The rich 100: 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001
The rich list | What's in a name? | They got game | The other RIM guy | The burger king
Finding new people for the Rich 100 is no easy task. It's not as if potential candidates for our exclusive listing of Canada's richest people shout out details of their wealth. But this year we managed to find some new faces — six of them, in fact — with three based outside of Canada adding an international flavour.
The task of estimating personal fortunes and digging up new names for the list was undertaken by senior associate editor Alex Mlynek, senior writer Zena Olijnyk, staff writer Calvin Leung, and associate editors Claire Gagné and Michelle Magnan. So alongside this year's ranking are profiles of the newest members of the Rich 100 as well as some updates and features on a few familiar faces. Heck, we even managed to get some of Canada's wealthiest waxing poetic about their dogs.
All in all it was a pretty good year for the 100 richest Canadians, with their collective net worth, at $141.6 billion, the highest it's ever been since we starting the annual ranking, in 1999. Once again, oil money was a big factor in increasing their affluence, which jumped 9% over the previous year.
A note on our methodology: Our research staff spent many hours during the past few months studying proxies, insider trading reports, news articles and other sources to estimate the net worth of Canada's corporate elite.
Jimmy Pattison — The Wolf Man
Canada's fifth richest person opens Ontario's newest hotel.
Jeff Skoll — The Movie Mogul
Who said being socially responsible with your money couldn't be fun?
Alex Shnaider — The Steel Magnate
Born in St.Petersburg and raised in Israel and Toronto, This entrepreneur has taken risks few members of the Rich 100 could stomach.
John MacBain — The Classified Ad King
Yahoo, Google and News Corp have all been named as possible suitors for the business MacBain and his ex-wife built.
Louise Blouin MacBain — The Art-World Aficionado
She started her fortune in classified advertising with her ex-husband, but now she's focused on the world of art.
What's In A Name?
Being rich brings perks like exclusive club memberships, stately homes and hordes of servants. Spreading the money around can also lead to having institutions named after you.
They Got Game
Canada's wealthiest are talented business people, but it doesn't seem to stop some of them from getting their feet wet in the uncertain world of sports ownership.
Energy Barons
It may seem like anyone could have made money in oil this year, but it takes a special knack to make $1.1 billion in a single year.
Douglas Fregin — The Other RIM Guy
Everyone's heard of Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsille. Company Co-found and Vice-president Douglas Fregin is less familiar, but still hugely wealthy.
Peter Nygård — Fashion Maven
The Finnish born head of Nygård International may only spend about six weeks a year in Winnipeg, but he hasn't forgotten his Canadian roots.
John Risley And Michael Lee-Chin — The Cable Guys
For some this duo might look like a team resembling the Bad News Bears.
Jack Cowin — The Burger King
Cowin has become one of the richest people in Australia by building an empire on hamburgers, pizza and fried chicken.
Peter Gilgan — The Builder
When he started building residential houses in the late '70s Gilgan wanted to try something new — building homes according to human needs.
Profile: Well-heeled
Aldo Bensadoun created a global shoe empire.
Pursuits: Mad Money
Forget the latest Lexus or a new indoor lap pool. Here are five ways to have some real fun with your disposable income.
1. KENNETH THOMSON AND FAMILY
$22.16 billion
The Thomsons' holding company, Woodbridge Co. Ltd., announced plans to increase its stake in Bell Globemedia to 40% from 31.5%, replacing BCE Inc. as the largest shareholder. The cost to Woodbridge: $120 million. Two new shareholders — the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and Torstar Corp. — will each acquire 20% of the multimedia giant, pending regulatory approval.
2. GALEN WESTON
$9.28 billion
With a nod to both the future and the past this year, the chairman of Canada's largest grocer approved a $95-million plan to modernize Loblaw's distribution system, toasted the marriage of his son, Galen Weston Jr., to Alexandra Schmidt, and promised to preserve Canadian history after officials confirmed that a decrepit building on the site of a proposed Selfridges department store in Glasgow, Scotland, was in fact the birthplace of Sir John A. MacDonald.
