Billionaire property developer and founder of the Meriton Group empire, Harry Triguboff, has topped the 2016 BRW Rich 200 list for the first time, as a booming real estate market and the end of the resources surge change the face of wealth in Australia.
Two shopping centre magnates, Westfield co-founder Frank Lowy and part-owner of the giant Chadstone mall in Melbourne, John Gandel, made it into the top five. Lowy is ranked third with $8.26 billion wealth and Gandel fifth at $5.40 billion.
Other top retail names on the 2016 BRW Rich 200 list include:
– Australian retail icon Solomon Lew (15th with $2.13 billion).
– Harvey Norman leader and retail veteran, Gerry Harvey (19th at $1.99 billion).
– Jack Cowin (24th at $1.81 billion), chairman of Domino’s Pizza Enterprises and owner of Competitive Foods Australia, which operates the Hungry Jack’s QSR brand as the master franchisor for Burger King Corporation in Australia, as well as a group of KFC stores.
– Russell Withers and family (35th with $1.34 billion). Withers was executive chairman of 7-Eleven Stores, master franchisor for the 7-Eleven brand in Australia, until stepping down last year following the wages scandal that embroiled the convenience store chain in the second half of 2015.
– Nigel Austin (38th with $1.26 billion), founder of Cotton On Group.
Online retail disruptor, Ruslan Kogan, has dropped off the BRW Rich 200 list, unable to reach the record $303 million cut-off, which is up $17 million on last year.
Triguboff has replaced mining billionaire Gina Rinehart at the top of the list, a position she has occupied since 2010. Triguboff’s wealth has reached a record $10.62 billion, while Rinehard falls to fourth with $6.06 billion. Anthony Pratt and family occupy the second spot with $10.36 billion. Pratt’s US-based business, Pratt Industries, is the biggest Australian-owned employer in the US and is rising quickly in value after the opening of a giant new box factory near Chicago.
The highest ranked debutant is Manny Stul and family, owner of Moose Toys, the Melbourne private company responsible for the global hit Shopkins girls toy. Stul debuts at number 39 with $1.24 billion in wealth.
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