Robert Holmes à Court facts for kids

Michael Robert Hamilton Holmes à Court (born 27 July 1937 – died 2 September 1990) was a very successful Australian businessman. He was born in South Africa. He became Australia's first billionaire. Sadly, he died suddenly from a heart attack in 1990 when he was 53 years old.

Robert Holmes à Court was known as one of the world's most determined investors in the 1980s. He built his huge business empire all by himself. It grew from almost nothing into a large group of companies. These companies worked in different areas like natural resources and media (like newspapers and TV). Before the big stock market crash in 1987, his business was worth about A$2 billion. People who invested in his company saw their money grow a lot. In 1984, a horse owned by Robert Holmes à Court, named Black Knight, won the famous Melbourne Cup race.

When Robert Holmes à Court passed away, he did not have a will. His wealth was divided, with one-third going to his wife, Janet, and the rest split equally among their four children. These children include Peter and Simon.

Early Life and Education

Robert Holmes à Court was born in Johannesburg, South Africa. He spent a lot of his younger years in what is now Zimbabwe. He went to school in South Africa. Even as a student, he was good at making money. He sold photos he took of his classmates. He also drove them home for a fee.

He studied forestry at the University of Auckland and Massey University in New Zealand. He earned a degree in Agricultural Science in 1962. In 1961, he moved to Perth, Western Australia. There, he studied law at the University of Western Australia and got his law degree in 1965. He married Janet Ranford, a science teacher, on 18 May 1966. Robert became a lawyer in 1968 and worked as a barrister and solicitor.

Starting His Business Journey

Robert Holmes à Court started his business career by chance in 1970. His law firm was asked to help a small company called Western Australian Worsted & Woollen Mills. This company was the biggest employer in the city of Albany. Robert saw an opportunity. He found a way to invest $500,000 in the struggling business. He managed to get the government to forgive some loans the company had.

The money for his first big investment came from a bank account he shared with his law partners. His partners asked for their money back. It's thought that his mother, Ethnee, helped him with his first business step. She had inherited money from her wealthy stepfather. She also sold some properties she owned and gave the money to Robert to manage when she moved to Australia in 1967.

After taking over the company, Robert made it more competitive. He lowered production costs by installing new wool machinery. He got this equipment on good terms from a Belgian company. Now, he controlled a company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. From there, he began to take control of many other small businesses.

Building The Bell Group

In 1973, Robert's company bought Bell Brothers. This was a well-known transport and contracting group in Western Australia. He paid $9.6 million for it. Bell Brothers became his main company, later known as The Bell Group Ltd.

Expanding Media and Other Interests

The Bell Group started buying media companies. These included the Albany Advertiser newspaper and radio station 6VA. It also tried to buy other companies like Griffin Coal and Emu Wines. Even when these bids failed, Robert often made a lot of money. This happened because the owners fought hard to keep their companies, which made the share prices go up. Robert would then sell his shares for a profit.

In 1977, Robert's brother Simon disappeared in Africa under mysterious circumstances. His car was found far from where he was last seen.

Taking on Big Companies

In 1979, Bell Group tried to buy Ansett Transport Industries, a big transport company. But Rupert Murdoch and TNT beat them. Still, Bell Group made an $11 million profit from the attempt.

In 1980, Bell Group tried to buy The Times newspaper in the UK. At the same time, Robert launched a new newspaper in Perth, the Western Mail. This challenged the Herald & Weekly Times group, which owned The West Australian. By the end of 1980, Bell Group had $100 million in cash.

In 1981, Bell Group tried to buy Elders Goldsbrough Mort for $120 million. This bid also failed, but Robert still made a profit of $16.5 million.

International Ventures

During 1982, Bell Group bought shares in Rolls-Royce and Portland cement companies. It also tried to buy The Herald and Weekly Times group again, but failed. Later that year, it bought Perth television station TVW-7. Bell Group then bought another TV station in Adelaide and several small radio stations.

Robert also made unsuccessful bids for big companies like Carlton & United Breweries and Elders IXL. But, as usual, his smart planning meant he still walked away with a profit. Bell Group also helped defeat a large bid from Lloyds Bank for Standard Chartered Bank.

