Hart blasts back as wealthiest man

By Nick Stride

Friday 15th February 2002

COMEBACK: Graeme Hart

A recent surge in the share price of Australia's Burns Philp has made entrepreneur Graeme Hart New Zealand's richest citizen by a big margin.

Burns Philp's share price last week hit 64Ac, valuing Mr Hart's holdings in the company at $1.03 billion.

But New Zealand can't yet claim him as its first billionaire. That's because a substantial part of Mr Hart's Burns Philp interest is in share options. They are valued at 44Ac but holders have 20Ac to pay on them.

Taking that into account Mr Hart's Burns Philp holdings are worth a mere $820 million. That still puts him well ahead of Douglas Myers, who topped last year's National Business Review Rich List at $555 million.

Mr Hart has performed a feat unprecedented in New Zealand business history.

Starting from nothing, he amassed, perhaps, $250 million and in 1997 spent $310 million buying a 20% stake in Burns Philp, a venerable Australian company, shortly before it hit the skids.

The value of his stake fell to a few tens of millions in a matter of weeks and he was pilloried in the media as a riches-to-rags sucker. He ignored the publicity, took charge at Burns Philp and patiently resurrected the firm.

A wealth-builder, Mr Hart has not hung around for long with any company when he didn't need to, so speculation he will soon find a buyer for Burns Philp is hardly surprising.

Talk is the company is looking for buyers for its terminals and spices units. Good sales will leave it debt-free, focused on its profitable yeast business and a tempting target for the major food business multinationals.

At that point, it is said, Mr Hart will sell out, his point well made. At 46 and with a formidable reputation to trade on, his options are wide.

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