Paul Little (businessman)

Paul Alexander Little AO is an Australian businessman and philanthropist. Little served as the managing director of Toll Holdings, an Australasian integrated logistics provider from 1985 until 2011 and retired from that position after 26 years service.[1]

Paul Little

AO
Born
Paul Alexander Little
NationalityAustralian
Occupations
  • Businessman (retired)
  • Philanthropist
Known for
Board member ofChairman, Essendon FC (2013-2015)
Spouses
  • Shirley Little (1978-1992)
  • ​
    (m. 1994)​

Career

Little has been in the transport industry for nearly all his business life, first as an employee at Mayne Nickless, where he progressed to become national operations manager of the Seapak Transport Services division, and then at Peko-Wallsend as a consultant where he assessed the desirability of purchasing the Toll business and then led the takeover which went on to become a prominent Australian transport services provider.[2]

Toll Holdings

In 1985, Little, along with businessmen Peter Rowsthorn as well as Rowsthorn's son, Mark Rowsthorn, and Lyall McLachlan, led a management buyout team which purchased Toll Holdings which in 1993 listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.[2][3]

Little and his team developed Toll from an 18-truck operation worth $1.5 million, into a $3.8 billion international organisation with 45,000 employees and operations in 50 countries.[4] As a result of his involvement in Toll Holdings, Little has become one of Australia's richest men.[4][5] Little subsequently further developed his ability to acquire new businesses, buying many between 1989 and 2000. He then began taking over two companies a year until 1997, when Toll paid A$145 million for eight TNT transport and logistics businesses. In 2000, it paid A$120 million for rival Finemores.[2]

Little also oversaw Toll's investments in technology, wine, rail freight and cargo shipping.[2]

Little Projects

In 2011, Little founded Little Projects, a residential and commercial property projects group. His business philosophy is to provide a 'one-stop shop' approach, where clients deal with the one entity for all their real estate requirements encompassing buying, selling and comprehensive property management. To this end Little has purchased a range of complementary businesses including three LJ Hooker real estate franchises. He has a large number of projects underway in Melbourne with a value of over A$1 billion.[6]

Other business interests

Little also owns an aviation charter business, Little Aviation, which, as of 2013, owned an A$65 million Gulfstream G650ER jet. Little Aviation employs three pilots.[6]

Sports management

Little has been prominently involved in Australian professional sport. Initially in motor racing, Little sponsored John Sidney Racing and Anthony Tratt's Porsche racing team. In 1998 Tratt's team moved into V8 Supercars under Little's ownership as Paul Little Racing. The team folded in 2005 after eight seasons of racing.[4] Little also personally raced competitively but was discouraged by his fellow board members at Toll Holdings due to the danger.[7]

On 29 July 2013, Little became the chairman of the Essendon Football Club in the AFL, replacing David Evans.[8] The role of an AFL football club chairman is often high profile and usually voluntary. Little served in the role for almost two and a half years, presiding over a turbulent time in the club's history as it faced allegations of running a program of illegal supplements during David Evans' tenure. Little stepped down on 14 December 2015, shortly before the final guilty verdict was returned in the supplements investigation, and was replaced by Lindsay Tanner.[9]

Awards and honours
  • Winner of the CA/Zurich Business Leader Award in 2002
  • Winner of the inaugural Trans-Tasman Business Leader Award in 2005
  • Awarded a Doctor of Business honoris causa by RMIT University in 2008
  • Appointed Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2010 for service to the development of the transport and logistics industries through strategic leadership and promotion of corporate social and environmental responsibility, and to the community through philanthropic support of sporting and medical research organisations.[10]

Little is also a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (FCILT).

