Still listed as one of the ‘driving millionaires’ in The Sunday Times Rich List with an estimated fortune of £205 million, 78-year-old Sir Colin Giltrap is more likely to be following British motor sport than selling high-end motor vehicles these days.
As one of the principal sponsors of Brendan Hartley, New Zealand’s first Formula 1 driver in three decades, Giltrap will be watching with keen interest in 2018 as the 28-year-old fights to keep his promising career on track after several early season crashes in his Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda.
Although Sir Colin still holds the title of executive chairman, his sons, Michael and Richard, jointly manage the Giltrap Group, which employs 500 staff across 12 Auckland dealerships.
In late 2017, the company opened a new $40 million headquarters on Auckland’s Great North Rd with individual showrooms for its Lamborghini, Aston Martin and Bentley ranges. Conceived by architects Warren and Mahoney as three jewellery boxes with a glazing wrap, Michael Giltrap says it’s also one of “the most technologically impressive and environmentally friendly buildings of its type in the country."
Knighted in 2012 for his services to motor sport and philanthropy, Sir Colin began his career in the 1960s when he founded Monaco Motors in Hamilton. Having moved into the Auckland market in the 1970s, Sir Colin stretched his wings by entering the UK market in 1989 when he bought a stake in the Malaya Group automotive business which later became H.R. Owen – one of Britain’s leading luxury motor dealers.
UK Companies Office records indicate that Sir Colin controlled 81% Malaya in 1992 before his holding was gradually diluted by a string of acquisitions and, after selling the last of his H.R. Owen shares for £1m in 2008, he finally resigned from the board.
Nevertheless, the call of the old country remains strong. Sir Colin and his wife, Lady Jennifer, regularly enjoy the northern hemisphere summer from their penthouse apartment in London’s affluent Belgravia district. He is also still listed in the UK as a motor dealer and director of Bravedyne Ltd, which turned over £29m in the late 1990s from leasing property and selling motor vehicles.
Through the Giltrap Trust, Sir Colin and Lady Jennifer are generous sponsors of worthy causes and pledged $250,000 in 2016 to help establish the Bruce McLaren Centre at the University of Auckland, which will undertake cutting edge engineering research in honour of the late motor sport legend.