3. JAMES (J. K.), ARTHUR AND JOHN (JACK) IRVING
$5.36 billion
In June, Irving Oil Ltd. partnered with Repsol YPF, Europe's fifth-largest oil company, to build a $750-million liquefied natural gas terminal in Saint John, N.B. The facility stirred up controversy when provincial legislators voted to cap annual property taxes at $500,000 for 25 years.
4. JEFF SKOLL
$5.07 billion
See story: Jeff Skoll — The Movie Mogul.
5. JAMES (JIMMY) PATTISON
$4.5 billion
The former newspaper delivery boy and long-time billionaire expanded his media holdings in March with the West Coast launch of 24 Hours, a free commuter daily. The 50-50 venture with Quebecor Inc. got off to a slow start, however, when City of Vancouver workers seized 1,000 of the tabloid's bright orange boxes due to a lack of permits. See additional story: Jimmy Pattison — The Wolf Man.
6. PAUL DESMARAIS SR.
$4.25 billion
The 78-year-old chairman of Power Corp., and richest man in Quebec, was hospitalized for 30 days after suffering a mild stroke on May 31. Meanwhile, his sons Andre and Paul Jr. heard a mouthful from shareholder-rights advocate Yves Michaud at the Power Corp. AGM. Stock options allowed the co-CEOs to more than double their salaries in 2004.
7. EDWARD (TED) ROGERS JR.
$3.65 billion
Canada's largest cable provider entered the land-line telephone business this summer with the $330-million all-share takeover of Sprint Canada parent Call-Net Enterprises Inc. The deal gave Rogers Communications Inc. more than 200,000 new customers and cleared the way for it to compete in the voice-over-Internet-protocol phone business.
8. SAPUTO FAMILY
$3 billion
The founder of Quebec-based food giant Saputo Inc., Lino Saputo Sr., scored with fans of the world's most popular sport in May by donating $7.5 million to the construction of a new 13,500-seat soccer stadium in Montreal. The facility will be home base to the Impact, the Canadian Soccer Association franchise headed by his son Joey.
9. BERNARD (BARRY) SHERMAN
$2.59 billion
This fall, Sherman's Apotex Inc., Canada's largest manufacturer of no-name drugs, began preliminary work on a generic version of Tamiflu, the short-supplied Roche drug that may reduce the severity of the avian flu. The company expects to know by the end of the year if the drug is viable.
10. DAVID AZRIELI
$2.37 billion
The Canpro Investments head honcho added to his diverse real estate holdings this year with the purchase of Montreal's Dominion Square building. The 83-year-old Polish-Canadian architect reportedly paid $78.25 million for the historic 1927 limestone building at the corner of Ste. Catherine and Peel streets.
11. CLAY RIDDELL
$2.35 billion
The 68-year-old oil baron moved up our list by 12 notches this year thanks to high energy prices and the spinoff of Paramount Resources Ltd.'s steady-producing natural gas properties in central Alberta into an income trust. With about 30 million shares of both Paramount and The Trilogy Energy Trust, the Calgary-based billionaire almost doubled his wealth.
12. MICHAEL LEE-CHIN
$2.24 billion
AIC Ltd.'s motto of “Buy. Hold. And Prosper” was put to the test this year as investors continued to cash out of Lee-Chin's mutual fund company. By September, assets were down 20%, with redemptions of close to $2 billion. Compounding AIC's troubles was a $59-million settlement with the OSC over allegations of market timing. See additional story: John Risley And Michael Lee-Chin — The Cable Guys.
13. FRED AND RON MANNIX
$2.15 billion
The grandson of an Alberta construction pioneer, Calgary's Ron Mannix was honoured in September with an appointment to the Order of Canada for his philanthropy. The often-anonymous donor has supported universities, medical research initiatives, social services and cultural organizations.
14. DARYL KATZ
$1.89 billion
Katz Group Canada Ltd., Canada's highest-grossing drugstore retailer, grew even larger this year with the opening of roughly one new store every nine days, while continuing to rebrand its existing Pharma Plus and Herbies stores under the Rexall banner.
15. HARRISON MCCAIN FAMILY
$1.89 billion
With demand for potatoes in India increasing 33% per year, McCain Foods Ltd., the world's largest frozen french fry manufacturer, is looking to the home of the samosa for new profits. In June, it broke ground on an $18-million processing plant in Gujarat province. The plant will initially convert more than 30,000 tonnes of potatoes to bondas, vada paus and other Indian treats.
