Which Dragon's Den investor founded the British telecoms retailer Phones 4u?

John Caudwell founded the British telecoms retailer Phones 4u.

Caudwell established the business in the 1980s with his brother Brian, initially trading in mobile phones before the market became dominated by large retail chains. Phones 4u grew into one of Britain's most prominent independent mobile-phone retailers.

John Caudwell later became known as a philanthropist and appeared as a guest investor on Dragon's Den. He is therefore sometimes mistaken for one of the show's permanent original Dragons, but his connection with the programme came through guest appearances rather than founding the regular panel.

Phones 4u entered administration in 2014 after major network operators withdrew their retail agreements. The company name remains strongly associated with Caudwell's business career even though its high-street operations ended.