Clive Jacobs

Chairman

Entrepreneur, mentor, and investor—Clive Jacobs has been reshaping the business landscape for over 43 years. Having successfully built the world’s largest leisure car rental service, he now serves as the chairman of Jacobs Media.

clivejacobs.com

Linked In profile for Clive Jacobs
Clive's journey began at 19 as a messenger for a travel agent. Rising swiftly through the ranks, he founded his inaugural travel company at just 21 in South East London, taxi-driving at night to supplement his income.

Fast-forward to 1988 and the start of the remarkable Holiday Autos story. This move saw Clive and his team revolutionise the car rental landscape with a pre-bookable, pre-paid fully inclusive product. In 1995, when his partners took different routes, Clive's visionary spirit took charge, partnering with private equity group ECI Partners to propel the business to its next evolutionary stage. Over the next eight years, Holiday Autos became a global phenomenon, operating in 30 countries with an impressive £200 million turnover. In 2003, Clive oversaw the merger with lastminute.com plc, serving as the online giant’s deputy chairman.
In August 2009, Clive made his media debut by acquiring Travel Weekly under the parent brand of Jacobs Media. The portfolio expanded further in 2012 with the acquisition of the UK’s leading multimedia brand for the hospitality industry, The Caterer. Today, Jacobs Media stands as the global voice of the travel and hospitality sectors, with rapid expansion currently happening in Dubai and across the world.

In addition to Clive’s extensive list of business achievements, he actively engages in the public and charity sectors. He is a founding patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust and, in 2014, he was made an Honorary Fellow of The Tourism Society. Most recently, in 2020, Clive and his team received a Queen's Award for Enterprise in recognition of Jacobs Media’s international growth and success.


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