Next Ron Brierley

[rawdata]

Who knows - he could be right!

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=3&ObjectID=10112692

Excerpt : 'Let's be frank," says Selwyn Cushing, "Craig Norgate is the 2005 edition of Ron Brierley."

That's a big call from a man who knows Brierley better than most.

And it's kind of uncanny given that, for this interview, Cushing happens to be sitting in his old mate Ron's chair - at the head of the boardroom table in Guinness Peat's downtown Auckland office.

He says Norgate is the kind of deal-maker that every corporate sector needs and that New Zealand has been missing since Brierley left our shores.'

[Placebo]

Yes. Fonterra are Soooooo upset about giving him the push. ;)

Surely Cushing's just saying this cos as a big shareholder in W&K Norgate has just made him very very very much richer!

This is a man associated with the worst excesses of BIL post-Ron Brierley and the shameful rundown of Air NZ through the dead hand of BIL. Now he has money in his pocket and is naturally the top cheerleader for the man who has just enriched him. Do you trust anything Selwyn Cushing says?

[Major von Tempsky]

I wouldn't blame Selwyn Cushing for the Air NZ/Australian subsidiary debacle - that's unfare and being very cavalier with the history and truth.
I'd blame (a) the Australian outfit who in spite of Air NZ having 50% of Ansett's shares refused to let Air NZ participate in Ansett's management and hid the state of Ansett's fleet maintenance until Air NZ had bought them out and by then it was too late. (b) the Australian government for insisting on opening up airline competition at the same time as as Air NZ bought in at an inflated price to News Media refusing them access to data (c) I'd blame the Australian unions who refused to let Air NZ achieve any synergies between itself and Ansett in overheads, maintenance or anything.
However, if one reads Buffettology by Mary Buffett, you'll see in an appendix that airlines are defined as a commodity industry i.e. competition mainly on price and low barriers to entry and super competition.
So, I'd blame Selwyn for not reading Buffettology and exonerate him on all other counts where he was the victim, not the perpetrator. Once again NZ was outmuscled and conned by the Big Boys in Oz.

[Gryffyn]

I'd agree woth most of what MVT posted above except the bit about low barriers to entry for airlines (from MB), barriers for many profitable routes are significant as many landing rights are tightly controlled.

Still, I also wouldn't necessarily trust much of what SC says!

[Sharebroker]

Cushing will always be remembered as Chairman of Air NZ when Air NZ nearly went under over Ansett. In the event, Air NZ wrote off $1.4 billion and had to be bailed out. The thing is - fancy Air NZ not doing any due diligence when buying Ansett - that's just so dumb.

As for Norgate being the next Ron Brierley - wishful thinking at its utmost. Norgate does not come across as analytical, cunning and shrewd like Ron. He's more like a bull in a china-shop and so far, has been lucky.

[Gryffyn]

Well, fortune favours the lucky! I think you mat be judging Norgate a bit much on appearance which would be a mistake.

[whatsup]

Sharebroker ,as I understand it 3 lots of due diligence were/was done on Ansett by 3 major investment banks and not one of them picked up on the iceberge of problems that lay awaiting for Air NZ , that aside Selwyn is also known as "Seldom Blushing" I wonder why!!!!.

[J. Holmes]

Good calls MVT - Ansett was also kneecapped by the Australians when they decided to ground the fleet right before the Easter break.

Slightly off topic - It has raised an interesting point which has had me stumped - how come Fonterra can hold 19% (correct me if it 20%) of Nat Foods and not have a seat on the board??? Surely a shareholding of this substance would allow such influence?

[Gryffyn]

Depends on the Chairman and the other holders. Remember SKC and ChCh and Hanover and TWR...

[biker]

MVT
Wasn't Cushing chairman of BIL(and in the thick of the play) when they bought more AIR shares at a ridiculous price in an attempt to do a 'cunning' deal with Singapore Airlines? A very clumsy costly Cushing c o c k up.Selwyn should have stuck to the agrarian sector.

[kittydashwood]

Norgate likes gearing, when the tide goes out he will be embarassed.

[Major von Tempsky]

Biker, it was a fairly small parcel that was necessary to achieve outright control of Air N.Z. at that time - for dealing with Singapore Airlines as you say.
Still, it enabled me to exit Air NZ at a very good price and profit (I hadn't yet read Buffettology at that stage) $3.40 per share, and I've never been back in despite various blandishments from the broker.

[Bling_Bling]

AIR should have been better off partnering with SIA instead of trying to screw a few more dollars from SIA in the ansett deal. Now AIR has no one to partner with and cannot go into bed with Qantas. Cushing should be hang.

Norgate has a long way to go to prove himself. WRI have yet to post profits to justify its huge premuim share price. Time will tell if he has it or not.

[Fish Broker]

quote:Originally posted by Bling_Bling

AIR should have been better off partnering with SIA instead of trying to screw a few more dollars from SIA in the ansett deal.... Cushing should be hang.

Norgate has a long way to go to prove himself....

I could not have expressed it better myself - Cushing largely (and the rest of the board to a lesser extend) must take the rap. He was in charge of the negotiations with SIA after all and tried to be a king maker and lost the absolute best thing that could have happened to AIR.

As for the AIR/Ansett deal - what a joke - what level of due diligence was done and if there was not time to do it (I seem to recall a comment originating from within AIR to this effect) then the answer should have been "NO".

Norgate is not even in the Brierley ballpark yet boys.

[nottiger]

quote:Originally posted by rawdata


Who knows - he could be right!

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=3&ObjectID=10112692

Excerpt : 'Let's be frank," says Selwyn Cushing, "Craig Norgate is the 2005 edition of Ron Brierley."

That's a big call from a man who knows Brierley better than most.

And it's kind of uncanny given that, for this interview, Cushing happens to be sitting in his old mate Ron's chair - at the head of the boardroom table in Guinness Peat's downtown Auckland office.

He says Norgate is the kind of deal-maker that every corporate sector needs and that New Zealand has been missing since Brierley left our shores.'




This is premature -

If my memory serves me right Brierley was involved in numerous successful deals over several decades - Buying 50.1% of a rural services firm at a premium hardly compares

[Gryffyn]

Well put.

[rawdata]

Norgate was criticised for overpaying for Wrightson when he paid $1.65 against the then market price of $1.27 - 8 months into buying Wrightson, Norgate's stake has risen from $1.56 (9 cents dividend paid out) to $2.10 or 35%. And this is before institutions and fund managers start buying in - so far only the Masfens of the world have bought in. When the institutions buy in, this stock will have a $3 in front of it.

This is what being an enterpreneur is about - getting on with the job and ignoring poorly informed criticism.