This year’s Rich List features new faces and rising stars, with 16 Australians making their debut in the top 200 alongside those whose fortunes have soared.
Among the newcomers are Tah-nee and Simon Beard, whose streetwear brand Culture Kings has turned over $183.7 million.
The couple is ranked 186th out of 200 on The Australian Financial Review’s 2021 Rich List with a fortune valued at $626 million.
Culture Kings success story began at the Carrara markets on the Gold Coast before evolving into an eBay business that resold streetwear imported from the US.
In 2008, the couple opened their first retail outlet and has since expanded the business to employ 700 people.
Meanwhile, entrepreneurs winning the manufacturing game are Grant Petty and Douglas Clarke of Blackmagic Design. Petty and Clarke made their debut on the Rich List this year, ranking 199th and 200th with $592 million and $590 million of wealth respectively.
Blackmagic Design is a technology company that designs and manufactures AV equipment for the film and television industries.
Elsewhere, Joanna Horgan and Peter Wetenhall, owners of the cosmetics-focused Mecca Brands, have ranked in the top 200 for the first time this year. Their wealth, valued at $658 million, is attributed to the success of more than 100 stores in Australia and China.
Tania Austin, owner of women’s fashion brand Decjuba, has entered the list for the first time at 153th place with wealth of $721 million. Austin’s fashion chain boasts 140 stores in Australia and New Zealand.
In the technology industry, David and Aiden Tudehope made their debut on the rich list with a fortune of $646 million. The brothers founded Macquarie Telecom in 1992, which has kept ahead of the latest technology by offering cloud and cybersecurity services.
Atlassian co-founders Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar have both jumped rank, after their wealth was boosted by the pandemic-spurred shift to remote work.
Mike Cannon-Brookes is the third richest Australian with a fortune of $20.18 billion, up 19.2% since the previous year. Scott Farquhar ranked 5th with wealth valued at $20 billion.
Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht, co-founders of Aussie unicorn Canva made it into the Rich List’s top 10, after their user-friendly graphic design platform expanded rapidly in the last year.
The couple’s combined wealth is $7.98 billion, up a stunning 132.6% compared to the previous year.
