Soccer Hall of Fame star earns small fortune from $450million sale of famous Bondi Sands tanning brand to Japanese beauty firm
- Former player invested in his son’s company
- I had to overcome some early issues with the brand
- Laugh now till the bank
AFL Hall of Fame star Garry Wilson’s decision to back his son’s fledgling business has left the former Fitzroy rover very wealthy, with the company selling for $450m to Japanese multinational Kao Group.
Wilson, nicknamed Flea, was considered one of the best players of his era after playing 14 seasons with the Lions from 1971 to 1984.
Known for his grit and trademark headgear, Wilson played in 268 games and scored 452 goals while averaging 25 possessions and 1.7 goals per game as a rover.
In retirement, he became a seed investor for his son Bondi Sands’ business – a move that made him a multi-millionaire.
AFL Hall of Fame star Garry Wilson has every reason to smile after his decision to invest in his son Bondi Sands’ business yields a $450million windfall
Shaun Wilson (pictured right) is the son of Garry Wilson and co-founder of Bondi Sands, which this week sold to Japanese multinational Kao Group.
No other tanning products come to Bondi Sands in Australia and the company also offers an extremely popular SPF range.
However, the tanning product company’s beginnings were rocky when it launched 11 years ago, with an initial batch that turned the customer’s skin green and necessitated a recall.
“It wasn’t the best start,” his son and Bondi Sands CEO Shaun Wilson said in 2020.
“The quality control of one of the ingredients was not up to standard and we had to issue a recall. We coped and were honest with our Priceline wholesaler and they gave us another chance.
However, the company quickly rebounded to become the nation’s most iconic tanning product, growing around 55% year-over-year.
Bondi Sands is expected to record annual sales of $190 million for 2023, is the leading self-tanning product in Australia and includes a hugely successful range of SPF products available for sale locally and in the UK.
Wilson changed the way the game was played during his VFL career in the 1970s and 1980s and created the model of the modern goal-scoring rover.
Wilson, pictured right, was known for his trademark headgear and earned the nickname Flea in part because of his short stature
Shaun Wilson also got engaged to model girlfriend Tess Shanahan this week to cap off a huge week
Garry Wilson was one of three early stage investors, including his son Shaun and Melbourne co-founder and businessman Blair James.
Shaun said the deal with Kao will be transformational for the brand.
We’ve only scratched the surface in terms of growth opportunities and myself and the management team are fully committed to that, and it’s exciting to partner with Kao,” said Mr. Wilson at The Australian Financial Review.
“America is a big priority for the business, we’ve just launched into Walmart, which is 4,000 doors next month. We also have strong distribution with Ulta, Walgreens, CVS and Target, and we’re leaders in Amazon.
“We want to be a leader in the global skin care protection industry,” he said. “We have the fastest growing SPF business in Australia and the UK.”
It caps off a huge week for Shaun, who also got engaged to model girlfriend Tess Shanahan in an elaborate beach proposal.