In 1982, Robert took control of Lew Grade's UK-based Associated Communications Corporation (ACC). He then sold off parts of ACC, including its music publishing interests. These included Northern Songs, a company set up by the Beatles to control their music rights. Michael Jackson bought ATV Music Publishing. As part of this deal, Robert convinced Michael Jackson to visit Perth briefly. Jackson appeared on Channel 7's annual Telethon.

In 1987, Bell Group bought shares in Pioneer Concrete. It also made a second unsuccessful bid for the Herald & Weekly Times group. This time, Rupert Murdoch bought the group for $1.8 billion. Bell Group did manage to buy The West Australian, Perth's main daily newspaper.

Bell Resources and Big Deals

In 1983, Bell Group bought a Perth mining equipment company called Wigmores. It was renamed Bell Resources Ltd. Through this company, Robert gained control of Weeks Petroleum. This company explored for oil and gas and owned a small share in a big oil and gas project.

In 1985, Bell Resources bought 13% of a US mining company called Asarco for $140 million. It also tried to buy a utility company in Perth, but failed. Also in 1985, Bell Resources made its biggest and boldest move. It tried to take control of BHP, which was Australia's largest company for resources and steelmaking. Before the deal was finished, another company, Elders IXL, bought a large share in BHP. Bell Resources also spent US$800 million to buy 9.6% of Texaco stock.

The Stock Market Crash of 1987

By October 1987, when the international stock market crashed, Bell Group had many valuable assets. However, these assets were not making enough money to cover the company's debts. Robert Holmes à Court's family company, Heytesbury Holdings, owned 43% of Bell Group. Bell Group, in turn, owned 40% of Bell Resources, which had a lot of cash. But Bell Resources could not buy its parent company. This was because other investors like Kerry Packer were trying to buy shares in Bell Resources. A bank also withdrew a large loan facility. This meant Bell Group could not get access to the cash in its subsidiary.

Changes at Bell Group

Robert Holmes à Court first sold some properties in Perth. Then, he agreed to a joint takeover of Bell Group by Bond Corporation and the State Government Insurance Commission. Both companies bought a 19.9% share in Bell Group. Robert kept 6% of Bell Group and received $340 million from the sale. Bond Corporation ended up with a majority share of 68% of Bell Group. Bond Corporation then moved $500 million from Bell Resources to try and cover its own debts. This included transferring cash and ownership of newspaper holdings.

Later Business Ventures

During 1988, Robert Holmes à Court focused on rebuilding and growing his Heytesbury companies. He bought Stoll Moss Theatres in London. He also bought Sherwin Pastoral Co, which owned huge cattle stations in Northern Australia, and the Vasse Felix winery.

In 1989, Heytesbury bought more large cattle stations. Robert also traded in Jaguar stock, as well as shares in Christie's (an auction house) and a New Zealand media group.

In 1990, Bell Resources was renamed Australian Consolidated Investments Limited. Bond Corporation announced a huge loss that year. In 1991, Bond Corporation faced serious financial problems, and receivers took charge of the Bell Group. In 2002, Australian Consolidated Investments was removed from the stock exchange.

His Legacy

Robert Holmes à Court died of a heart attack on the morning of 2 September 1990. He did not have a will. His wealth was divided, with one-third going to his wife, Janet, and the rest split equally among their four children. His company, Heytesbury Holdings, is still one of the largest private companies in Australia.

Janet Holmes à Court managed Heytesbury from her husband's death until 2005, when she retired. At one point, she was Australia's richest woman. The couple's oldest son, Peter Holmes à Court, is now a major investor himself. He sold his share of Heytesbury for a reported A$35 million. Peter, along with Russell Crowe, owns a large part of the National Rugby League club South Sydney Rabbitohs. Another son, Paul Holmes à Court, is now the chief executive of Heytesbury. Robert Holmes à Court's other children are Simon, who focuses on environment and climate issues and founded Climate 200, and Catherine. By 2005, Robert and Janet Holmes à Court had 12 grandchildren.