Joining our series for an exclusive profile is Kevin Maloney, Founder & Chairman of family office investment firm, Tulla Group.
Born in Sydney in the late 1940’s to parents Joseph, a retired army major who upon discharge, went into the hotel business and Florence Maloney, Kevin was one of eight siblings whose early exposure to business was formed through his parent’s acquisition and management of the Zetland Hotel as well as their interests in horse-racing, a passion which continues to be prevalent throughout his life today.
From humble beginnings in Sydney’s western suburbs, Kevin left school at age fifteen and began working as a clerk at ANZ, progressing through the firm to become the youngest person in its history to be appointed to a management role.
During this time, Kevin’s thirst for hard work and his ambitious nature began to take shape, working full time at ANZ whilst also juggling roles three other part-time roles including as a poke machine attendant at the South Sydney Junior Leagues Club, a bookies clerk, and a taxi driver.
Following a two-decade career with ANZ, Kevin left the firm and became a Founding Executive Director and the inaugural Chief Executive of Elders Resources Finance in 1986, a business which provided capital to finance resource projects across the World to the tune of more than $4bn in the gold, oil, gas, forestry, and silver industries.
In the early 1990’s, Kevin established Tulla Group, a private investment vehicle to direct a number of ventures including diverse forays into jewellery, retail apparel, copper mining and building materials.
By 1996, Kevin foresaw a unique opportunity to provide high-quality accommodation services to mining sites across Australia, launching MAC Services Group, a business which specialised in prefabricated buildings and constructed villages for mining communities via its seed asset in Queensland’s Moranbah.
Over the course of the decade, MAC Services Group grew to encompass over 3,300 rooms across five villages, with revenues exceeding $69m per annum, ultimately culminating in the decision to float the business on the stock exchange in April of 2007.
Under Kevin and his son Mark’s leadership, MAC Services continued to expand throughout Australia post public listing, with new villages opened in Western Australia whilst rooms under management exceeded 5,000 for the first time.
In December of 2010, MAC Services (The MAC) was acquired by Oil States International Inc in a $689m deal, with investors receiving four times their money back in just three years whilst sowing the seeds for Tulla Group’s next chapter as a family office.
Tulla Group is today one of Australia’s most successful and diversified family offices, with investments across mining and resources, technology, racehorse breeding, property & venture capital.
Our discussion with Kevin charts his background, his early business successes and challenges, the extraordinary rise of MAC Services, his key career achievements, and the investment focus of his family office.
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