Mary Perkins sold for £2 million in 1980, and continue to receive income from. After the sale the couple moved to Guernsey, where Mary's father had retired. Mary and Doug Perkins established Specsavers in Guernsey in 1984. In 2007 it was the largest privately owned opticians in the world, with nearly 900 stores across the UK and Europe. By 2011 the company had an annual turnover of £1.5bn and over 30,000 staff in markets in the UK, Europe and Australasia. Her current title at Specsavers is "founder". Dame Mary sits on the company board, oversees business development and has particular responsibility for
Lesley Cowley most influential people in the UK. Cowley is a Fellow of the Institute of Directors, Institute of Credit Management, the British Computer Society and the Royal Society of Arts. Cowley was born and raised in Bristol and left school at 17, initially working in sales and credit management. Lesley Cowley Lesley Ruth Cowley OBE is a British businesswoman, chairwoman and non-executive director. She is best known as the former CEO of .uk domain name registry Nominet UK, and is the current chair of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and Companies House, and Non-Executive Director of telecoms operator aql.