Over the years, the Stewart dynasty has risen through the ranks to become one of the most prominent business families in New Zealand.
The family’s story stretches back to the 1930s when (later Sir) Robertson Stewart was sent to England to learn about plastics. The trip started what would become a lifelong affection for the material for the young Christchurch engineer. In 1947 he began working for Plastic and Die Casting Ltd, which he bought 10 years later and renamed PDL. Under Stewart’s direction it expanded greatly, employing 2200 staff with an annual turnover of $350 million at its peak. Exporting products across the world, PDL ensured the family’s fortune. It was sold to a French concern for $97 million in 2001.
Sir Robertson passed his considerable business acumen down to his son Robert, who bought the Christchurch-based Robat Avon Industries at the age of 25. Echoing what his father did with PDL, Sir Robert turned the company into Skope Industries and saw it rise to become New Zealand’s leading heating company. These days it focuses solely on commercial refrigeration, with operations both within New Zealand and overseas, and its Christchurch base has expanded to more than 300 staff.
Knighthoods and official recognition have become common in the Stewart family. Sir Robertson was knighted in 1979, while Sir Robert followed in 2014. Mark, Sir Robert’s half-brother, was made a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the community and sport in 2018. Mark is a well-known youth mentor and chairs the Antarctic Heritage Trust, which looks after the expedition bases of early Antarctic explorers.
The family has a wide range of business interests. Along with Skope, which is managed by Guy and Alexandra Stewart, Mark has a 69% stake in highly-regarded pet food company Ziwi. Less successfully, he also holds a shareholding in the struggling SeaDragon fish oil business through his Masthead group. SeaDragon has just received $4m via a convertible loan note from cornerstone shareholder Pascado to stave off liquidation or receivership.
Mark also has a well-documented taste for expensive properties. He sold his Takapuna mansion in 2017 for a staggering $28.88 million to Chinese businessman Lichun Gao while his main residence is the $6.5 million Windwhistle deer farm in Canterbury.
2018: $350 million