James Dyson was the first ever guest speaker for Oxford Entrepreneurs. Bob Goodson describes his visit:

James Dyson whirled in and out of the Oxford Union with perfect timing, modest style and composure. This was the first speaker event of Oxford Entrepreneurs. “Whoa, these guys mean business.” Damn right. I was blown away by his story and find myself regularly coming back to it for inspiration. Particularly interesting is the way he bounced from one idea to another, from projects started during his degree. Each was bigger than the last, and eventually he revolutionized the vacuum cleaner and took on an entire industry. His determination and self-motivation is exemplary: he was 2 million pounds in debt at one point, during the Hoover court case; a few years on, his 800 million pounds is ENTIRELY tied to the success of his business - “It keeps me sharp,” he said. The talk finished at 8pm and Matt and I walked with him alone, through heavy rain, to University Park, where a helicopter was waiting to take him to London. “In a hurry?”, I asked. “Rather”, he said calmly, “I’m having dinner with the Prime Minister.”