Alistair Powell: 7CI

Alistair Powell, 26
Company: 7CI (Seven Continent Investment)
Web:www.7cinvest.com

Powell has always had an interest in property, and made a tidy profit from a website design agency he founded that targeted estate agents when he was just 15. Despite becoming Hamptons International’s youngest ever sales manager, he felt true progress would only come from building something of his own. Global investment specialist 7CI, founded in 2006, helps high net worth individuals buy property abroad.

Powell takes an approach to property investment that’s inspired by the financial services industry. Capital growth on clients’ portfolios is just a bonus, he says, and 7CI focuses purely on properties with positive cash flow incomes. It’s an approach that has already delivered 11,500 active clients and a £2.2m turnover.