Eco-friendly CEO Gary Smith crashes $500k Ferrari into harbourside house

The co-founder of a ‘planet first’ eco-friendly packaging company sensationally crashed his $500,000 Ferrari into a wall in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

The CEO of a packaging company was behind the wheel of a Ferrari which crashed into the wall of a harbourside home. Picture: OnScene Bondi

The co-founder of a “planet first” packaging company was behind the wheel of a half-a-million dollar Ferrari when it sensationally crashed into a wall in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

BioPak CEO Gary Smith, 57, was driving through Watsons Bay on January 2 when his V8-powered supercar veered off a roundabout and slammed into the fence of a harbourside home.

The unusual sight of a $500,000 car crumpled against a brick wall attracted dozens of spectators who watched on as emergency crews cut through a door to free Mr Smith and his wife Lauren, 55, neither of whom was seriously injured.

The couple, from Dover Heights, was taken to St Vincent’s Hospital for a check up, but were released later that day.

BioPak co-founder and CEO Gary Smith with his wife Lauren. Mr Smith was at the wheel of a $500K Ferrari that crashed into a house in Watsons Bay on January 2. Picture: Supplied

The mangled 458 Italia model, which was part of a limited edition release when it was made in 2014, was loaded onto a tow truck and driven to a holding yard in the city’s south west.

When asked if the vehicle was salvageable, a staff member at First Towing said the car had “been handed over to the insurance company” who would make that decision.

The $500,000 Ferrari crashed at Watsons Bay on January 2. Picture: OnScene Bondi

NSW Police Rescue officers at the crash scene in Watsons Bay. Picture: OnScene Bondi

A spokesman for NSW Police said the circumstances surrounding the crash were still under investigation, but confirmed no one was seriously injured.

The luxury home where the sports car landed was once owned by Wizard Home Loans founder Mark Bouris, but was sold to the current owner in 2013 for $7 million.

The occupants of the home were away when the drama happened.

But residents along the street said the intersection was “a disaster”, with traffic funnelling into one narrow road from Old South Head Rd and Hopetoun Ave.

“You see a near miss here every other day...there needs to be better signage or raise the roundabout so you can see it properly, you know,” one resident said.

The crashed car. Picture: OnScene Bondi

Gary Smith and his wife Lauren were taken to hospital with minor injuries. Picture: OnScene Bondi

Mr Smith co-founded BioPak in 2006 and built it up into a global company which now sells its packaging to McDonald’s, KFC as well as hundreds of other food businesses.

In 2024, he was named Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year for “pioneering a movement in the sustainable packaging industry”.

“His knack for recognising opportunities — and the knowledge that most produced plastics aren’t recycled — led him to co-found BioPak years before sustainability became a hot topic,” EY said in a statement at the time.

Mr Smith did not respond to The Daily Telegraph’s inquiries about the crash.