Graeme Richard Hart is a New Zealand billionaire businessman and the country's wealthiest man. He prefers to stay out of the media and makes few public appearances.
Much like other leveraged buyout (LBO) non-public equity investors, Hart has a preference for purchasing underperforming and undervalued business companies with steady cash flows which may be turned around via better cash management, cost-reducing and restructuring with other businesses. Since his 2006 buy of Carter Holt Harvey he has targeted his acquisitions on the paper packaging sector. His biggest acquisition to-date was for Alcoa's Packaging & Consumer organization in 2008 for US$2.7bn, later renamed Reynolda Packaging Group. He does not directly manipulate his businesses, and is focused totally on the financing associated with re-capitalization of the business companies.
Hart worked as a truck driver and as a panel beater after leaving school at 16.
In 1987, Hart finished an MBA from the University of Otago. His studies thesis outlines the strategy for Rank, then a small hire company, to grow. This method relies on the usage of the cash flow of well-performing groups to fund debt, which as it receives paid off, will increase the equity cost of the initial investors.
Hart received a huge break when he bought the Government Printing Office for much less than its capital value in 1990. The purchase was 1.4x profits and Hart was supplied beneficiant payment terms. Then New Zealand Prime Minister David Lange first of all refused to sign off at the transaction.He bought Whitcoulls Gropup which at that point included a retail chain of bookstores in addition to office and stationery concerns. He has since sold off those interest.
Forbes stated that Richard Hart was the 178th richest man withinside the world as of March 2016.
Graeme Hart has houses in Auckland, Queenstown and Waiheke Island in New Zealand, an island in Fiji and residences in Aspen, Colorado withinside the US. Hart attended Mount Roskill Grammar School. Graeme Hart says he lacks interest in making money for its personal sake. He describes his private wealth as a "by-product" of what he does.
While he prefer to maintain a low profile withinside the media he was notable for the release of his 58 metre (190') luxury motor yacht Ulysses at Auckland's Viaduct Harbour in January 2006. The yacht is worth nearly $100 million and took 5 years to finish due to being gutted through a fire during refit by a New Orleans shipyard. In 2012 it was placed up for sale for $49-million.Hart has a brand new yacht under constructing at Kleven Verft withinside the community of Ulstein in Norway. The backyard specialises in off-shore vessels and the 107-metre (351') long yacht is built to sail under tough conditions, equipped with helicopter deck, hangar and lodging for 60 persons. Hart's latest 107-metre (351') "expedition yacht," previously named Ulysses, was finished and ultimately released on 3 September 2014, in Ulsteinvik, north of Oslo, at the Kleven Verft shipyard.
In 2017 it was said that he bought a brand new 116 metre (380') explorer yacht, which he has named "Ulysses", now that his 107 meter (351') yacht, formerly of the same name, has been offered.
The Hart family gave a $10m donation to the university of Oago to move toward opening their $28.2m dental coaching facility in South Auckland in December 2018.
