An organic food company in Napier is the latest addition to a growing portfolio of eco-friendly businesses acquired by Peter Kraus, a German business migrant who made his initial fortune as a controlling shareholder in the Ebos medical group.
Having first bought Auckland's Huckleberry Farms organic store, Kraus then added the globally successful ecostore business in 2016 before taking over Chantal Organics, which manufactures a wide range of products – from peanut butter to jam spreads, tomato sauce and muesli.
Like most of Kraus’ investments, the eco businesses are jointly owned in trusts managed by Auckland chartered accountant Barry Wallace, who says that, like a lot of German people, Kraus "has an affinity with the environment and running places in an eco-friendly way."
The reclusive Kraus first came to the attention of NBR in 1991 when he was described as a “mystery German investor,” who had snapped up a controlling stake in Ebos with his then business partner Willi Zieher. Since then, Ebos has gone from strength to strength. Kraus raised $66.5m when he reduced his Ebos stake in late 2015 and, after 27 years as a director, he stepped down from the board in early 2017. He still holds a 4% stake worth $126m in a company that has reached $3.15 billion in market capitalisation.
Long-time resident in the Bay of Islands, the Kraus family has considerable property interests there, including a $6m lifestyle block covering 18ha at Russell as well as the 71ha Matauri Bay subdivision, which was bought from its indebted Maori owners in 2015 for $6m – less than half its government valuation. Other significant property assets include a commercial building on Auckland's The Strand in Parnell, which has a rateable value of $31m.
While Kraus senior appears to be winding back his corporate involvement, his son Pablo is stepping up his presence, with an increasing number of directorships in the various family businesses and an appointment as managing director of ecostore. And, while Pablo is no stranger to the social pages, his father likes his privacy. As his accountant put it, "I can go for weeks without talking to him because he doesn't answer his phone."