Personal life

Little is married to former investment banker, Jane Hansen, his second wife. In 2002, they paid a then record price for a Melbourne home when they bought the Toorak mansion Coonac for nearly A$15 million. Little's first wife, Shirley, died of cancer in 1992. Little has three children.[4]

Little and Hansen's philanthropic interests are directed towards education, theatre, and addiction rehabilitation.[11] In 2015 Little and Hansen established The Hansen Trust via an A$10 million gift from the Hansen Little Foundation to the University of Melbourne to further the teaching of history studies.[12] In 2018 the Hansen Little Foundation gifted a further A$30 million to the university.[13]

Net worth
Year Financial Review
Rich List		 Forbes
Australia's 50 Richest
Rank Net worth (AUD) Rank Net worth (USD)
2013[4] $0.88 billion
2014 37
2015[14] 37 Steady $0.82 billion Increase
2016[15] 31 Increase $0.83 billion Increase
2017[16][17][18] $0.927 billion
2018[19] 50 Increase $1.54 billion Increase
2019[20][21] 45 Increase $1.77 billion Increase 40 Decrease $0.95 billion Increase
2020[22] 59 Decrease $1.67 billion Decrease
2021[23] 67 Decrease $1.71 billion Increase
2022 69 Decrease $1.80 billion Decrease
2023[24] 76 Decrease $1.83 billion Increase
Legend
Icon Description
Steady Has not changed from the previous year
Increase Has increased from the previous year
Decrease Has decreased from the previous year

References
  1. "Although CEO Paul Little was sometimes controversial, shareholders have done well". The Australian. 27 October 2010. Archived from the original on 4 November 2010. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  2. "How Little turned an ailing Toll into giant". The Age. 23 August 2005. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  3. "Company history". Toll Holdings. n.d.
  4. Hawthorne, Mark; Williams, Ruth (24 August 2013). "Calm in a crisis, and ready for the fight". The Age. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  5. "Essendon's chairman-elect Paul Little is on a mission to save James Hird". Herald Sun. 28 July 2013. Archived from the original on 30 July 2013. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  6. "Little's big plans for new private life". The Australian. 6 December 2011. Archived from the original on 6 December 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  7. "Directors going to extremes to balance boardroom life". The Australian. 6 April 2010. Archived from the original on 29 August 2013. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
  8. "New Essendon chairman Paul Little reiterates Bombers' support of embattled coach James Hird". Fox Sports. News Ltd. 29 July 2013. Archived from the original on 1 August 2013. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  9. "Essendon Football Club chairman Paul Little resigns, replaced by former Federal MP Lindsay Tanner". ABC News. Australia. 15 December 2015. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  10. "Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) entry for Mr Paul Alexander LITTLE". It's an Honour, Australian Honours Database. Canberra, Australia: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 26 January 2010. Retrieved 16 March 2018. For service to the development of the transport and logistics industries through strategic leadership and promotion of corporate social and environmental responsibility, and to the community through philanthropic support of sporting and medical research organisations.
  11. "Hansen Little Foundation gives $3.5 million gift of connection" (Press release). State Library of Victoria. 4 September 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  12. Cooper, Ellie (23 November 2015). "Paul Little and Jane Hansen Donate $10M to Melbourne Uni". Probono Australia. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  13. "$30 million gift to University of Melbourne to transform students' lives" (Press release). University of Melbourne. 14 May 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  14. "2015 Australia's 50 Richest". Forbes Asia. March 2015. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
  15. "Gina Rinehart Loses Her No. 1 Spot". Forbes Asia. 27 January 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  16. Stensholt, John, ed. (25 May 2017). "Financial Review Rich List 2017". The Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  17. Mayne, Stephen (26 May 2017). "Mayne's take: The top 25 Australian billionaires, as claimed by Fairfax". Crikey. Private Media. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
  18. "Australia's Richest 2017: Country's Wealthiest Continue Mining For Dollars". Forbes Asia. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  19. Stensholt, John, ed. (25 May 2018). "2018 AFR Rich List: Who are Australia's richest people?". The Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  20. Bailey, Michael (30 May 2019). "Australia's 200 richest people revealed". The Australian Financial Review. Nine Publishing. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  21. "2019 Australia's 50 Richest". Forbes Asia. January 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  22. Bailey, Michael; Sprague, Julie-anne (30 October 2020). "The full list: Australia's wealthiest 200 revealed". The Australian Financial Review. Nine Publishing. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
  23. Bailey, Michael; Sprague, Julie-anne (27 May 2021). "The 200 richest people in Australia revealed". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  24. Bailey, Michael; Sprague, Julie-anne (26 May 2023). "The 200 richest people in Australia revealed". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
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