Graeme Hart is a New Zealand businessman, the self-made billionaire Owner of Rank Group, a private investment company and holding group. He is consistently ranked as the richest individual in New Zealand. Born in Auckland, New Zealand, in 1955, his early life was characterized by working-class jobs: he left school at 16 and worked as a tow-truck driver and a panel beater.

Hart's career pivot was defined by his dedication to education later in life: he returned to university and completed an MBA from the University of Otago in 1987. His investment philosophy is legendary: buying underperforming, undervalued companies in the manufacturing sector (especially packaging), funding the acquisitions with high leverage (LBOs), turning the operations around for profit, and taking them private—a model he calls his cornerstone of success.

Graeme Hart's strategic genius was applying the Leveraged Buyout (LBO) model to mature industrial sectors. He purchased his first asset, a small hire company, which he quickly sold. His major focus was packaging; the Rank Group portfolio expanded to include global giants like Reynolds Group Holdings, SIG, and Evergreen Packaging, consolidating the global packaging supply chain.

His career is marked by aggressive, highly leveraged acquisitions and a commitment to operational efficiency. His companies control key packaging assets worldwide (consumer goods, building supply). Despite being one of the wealthiest people in the world, Hart maintains a notoriously low public profile, preferring to focus on his business activities rather than public appearances. He was inducted into the New Zealand Business Hall of Fame in 2022.

Graeme Hart's social impact is structural, stemming from Rank Group's role as a massive global employer and a foundational supplier of essential packaging materials for the food and consumer goods industries. His companies provide thousands of stable industrial jobs globally. He is a supporter of various community and educational initiatives.

His structural contribution is tied to the successful application of the LBO model to industrial manufacturing, driving operational improvements and efficiency in mature sectors.

Graeme Hart maintains the notoriously low-profile, pragmatic style of a self-made industrialist. His attire is consistently simple and unostentatious, reflecting his working-class roots and his emphasis on business fundamentals over public image.

Residing in Auckland, New Zealand, his luxury is the immense security and financial reward derived from his multi-billion dollar fortune. His life is dedicated to industrial acquisition, operational turnaround, and the long-term, stable management of the global packaging supply chain.