SAVY INVESTMENTS?
❚ Jay-Z is one hell of a hip-hop entrepreneur. His first foray into business was a majority stake in clothing brand Rocawear, which he sold in 2007 for £128m.
❚ Heidi Klum isn’t just a pretty face, earning £10.6m in 2011. And it wasn’t only from fashion – Klum owns a third of the rights to TV show Project Runway and has her own production firm.
❚ It’s restaurants for DJ Fatboy Slim – with Japanese eatery Okinami, in Brighton, and two Michelin-starred New York gastropubs.
❚ Oscar-winning Black Swan star Natalie Portman, left, wasn’t so successful with her vegan-friendly footwear line, though. People were put off by the shoes’ £125 price tag and the parent company closed within a year.
CASH SAVING TIPS
USE THE DEMOTIVATOR
Always overspending? Visit thedemotivator.co.uk and type in how much you pay for non-essentials like cappucinos or chocolate bars, how often you do
so and how much you earn. It’ll give you a scary low-down of what you could be saving instead.
GO SHOPPING, GET CASH
Save money while still buying exactly the same stuff – at exactly the same places. See pouringpounds.com for voucher codes that give you cashback on online shopping from brands like Tesco, Boots, Love Film and Expedia. Your first payout will be at least £30.
STAY LOCAL AND SAVE
Not keen on roughing it with a spot of couch-surfing, but strapped for cash to spend on a hotel? Rent out a bedroom in someone’s house through sites such as Wimdu.co.uk and AirBnB.com. If you’ve got a spare room, you can also make some cash by renting it out. Make new friends as a bonus: some things really are priceless.
HOW TO SPEND IT
Rob Cooper, 27
Job Founder of budgeting site, moflo.co.uk
From Southampton
Lives Kilburn
How do you budget?
I track my spending in Moflo as soon as it happens. To make this easier, I have SMS notifications set up with my bank, so I know as soon as direct debits come out.
Any money-saving tips?
Use a debit card where possible. Change is more likely to get wasted or put in a penny jar rather than to good use. Develop the discipline to use your card properly.
Last big blow-out?
Las Vegas, May 2011. All paid for in cash, no credit whatsoever. It was the first holiday I’ve done like that and it felt great to just focus on having a good time rather than worry about cash.
What non-essential items do you spend money on?
Spotify would be at the top of the list. It’s certainly non-essential, but I love it.
