Larry Kestelman

Valarie "Larry" Kestelman (born 1966) is an Australian billionaire property developer and businessman. He co-founded internet service provider Dodo in 2001, which was bought out in 2013, and has interests in various other industries via his holding company LK Group. He is also known for his involvement in Australian basketball, including as the majority owner of the National Basketball League (NBL) since 2015.

Early life

Kestelman was born in 1966 in Odessa, Ukraine. His father was an electrical engineer and his mother was a gynaecologist. The family emigrated when he was 11 years old as part of a wave of Jewish immigrants leaving the Soviet Union, living for six months in Ostia, Italy, before securing Australian visas.[1]

Kestelman arrived in Australia at the age of 12, with his father finding work as a draftsman with Holden and his mother working as a laboratory assistant at a blood bank. He grew up in Melbourne's south-eastern suburbs, attending Murrumbeena High School before going on to study accounting at Victoria College in Prahran. His first job was in accounts payable department of a tyre company.[1]

Business career

Property development

Kestelman began investing in property at a young age, starting with a block of land in Caulfield South. He moved from subdividing residential lots to building townhouses, later expanding to large apartment blocks in Footscray and Southbank.[1] In 2015 he launched Capitol Grand, a 50-storey residential tower in South Yarra that would be reportedly be the tallest building in Melbourne outside of the central business district. He retained the penthouse of the development for his own use.[2]

Telecommunications

In September 2001, Kestelman established internet service provider Dodo Services with his cousin Michael Slepoy and Russian-born Igor Gilenko. He took a 49 percent stake in the company, with Slepoy holding 28 percent and Gilenko 23 percent.[3] The business grew rapidly with a focus on simplifying customer billing, including providing fixed-price plans and unlimited downloads.[4] However, in 2003 Kestelman and fellow Dodo director Mark Baranov were found to have knowingly engaged in "misleading, deceptive and unconscionable conduct", following an Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) investigation into misleading advertising. The company was not fined but was ordered to compensate customers and carry out a trade practices compliance programme.[3]

Dodo claimed revenues of $A80 million by 2005 and received a takeover offer from Telstra which was rejected.[3] Dodo was ultimately sold to M2 Group for $A204 million in 2014.[5]

Other interests and net worth

Kestelman's holding company is the LK Group. As of 2017 his interests outside of property included Philippines-based call centre provider Acquire BPO, recruitment agency First Avenue, investment firm Oxygen Ventures, digital content firm Newsmodo, human resources firm Wall Street, customer loyalty provider Infinite Rewards, and software companies eCal, eTaskr and Saisei.[1] In 2020, LK Group's private equity arm Queens Lane capital acquired womenswear retailer PAS Group, which owns the Review, Black Pepper and Yarra Trail brands. In 2021 it acquired footwear and fashion retailer Brand Collective, whose brands include Volley, Shoes & Sox, and Shoe Warehouse.[6]

Kestelman debuted on the BRW Young Rich List in 2005 with Dodo co-founder Igor Gilenko, with a shared net worth estimated at A$87 million.[3] He debuted on the Financial Review Rich List in 2017 with an estimated net worth of A$749 million.[7] His net worth was assessed at A$1.1 billion in the 2022 Rich List.[8]

Basketball

Kestelman became interested in basketball as a spectator in the 1990s. He began sponsoring the Melbourne Tigers NBL team in the early 2000s and acquired the team in 2012, immediately sacking head coach Trevor Gleeson.[9] In 2014 he controversially announced that the team would rebrand as Melbourne United.[10]

In 2015, Kestelman secured a majority 51 percent stake in the National Basketball League in exchange for a A$7 million equity stake. The league was in financial distress with a number of teams close to collapse. In his first year as league owner Kestelman negotiated a new television rights deal, the revival of the Brisbane Bullets, and a revamp of the league's brand identity and digital platform.[11] He subsequently increased his stake in the NBL to 94 percent.[12]

References
  1. Marshall, Konrad (1 September 2017). "Larry Kestelman: The Melbourne millionaire putting the bounce back into basketball". Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  2. Hope, Zach; Hutchinson, Samantha (17 May 2020). "Buyers fail to pay up in glittering South Yarra mega development". The Age.
  3. Walters, Kath (15 September 2005). "High-speed connect". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  4. Walters, Kath (27 September 2007). "Switched on". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  5. Ramli, David (19 March 2016). "Inside the birth and death of a junior telco M2 Group". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  6. Mitchell, Sue (21 July 2021). "Larry Kestelman's LK Group snaps up Shoes & Sox owner". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  7. "Melbourne property developer Larry Kestelman the second highest debutant on Rich List". Urban.com.au. 25 May 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  8. "Rich List". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  9. "Tigers in shock as coach stood down". The Age. 18 May 2012. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  10. Ward, Roy (19 May 2014). "Melbourne Tigers to change their name to United". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  11. Stensholt, John (10 October 2015). "Larry Kestelman didn't buy a basketball club, he bought the entire NBL". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  12. Desiatnik, Shane (26 October 2018). "Bringing basketball back to life". Australian Jewish News. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
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