John-James Farquarson was born in 1956, son of a British Diplomat, He went to school in France and the UK, has an MA from Oxford and an MBA from Insead, Fontainebleau. He served in the British Army, in Germany, India, Pakistan, Cyprus and Northern Ireland. He has spent about thirty years in the Chemical industry, in Finance, Sales, running a plant and HR, living and working in many different countries. He is married to a German National and they have two children.