Posted September 10, 200717 yr Dame Anita Roddick dies aged 64 BBC NEWS Founder of ethical cosmetics firm Body Shop, Dame Anita Roddick, has died at the age of 64. Her family said in a statement she suffered "a major brain haemorrhage" at 1830 BST at St Richard's Hospital in Chichester, West Sussex. Her husband, Gordon, and daughters Sam and Justine were all with her. Dame Anita set up the first Body Shop in Brighton in 1976. She pioneered cruelty-free beauty products and turned them into a highly profitable business. In February she announced she had contracted Hepatitis C from a blood transfusion in 1971. The Body Shop became part of the French company L'Oreal Group in July 2006 but is run independently. The family's statement said: "Gordon, Justine and Sam Roddick are very sad to announce that, after suffering a major brain haemorrhage, Anita Roddick died at 6.30pm this evening at the age of 64. "Anita Roddick was admitted to St Richard's Hospital in Chichester, close to her home, yesterday evening when she collapsed after complaining of a sudden headache. "Mrs Roddick was admitted to the hospital's intensive care unit and her husband Gordon and two daughters, Sam and Justine, were with her when she died." 'Own mortality' Dame Anita revealed she was suffering from cirrhosis of the liver after contracting Hepatitis C from blood given during the birth of her youngest daughter, Sam. She said she had unknowingly lived with the virus for three decades and only found out about it two years ago after a blood test. "What I can say is that having Hep C means that I live with a sharp sense of my own mortality, which in many ways makes life more vivid and immediate," Dame Anita said. "It makes me even more determined to just get on with things." Dame Anita also called for Hepatitis C - sometimes called the "silent killer" - to be taken more seriously as a "public health challenge". 'Ahead of her time' John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace, said Dame Anita was an "incredible woman" who was passionate about environmental and human rights issues. He said: "She was an amazing inspiration to those around her. "She was so ahead of her time when it came to issues of how business could be done...When you look at it today, and how every company claims to be green, she was living this decades ago." Clive Stafford Smith, legal director of anti-death penalty organisation Reprieve, said she had just agreed to be its chairwoman. "It is a real shame," he said. "We were so happy to have her, she was so full of life, so fantastic. "She was so dedicated, so energetic, she will be sorely missed." Emma Colyer from the HIV and Aids charity Body and Soul, which Dame Anita set up, told BBC News it was a terribly sad day for society at large. "Anita carried out campaigns on so many issues and often issues that were not popular by the mass of public and took some strength of character to become involved in," she said. Amnesty International UK director Kate Allen said Dame Anita's passion for human rights was "immeasurable". She said: "We have lost a true champion of the oppressed and persecuted. "Anita had been a key part of Amnesty International for many years and had shared her brilliance and energy with us to marvellous effect." Would any of you like to pass any comments about this great woman?
September 10, 200717 yr Remarkable woman, started with nothing and made a success of her life Epitomised the spirit of Thatcherism and the get up and go culture along with the likes of Branson and Sugar RIP
September 10, 200717 yr Anita Roddick was the very antithesis of Thatcherism. She showed that it was possible to build a successful business while still maintaining strong ethical principles and caring about staff welfare. She promoted environmental issues at a time when most politicians (including Thatcher) dismissed environmentalists as a bunch of cranky tree-huggers.
September 10, 200717 yr Remarkable woman, started with nothing and made a success of her life Epitomised the spirit of Thatcherism and the get up and go culture along with the likes of Branson and Sugar RIP How did Richard Branson epitomise the spirit of Thatcherism? He was a public schoolboy who formed Virgin records in 1973, six years before she became PM and two years before she even became Tory leader.
September 10, 200717 yr I think he meant they shared her attitude, not that he followed Thatch's example :huh:
September 11, 200717 yr I think he meant they shared her attitude, not that he followed Thatch's example :huh: roddick didnt, as suedehead2 correctly pointed out "Anita Roddick was the very antithesis of Thatcherism. She showed that it was possible to build a successful business while still maintaining strong ethical principles and caring about staff welfare. She promoted environmental issues at a time when most politicians (including Thatcher) dismissed environmentalists as a bunch of cranky tree-huggers." 100% agree, well said. :)
September 11, 200717 yr How did Richard Branson epitomise the spirit of Thatcherism? He was a public schoolboy who formed Virgin records in 1973, six years before she became PM and two years before she even became Tory leader. Roddick, Branson and Sugar were the media darlings of the enterprise culture that Maggie created in Britain, they became multi millionaires and in the case of Branson and Sugar billionaires during the enterprise boom of the 80's and were the inspiration for many to set up their own businesses even if in the case of Branson he started it in the 70's, the explosive growth of Virgin, Body Shop and Amstrad started in the 80's. Roddick was the poster child of women setting up in business, we had women who were making jam or perfume on their kitchen table suddenly thinking they can make it big in business too because they saw Roddick succeeding, the fact that 2 million women today are company directors or business owners is very much down to Roddick she inspired a whole generation of women to make a go of it in business on the back of Maggie's enterprise culture Edited September 11, 200717 yr by Vic Vega
September 11, 200717 yr Anita Roddick was the very antithesis of Thatcherism. She showed that it was possible to build a successful business while still maintaining strong ethical principles and caring about staff welfare. She promoted environmental issues at a time when most politicians (including Thatcher) dismissed environmentalists as a bunch of cranky tree-huggers. Exactly mate, I seriously doubt that Thatcher and Roddick would've gotten on with each other in the slightest, Roddick may have used the tools, but she created something much better than what Thatcher was pushing - Roddick had ethics and principles and a strong moral centre, Thatcherism did not, they could not have had less in common with each other.... I think Richard Branson would be a little bit insulted by Craig's assertion that he "epitomised Thatcherism" as well actually.... :lol:
September 11, 200717 yr Roddick while a remarkable woman who I have a lot of admiration for still sold her principles down the river though, that will tarnish her reputation She sold Body Shop to L'Oreal for hundreds og millions, the same L'Oreal that have an utterly VILE history in terms of using animals for cosmetic research so she sold out her principles and beliefs for a pot of gold so she is not this Mother Teresa figure but I still admire what she did for charity and for business and so on even if she did sell out her principles for cash by selling her empire to L'Oreal
September 11, 200717 yr Roddick, Branson and Sugar were the media darlings of the enterprise culture that Maggie created in Britain, they became multi millionaires and in the case of Branson and Sugar billionaires during the enterprise boom of the 80's and were the inspiration for many to set up their own businesses even if in the case of Branson he started it in the 70's, the explosive growth of Virgin, Body Shop and Amstrad started in the 80's. you talk as if it was only in them years that people with drive and vision made a name for themselves, citing thatcher as their enableing factor. this of course is tripe, there has always been enterprising individuals making a success in business whoever is/was in power. as has been pointed out, i dont think roddick or branson are/were big on thatcher, so her part in their life was nothing more then incidental.
