Working part-time at his local Four Square as a teenager has paid off handsomely for Rob Redwood, now one of Foodstuffs’ top operators.
A product of the co-operative’s scholarship programme, Redwood started out at Cut Price Taumarunui which he later converted to a Four Square discount operation.
He then owned Hillcrest New World in Hamilton before moving north to Auckland in 1995 and buying the Eastridge New World in Auckland’s eastern suburbs.
In 2014 he joined the big time, taking ownership of the Glen Innes Pak’nSave, one of Auckland’s biggest and busiest, from retired former owner Brian Frecker.
Redwood is another who shuns the limelight. He has a relatively modest property portfolio that includes a $7m family home in Remuera, a $2.8m holiday house at Omaha and a $7.9m commercial property in South Auckland.
The majority of his wealth is tied up in the supermarket, which is estimated to turn over $3m a week in sales, with annual profits of $8-10m.
He serves on the board of Foodstuffs North Island, including a period as chairman.
He and his wife Jackie have four children. Son Michael works at Pak’nSave.