In the beginning, I was a collector.

My collection reflected my interest in military strategy as initially I collected Civil War books, notes, maps etc. About the same time Julia and I were working on rebranding McLaren Marketing and in doing so I came across the famous depiction of Napoleon on horseback ascending the alps. This fine piece of work was used in the rebranding and combined with my keen interest in the strategy of war and marketing led me to become fascinated with Napoleon.

Julia, who hails from the West Midlands of England pointed out that "there was another side in that war you know and they won, why don't you collect Nelson?"