p e o p l e i n t h e c i t y
A section dedicated to telling the stories of locals in Palm Beach County
The Art of Creating Templates for the Future
After seventy years as an entrepreneur , the author of “ Start Up ” delivers an inspiring story filled with business tips and life lessons on how to lead with humility and grace .
By Maritza Cosano Culture , Lifestyle , and Community Photos : Addiel Perera , WPB Magazine WPB Magazine Editor
As other people in their mid-eighties experiment with retirement , David Gilmour , the quintessential entrepreneur and founder of Fiji Water , Zinio . com , plus a gold mining empire , and a hotel and resort chain , is doing business as usual and laser-focused on two things : education and health . His latest ventures , a preschool family center in West Palm Beach and a company called Wakaya Perfection , are designed to change the way we see education and health .
Talking with Gilmour at his elegant Palm Beach estate , I was immediately aware that this was no ordinary man , although he likes to portray himself as one . In his study , there ’ s a portrait of England ’ s Prime Minister [ 1940 - 1945 ], Winston Churchill by Frank O . Salisbury , titled “ Blood , Sweat , And Tears .” It is one of his most prized possessions , because as he says , “ Churchill has been a hero and mentor of mine .”
Early on in his career as a businessman , he came to realize that Churchill embodied qualities that may be deemed essential to entrepreneurial success . Gilmour writes in his recently released book , Start Up , “ His innate ability command attention , his talent for engaging people ’ s interest , his skill at convincing people that his cause was their cause , his capacity for clearly articulating his thoughts and objectives , his forward thinking , and his decisiveness are aspects of character that would have made him a formidable business leader — had he not been otherwise engaged .”
Gilmour has been labeled as a
“ creative genius ” or “ a rare star who has chosen to keep the spotlight on his companies and not on himself .” And while all that is true , in my time sitting with him as we chatted in his living room , I saw a remarkable man with an extraordinary ability to observe people , and a strong sense of who he is and what he wants . As he tells it in his book , “ The story of my life cannot be separated from the story of my entrepreneurial ventures .” And at closer look , you ’ ll discover why .
What inspired you to write this book ? Well , I was bullied into it by business associates , educators , and friends . Not because of me so much , but because of the strange circumstances of being born in 1931 — 85 years ago . I remember that period well , which was going w p b m a g a z i n e . c o m 92 w p b m a g a z i n e • j u ly t h r u s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 7