Property players hold strong in Rich List
There were six North West billionaires with significant property and land interests in the latest Rich List, with the Grosvenor family continuing to hold the top spot as richest in the region.
Hugh Grosvenor, Duke of Westminster, inherited his father Gerald’s £9.5bn fortune after he passed away last August.
The Grosvenor family fortune is grounded on 300 acres of Mayfair and Belgravia in London, as well as 165,000 acres of rural land, a dairy farm and the Chester Grosvenor Hotel, and a retaining a stake in Liverpool One which Grosvenor developed.
Overall, Grosvenor placed ninth out of the 1,000 included in The Sunday Times Rich List, published on Sunday 7 May. This year’s list contained more billionaires from the North West than any other region outside London.
After Grosvenor, Liverpool-based Home Bargains founder Tom Morris was the next North West billionaire on the list, at 39th place, with £3.09bn.
John Whittaker, chairman of Peel Group, came 53rd with £2.2bn, a drop of £140m from last year.
Brotherly partnerships defined the placing of the other billionaires, who all also have property ventures; B&M Bargain founders the Arora brothers, BetFred brothers Fred and Peter Done, and Mohsin and Zuber Issa, owners of Euro Garages.
Emerson Developments’ Peter Jones, Redrow’s Steve Morgan, Bill Ainscough and family, and Bruntwood’s Oglesby family also placed in the top 300 of the UK’s wealthiest people.
Robert Watts took over from Philip Berresford as compiler of the Rich List this year, producing a 158-page supplement, The Times’ biggest yet.
North West Rich List 2017
9. Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster, and the Grosvenor Family
£9.52bn, up £170m since last year
Cheshire
39. Tom Morris and family, Home Bargains
£3.09bn, up £40m
Liverpool
53. John Whittaker and family, Peel
£2.2bn, down £140m
Manchester
65. Simon, Bobby and Robin Arora, B&M
£1.92bn, no change
Manchester, retail and development
97. Fred and Peter Done, Betfred/Salboy
£1.33bn, up £30m
Salford, betting shops and development
133. Mohsin and Zuber Issa, Euro Garages
£1bn, up £300m
Bury
152. Trevor Hemmings, Northern Trust
£850m, up £125m
155. Steve Morgan, Redrow Homes
£831m, down £49m
Liverpool-born, set up in Flintshire, housebuilder
159. Peter Jones and family, Emerson Developments
£813m, up from £22m
Alderley Edge, developer
238. Bill Ainscough and family, Ainscough / Network Space
£520m, up £20m
=238. Michael and Chris Oglesby and family
£520m, up £45m
