The pharmacists who made millions from Chemist Warehouse’s IPO
The retailer’s co-founders are well-known billionaires, but its backdoor listing with Sigma made hundreds of suburban pharmacists and store managers multimillionaires overnight.
Chemist Warehouse co-founder Mario Verrocchi sits at the top of the pyramid with a 22 per cent stake worth around $7.44 billion and fellow founder Jack Gance (right) also dominates the register with brother Sam. Michaela Pollock
While Chemist Warehouse’s billionaire co-founders Mario Verrocchi and Jack and Sam Gance are public figures, less is known about the hundreds of suburban pharmacists and retail managers who have amassed fortunes from the company’s sharemarket debut this year.
From the Gold Coast’s Paradise Point to the Hobart suburb of Sandy Bay and Parramatta in western Sydney, most of the company’s top 100 shareholders are pharmacy owners with equity stakes worth between $15 million to $500 million in what has become Australia’s biggest wealth-creation story in recent history.
Michael SmithHealth editorMichael Smith is the health editor for The Australian Financial Review. He is based in Sydney. Connect with Michael on Twitter. Email Michael at michael.smith@afr.com
Max MasonSenior courts and crime reporterMax Mason covers financial crime, courts and corporate wrongdoing. A Walkley Award winner, Max’s journalism has also received awards from the National Press Club of Australia, the Kennedy Awards and Citibank. Message Max on Signal https://tinyurl.com/MaxMason Connect with Max on Twitter. Email Max at max.mason@afr.com
