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George N. Gillett Jr.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George N. Gillett Jr. II (born October 22, 1938 in Racine, Wisconsin) is an American businessman, owner of the ice hockey team Montreal Canadiens and co-owner of English Premier League team, Liverpool F.C. and the NASCAR auto racing team Gillett Evernham Motorsports.
Building his fortune through sports franchises and meat production with an estimated fortune of around £3bn., Gillett and his wife Rose live in Vail, Colorado and have four sons: George III, Alexander and twins Foster and Andrew (the latter twin is the only son not involved in the family business)[1].
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Gillett attended Amherst College and is a graduate of Dominican College in Racine, Wisconsin.
In 1979 he launched Gillett Communications by buying three small television stations. Three years later he bought the WSM television station in Nashville. In 1984 Gillett acquired Post Corporation's eight television stations, 22 newspapers and associated plant; the non-broadcast assets were sold to Thomson Corporation and other buyers. In 1987 he acquired Storer Broadcasting using Kohlberg Kravis Roberts junk bonds, after the FCC lifted restrictions on ownership.
In 1985 Gillett acquired Vail Associates' Vail and Beaver Creek ski resorts, creating a new era with focus on customer service, Gillett redefined the ski experience and what it meant to be a world class resort. George would often ride chairlifts and greet guests, and launched a massive installation of high-speed detachable chairlifts thereby kick-starting the growth that would put Vail on the map as America's number one ski destination. Gillett also supported major alpine ski events at a time when most ski areas in America declined to host international races, starting with the 1989 World Alpine Ski Championships, and through his support hosted the 1999 World Alpine Ski Championships[2].
Gillett's companies sought Chapter 11 protection in 1992 as higher interest rates penalised junk bond issuers. Gillett's media arm was reorganised as New World Communications under the control of Ronald Perelman.
After resultantly declaring bankruptcy, but remaining on the payroll of Vail Resort at $1.5 million a year, Gillett walked away with $32.1 million to restart his business empire when Vail floated on the NYSE the following year[3]. In 1995 he repurchased Packerland undertaken by Booth Creek Management Corp., a company created to oversee the acquisitions and management of interests of the Gillett family from that point forwards, and of which Gillett remains Chairman.
In 1996 he formed Booth Creek Ski Holdings Inc., acquiring or building a range of ski resorts in New Hampshire, California, Washington and Wyoming. He later bought Grand Targhee Ski and Summer Resort, together with several golf courses.
From 1997 he extended his meat interests by building Corporate Brand Foods America (which included Iowa Ham, Jordan Meats and Wright Bacon), latterly bought by Iowa Beef Processors for US$550 million. Gillett and Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst then bought ConAgra's beef operations - Swift and Company - for US$1.4 billion in 2001[4]. This also controls:
- Petaluma Poultry - natural and organic chicken products
- Snowball Foods - food processor of turkey and chicken products
- Kings Delight - food processor of turkey and chicken products
- B3R Country Meats - processes fresh and frozen natural beef
- Coleman Natural Products - processes fresh and frozen natural beef and lamb
- Gerhard’s Napa Valley Sausage - a producer of gourmet sausage products made primarily from poultry
Gillett's other business interests include:
- Sports - after a failed bid in 2000 with Pat Bowlen and John Elway to buy the NBA Denver Nuggets, NHL Colorado Avalanche and Pepsi Center; on 2 January 2000 Gillett bought an 80% interest in the NHL Les Canadiens de Montréal and their home the Bell Centre (formerly the Molson Centre) for US$185 million[5] Gillett also owns the sports and entertainment promoter the Gillett Entertainment Group
- Northland Services Inc. - a marine transportation company
- Great Northern Bark and Sierra Organics - landscaping and gardening products company
- After months of negotiation with team owner and former NASCAR crew chief Ray Evernham, Gillett bought into the auto-racing team Evernham Motorsports, thereby forming Gillett Evernham Motorsports.
Gillett's participation in the automotive industry began with Silverthorne Motors in Silverthorne, CO and he recently purchased Glenwood Auto Group in Glenwood Springs, CO. The two have merged to become Vista Auto Group with Subaru, Dodge, Jeep & Chrysler in Silverthorne, Colorado and Subaru, Honda, Nissan & Chevrolet in Glenwood Springs, Colorado
Since October 2006, Gillett had been one of the parties interested in a proposed takeover of England football club Liverpool FC of the English Premiership.[6]
On January 22-26, 2007, Reports stated that Gillett had made another bid for Liverpool. On 31 January 2007, Dubai International Capital announced they had pulled out of the deal, giving Gillett the opportunity to buy the club from David Moores. On 2 February, Gillett and Tom Hicks reached a deal with the clubs' board, which was sealed on 6 February, thought to be worth in the region of £435 million: £220 million to buy out existing shareholders (including approximately £44.8 million of debt), and £215 million for the new stadium proposed at nearby Stanley Park. The Board unanimously recommended that the clubs' shareholders accept this offer.
Commenting on the offer, George Gillett and Tom Hicks said: “Liverpool is a fantastic club with a remarkable history and a passionate fanbase. We fully acknowledge and appreciate the unique heritage and rich history of Liverpool and intend to respect this heritage in the future. The Hicks family and the Gillett family are extremely excited about continuing the Club’s legacy and tradition"[7].
- ^ http://www.cobizmag.com/articles.asp?id=191
- ^ http://skimuseum.net/2005induction.html
- ^ http://www.hcn.org/servlets/hcn.Article?article_id=4646
- ^ http://www.meatnews.com/mp/northamerican/dsp_article_mp.cfm?artNum=337&issueMonth=6&issueYear=2002
- ^ http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCM/is_7_29/ai_73023294
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/sport/2006/11/16/sfnbos216.xml
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/6323037.stm
- Montreal Canadiens - Profile of George N. Gillett Jr.
- Liverpool Football Club - Proposed New Stadium
- Foreign Owners in Football
| Gillett Evernham Motorsports | |
| Nextel Cup Drivers | Kasey Kahne (#9) | Patrick Carpentier (#10) | Elliott Sadler (#19) |
| Development drivers | Kevin Swindell |
| Partnerships and Affiliations | BAM Racing | Fitz Motorsports | Petty Enterprises |
| Other | Ray Evernham | Valvoline (#10) | Rodney Childers | George N. Gillett Jr. |