September 11, 200717 yr She lived in the same area as me and they have a Building named after her at my school , i think she may have funded it but i'm not sure.
September 11, 200717 yr you talk as if it was only in them years that people with drive and vision made a name for themselves, citing thatcher as their enableing factor. this of course is tripe, there has always been enterprising individuals making a success in business whoever is/was in power. as has been pointed out, i dont think roddick or branson are/were big on thatcher, so her part in their life was nothing more then incidental. Maggie allowed businesses to prosper Had Labour got in again in 1979 the likes of Branson and Sugar and Roddick would have been forced abroad by the 96% top rate of tax but the dynamic low tax economy that Maggie created allowed Roddick to set up hundreds of shops and Branson too so even if they were not direct Maggie supporters they still benefitted from the 80's enterprise culture and with Labour's tax policies the chances are that Body Shop and Virgin would not be the forces they are today had Labour won again in 1979
September 11, 200717 yr Maggie allowed businesses to prosper Had Labour got in again in 1979 the likes of Branson and Sugar and Roddick would have been forced abroad by the 96% top rate of tax but the dynamic low tax economy that Maggie created allowed Roddick to set up hundreds of shops and Branson too so even if they were not direct Maggie supporters they still benefitted from the 80's enterprise culture and with Labour's tax policies the chances are that Body Shop and Virgin would not be the forces they are today had Labour won again in 1979 eh? the constant cycle of 'boom and bust' suited businesses?... at least labour are spending the tax revenues on something useful, like EVERY secondary school in the uk is being upgraded, unlike thatcher who would sooner give it to her fat cats or waste it on nuclear weapons.
September 11, 200717 yr Maggie allowed businesses to prosper Had Labour got in again in 1979 the likes of Branson and Sugar and Roddick would have been forced abroad by the 96% top rate of tax but the dynamic low tax economy that Maggie created allowed Roddick to set up hundreds of shops and Branson too so even if they were not direct Maggie supporters they still benefitted from the 80's enterprise culture and with Labour's tax policies the chances are that Body Shop and Virgin would not be the forces they are today had Labour won again in 1979 But Virgin records DID exist pre-Thatcher though Craig, The Sex Pistols being one of the bands actually signed to the company... I'm pretty sure Alan Sugar started Amstrad pre-Thatcher as well; Roddick's whole "Body Shop" idea was more of a product of Punk/Post Punk culture than it was Thatcherism, seeing as how BOTH the Body Shop and Punk started up in 1976.... Anita Roddick would more likey spit in your face if you accused her of being a Thatcherite.... :lol:
September 11, 200717 yr But Virgin records DID exist pre-Thatcher though Craig, The Sex Pistols being one of the bands actually signed to the company... I'm pretty sure Alan Sugar started Amstrad pre-Thatcher as well; Roddick's whole "Body Shop" idea was more of a product of Punk/Post Punk culture than it was Thatcherism, seeing as how BOTH the Body Shop and Punk started up in 1976.... Anita Roddick would more likey spit in your face if you accused her of being a Thatcherite.... :lol: Despite her "green" credentials she was still at heart a die hard capitalist When she floated Body Shop on the FTSE it was valued at around 8m, its value through the FTSE reached finally the £652m she sold it to L'Oreal for so she used the tool of capitalism (the stock exchange) to line her pockets, if she was a true non capitalist she would have kept the company private and made her employees stake holders like John Lewis have done over the years, John Lewis have avoided the stock exchange route but Roddick made £644m out of the capitalist stock market
September 11, 200717 yr Despite her "green" credentials she was still at heart a die hard capitalist but she wasnt! if she was she would have made money any way she could and hang the consequences. she made 'clean' money, ethically, putting her values before profit. she was successful because people wanted her product, they wanted ethically sound products, they too put their values over price. it took thatcher years to catch up with the 'green' ideaology. even then it was all because of votes, seeing a new angle on winning votes.
September 14, 200717 yr Maggie allowed businesses to prosper :lol: :lol: :lol: Hilarious..... And to say the late, great Roddick epitomises Thatcherism is a deeply offensive remark. Roddick was as left as you can get in major business.
September 17, 200717 yr RIP Unfortunately this is another example of how no good deed goes unpunished.
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