16. WALLACE MCCAIN
$1.87 billion
When Maple Leaf Foods Inc. announced this summer it wanted to build a $250-million pork processing plant in Hamilton, Ont., area residents weren't exactly hog wild. Protests heightened in November after Ontario's environment ministry fined the company $450,000 for the stench coming from its Rothsay, Ont., facility.
17. CHARLES BRONFMAN
$1.84 billion
Charles, the 74-year-old heir to the Seagram's empire, lost his cousin, Edward Bronfman, to colon cancer in May. Known as the “other Bronfman,” the 77-year-old Edward quietly amassed a fortune in real estate and other holdings after his side of the family was shunned from the distilling business.
18. JEAN COUTU
$1.75 billion
Quebec's most admired firm had a rough year in the U.S., where 85% of its outlets are now based. Disruptions in supply during the back-to-school season, a shift to health and beauty products, and the closure of 78 Eckerd drugstores led to a 50% decline in profits in October and the downgrading of its debt to a lower junk status. Displeased with the results, the 78-year-old Coutu took over from his son François as CEO in November.
19. CARLO FIDANI
$1.73 billion
When the real estate tycoon's father died of lung cancer in 2000, one of Fidani's first acts as chairman of Orlando Corp. was to make a $6-million donation to Mississauga's Credit Valley Hospital. In June, the $134-million Carlo Fidani Cancer Centre opened its doors to an expected 70,000 annual appointments.
20. ALEX SHNAIDER
$1.72 billion
See story: Alex Shnaider — The Steel Magnate.
21. ALLAN SLAIGHT
$1.64 billion
In April, the sole owner of Standard Broadcasting Corp., Canada's largest private broadcaster, received a Juno award for his five-decade involvement with Canadian music. Honoured for promoting homegrown artists before Canadian content rules were established, Slaight's pioneering role continued this year as Sirius Canada, the satellite radio provider in which he has a 40% stake, gained cabinet approval in September.
22. MURRAY EDWARDS
$1.63 billion
Five months after resigning from the board of Penn West Petroleum Ltd., the vice-chairman of Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. has no shortage of work. In November, CNR, Canada's second-largest oil producer, announced it is putting $30 billion into new refineries and upgrades over the next 15 years. The investment will see anticipated output from the $10.8-billion Alberta Horizon oilsands project double to 497,000 barrels a day within six years.
23. RICHARDSON FAMILY
$1.5 billion
Winnipeg grain tycoon Hartley Richardson kept a low profile this year, focusing on local causes, including a proposal to turn a former concert hall into a Canadian rock 'n' roll museum.
24. TERENCE (TERRY) MATTHEWS
$1.36 billion
With the IPO of March Networks Inc. last April, the high-tech magnate ended Silicon Valley North's six-year drought of successful public offerings. Shares of the manufacturer of video surveillance equipment jumped 33% after four bombs devastated London's public transit system on July 7, and have since doubled from their initial price to about $23.
25. STEPHEN JARISLOWSKY
$1.29 billion
In April, the Montreal-based money manager shared his investment strategy with the release of The Investment Zoo: Taming the Bulls and Bears. Part autobiography, part manifesto, the French version of the book was so popular in Quebec it kicked The Da Vinci Code out of the No. 1 spot on bestseller lists.
26. SOBEY FAMILY
$1.26 billion
With the purchase of 27 theatres from Cineplex Galaxy on Aug. 22, Sobey's Empire Theatres Ltd. doubled in size to become Canada's second-largest chain of movie theatres.
27. JOHN MACBAIN
$1.23 billion
See story: John MacBain — The Classified Ad King.
28. BOMBARDIER FAMILY
$1.22 billion
Bombardier Inc.'s C Series jets didn't exactly get off the ground this year. In March, the transportation giant announced it would compete with Boeing and Airbus by offering 100-to-130-seat planes. Within two months, the US$2-billion project had lined up over a third of the funding from Ottawa, Quebec and the U.K. Yet, by early November, with no major customer in sight, the idea was stuck in the boardroom.
