing.”