29. BRANDT LOUIE
$1.2 billion
What would you do if your net worth climbed by more than $300 million during the past year? If you're Brandt Louie, head of London Drugs, apparently you head back to school. In June, Simon Fraser University awarded Louie an Honorary Doctor of Laws and elected him the school's ninth chancellor.
30. RICHARD LI
$1.16 billion
The 39-year-old son of Asia's richest man sold 20% of Pacific Century CyberWorks to fixed-line carrier China Netcom Group in January. The sale reduced Li's stake in the telecom giant to 25.5% and had industry watchers speculating he may be lightening his load to focus on his Pacific Century Regional Developments next year.
31. MICHAEL DEGROOTE
$1.15 billion
When DeGroote donated $105 million to McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont., in 2003, it was believed to be the largest single donation in Canadian history. But that philanthropic record was eclipsed this year when Quebec cable magnate André Chagnon (No. 88 on our list) pledged $400 million to fight childhood obesity.
32. ASPER FAMILY
$1.14 billion
In October, the Manitoba media moguls raised $550 million by spinning off most of their print and online properties into an income trust. The CanWest Media Works Income Fund represents about one-third of all English-language newspapers in Canada.
33. MARCEL ADAMS
$1.11 billion
In May, Holocaust survivor and real estate magnate Marcel Adams pledged to provide as much as $1 million annually to send Israeli doctoral students to the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Jerusalem. He should be able to afford it.
34. KRUGER FAMILY
$1.11 billion
Scott Paper, a division of forest-products giant Kruger Inc., had to deal with the expiration of a licensing agreement for the use of brand names like Cottonelle and ScotTowel in Canada. In response, the Montreal-based company launched a marketing campaign to trumpet new lines like Cashmere and SpongeTowels.
35. LESLIE DAN
$1.1 billion
With a controlling stake in Viventia Biotech Inc., the former pharmacist had a good year. The first phase of trials for Proxinium, a neck- and head-cancer drug, showed positive results in shrinking tumours in 63% of patients for whom traditional methods of treatment had failed. The drug, now entering advanced trials, also received exclusive marketing rights in the U.S. and the EU if approved.
36. JOSEPH AND TED BURNETT
$1.08 billion
Madison Avenue Lofts, a condominium project by Burnett-owned Burnac Corp., had its grand opening this year. The development, a conversion of Toronto Hydro's old midtown storage depot, features 211 units, with art deco-inspired architecture.
37. ROBERT FRIEDLAND
$1.08 billion
The founder and chairman of Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. told investors in October that the Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia will be one of the world's largest copper and gold producers. But ballooning exploration costs ($31.1 million in the second quarter alone) put a bit of a damper on the party.
38. MICHAEL LAZARIDIS
$1.06 billion
As one of more than three million BlackBerry users, Lazaridis doesn't leave home without the popular device; nor, apparently, without his American Express card. This summer, the Research In Motion Ltd. co-founder became a pitchman for the credit company.
39. GUY LALIBERTÉ
$1.02 billion
In June, the Cirque du Soleil founder announced plans to partner with Loto-Québec to build a billion-dollar casino in Montreal. The facility will come complete with a 300-room hotel and a 2,500-seat auditorium to house Cirque shows.
40. JAMES BALSILLIE
$1 billion
Proving just how ubiquitous the BlackBerry has become, the U.S. government stepped into a patent dispute between Research In Motion Ltd. and North Virginia holding company NTP Inc. in November by asking the court to suspend an injunction that would disrupt service to some two million U.S. subscribers (including federal workers) until the patent office has its final say next year. In March, RIM had offered a US$450-million settlement, but NTP refused to sign off on the deal.
41. ROBERT (BOBBY) JULIEN AND DELIA MOOG
$960 million
Kolter Property Co., owned by Julien and his aunt, Moog, had a rough summer as residential properties in Florida dealt with the active hurricane season. Kolter offices in Florida were closed in the aftermath of Hurricane Wilma due to extensive telephone and power interruptions.
42. REICHMANN FAMILY
$932 million
In February, real estate tycoons Philip Reichmann and Frank Hauer, Paul Reichmann's son-in-law, made headlines when they announced that 24 Olympia & York Properties Corp. buildings were for sale. That put Canada's tallest office tower, the 2.9-million-square-foot First Canadian Place in downtown Toronto, up for grabs.
43. EUGENE MELNYK
$929 million
Biovail Corp. focused on improving results in the U.S. this year by selling off an allergy treatment and two blood pressure medications, by announcing a plan to spin off its low-margin off-patent pharmaceuticals into a new company, and by partnering with Johnson & Johnson to market Tramadol, its recently approved once-a-day painkiller. By November, earnings had more than doubled, despite the Ontario Securities Commission's investigation into the financial activities of the drug company and its chairman. See story: Live And Learn: Eugene Melnyk.
44. VITTORIO (VIC) DE ZEN
$889 million
The RCMP continued its investigations into allegations that the Royal Group Technologies Ltd. founder and former chairman defrauded the company. In October, Ontario Minister of Finance Greg Sorbara was forced to resign from cabinet after the RCMP raided the offices of his family company, the Sorbara Group, in relation to the ongoing Royal Group investigation.
45. SAUL FELDBERG
$887 million
Feldberg made his name and fortune through designing office furniture (Teknion Corp.). In the summer of 2005, the family tried a new venture when son David opened a winery in Ontario's Niagara region. The vineyard began releasing its high-end wines under the name Stratus in June.
46. LALJI FAMILY
$884 million
The Ugandan-born Lalji family faced controversy this year when local residents voiced opposition to their plan to develop five residential towers in New Westminster, B.C. The city council voted in favour, and the 1,000 units are expected to be built in 2006, at a cost of $285 million for Lalji-owned Larco Investments Ltd.
47. ROBERT MILLER
$878 million
Miller is the secretive founder of component distributor Future Electronics, which signed a deal in August to promote and supply products with Tundra Semiconductor Corp.
48. GERALD (GERRY) SCHWARTZ AND HEATHER REISMAN
$874 million
In June, Cineplex Galaxy LP purchased rival movie chain Famous Players from U.S. entertainment giant Viacom Inc. for $500 million. The deal made Cineplex, a subsidiary of Schwartz-led Onex Corp., the largest box-office chain in the country. Reisman, the other half of Canada's top power couple, was also quite active this year. In September, four years after adding Chapters to her Indigo Books & Music Inc. empire, the company closed the last overlapping Chapters location in the country.
49. MARCO MUZZO
$871 million
The Ontario Ministry of Labour announced charges against Priestly Demolition this year. Priestly was the contractor in charge of tearing down the Muzzo-owned Uptown Theatre in Toronto when it collapsed in late 2003, killing an ESL student next door.
50. RONALD (RON) JOYCE
$834 million
Tim Hortons co-founder Joyce must be kicking himself for selling the Wendy's shares he received in exchange for selling his coffee chain in 1995. That's because the value of those shares surged on news that parent Wendy's International Inc. will spin out up to 18% of the ubiquitous doughnut chain in an IPO next March.
51. FRANK STRONACH
$801 million
The outspoken founder and chairman of Magna International Inc. was in a combative mood this year. When New York-based investment firm Greenlight Capital Inc. wanted to convert Magna's former real estate arm into an income trust, Stronach used his multiple-voting shares to kill the move.
52. RONALD (RON) SOUTHERN
$800 million
Southern, who turned a $2,000-investment in 1947 into the $6.5-billion ATCO Group empire, with 7,000 employees today, was named to the Canadian Petroleum Hall of Fame in September.
53. MITCHELL GOLDHAR
$768 million
Goldhar, president and CEO of First Pro Shopping Centres, donated $3.5 million to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, where he has been a member of the board of directors since June 2001.
54. ALFREDO (FRED) De GASPERIS
$756 million
The largest construction company in Canada has started to go green. The Con-Drain Co. used biodiesel to fuel its fleet of construction vehicles developing a Thornhill, Ont., subdivision.
55. SAMUEL FAMILY
$754 million
The 150-year-old family firm, a metals processing and distribution company based in Mississauga, Ont., continues to chalk up record net earnings. But even though steel prices are coming down, the stock price of its publicly traded business, Samuel Manu-Tech Inc., remains strong.
56. HENRY (HAL) JACKMAN
$751 million
The stock price of Jackman's E-L Financial Corp. Ltd. has been heading north ever since the son of this former lieutenant-governor of Ontario took the helm two years ago. Duncan Jackman continues his father's policy of paying himself just over $200,000 a year, a sum that might discourage Hal's two new grandchildren from joining the family business.
57. CHARLES SIROIS
$725 million
In March, the Telesystem International Wireless Inc. founder sold his company's assets in Romania and the Czech Republic to cellular giant Vodafone for $3.5 billion.
58. ALBERT LATNER
$719 million
The Latner name is spread far and wide through the charities the real estate family supports. This year, the family donated $1 million to the Latner Family Wing at the University of Western Ontario's law school.
59. SEYMOUR SCHULICH
$714 million
The well-known philanthropist added another school to his portfolio in September. Thanks to a $20-million donation from alumnus Schulich, McGill University renamed its Faculty of Music the Schulich School of Music. In addition to a new building, expanded library and a 200-seat recital hall named after his wife, Tanna, Schulich earmarked $12 million for scholarships.
60. VICTOR LI
$706 million
The older son of Li Ka-shing, Victor is heir apparent to his father's US$92-billion Hong Kong-based empire, and a Canadian citizen. In honour of the family's link to Canada, Ka-shing sold his $1.2 billion worth of CIBC shares this year to launch the Li Ka-shing (Canada) Foundation.
61. LAWRENCE TANENBAUM
$668 million
Since the NHL lockout wiped out the 2004-05 season for his Toronto Maple Leafs (Tanenbaum holds a 13% ownership stake in the team), the construction magnate had some time on his hands this year. He filled the void by putting $125 million behind Spotlight Television Inc., a company hoping to horn in on the pay TV industry in Canada.
62. CHAN FAMILY
$663 million
It was a good year for brothers Tom and Caleb Chan and Burrard International Holdings Inc., which has extensive golf course and real estate holdings in the Vancouver-Whistler area. Their prestigious Nicklaus North golf course hosted the Telus Skins Game, and their hot-house tomato business jumped out of the red and into the black.
63. J. R. SHAW
$624 million
Son Jim currently runs Shaw Communications Inc., which became one of the first cable companies to offer voice-over-Internet-protocol phone service this year. With three western provinces now hooking up, the battle of the phone companies has begun in earnest.
64. GREENBERG FAMILY
$616 million
As Ottawa's largest landlord turned 73 this year, former lawyer and Minto Developments matriarch Shirley Greenberg continued to make her mark on the nation's capital. In March, she donated $3 million to the University of Ottawa law school and broke ground on the $9-million Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre in May.
65. BOB GAGLARDI
$591 million
The family real estate company, Northland Properties Ltd., is now run by Bob's son, Tom, who launched a lawsuit against the man who outmanoeuvred him in a bid for the National Hockey League's Vancouver Canucks late last year.
66. PETER NYGÅRD
$589 million
See story: Peter Nygård — Fashion Maven.
67. DAVE AND CLIFF LEDE
$587 million
For just US$15,000, you and a friend can make a barrel of wine at the Napa Valley vineyard of Cliff Lede, director of family-owned construction conglomerate Ledcor Group of Cos. The price includes two nights at his bed and breakfast and, hopefully, some Poetry, his signature US$120-a-bottle Cabernet Sauvignon.
68. HASSAN KHOSROWSHAHI
$571 million
The Iranian-born magnate's private holding company, Inwest Group of Cos., has focused on pharmaceuticals and real estate since selling its electronics chain, Future Shop, in 2001. Nezhat, Hassan's wife and company co-founder, will hopefully bring her Midas touch to the financially strapped CBC, where she is now a director.
69. KOSCHITZKY FAMILY
$546 million
The roofing business has been good to this family, which lists five new companies on the IKO Group's website this year. But workers at the conglomerate's Hawkesbury, Ont., operation went on strike this summer when the company tried to retract some of their benefits.
70. RUDOLPH (RUDY) BRATTY
$545 million
Canadian opera companies may be singing a little more Italian thanks to Bratty's most recent charitable venture, the Verdi Foundation for the Opera. Bratty heads his family's property development company, the Remington Group.
71. MICHAEL POTTER
$510 million
The retired founder of software vendor Cognos Inc. is building a $3-million hangar at Gatineau-Ottawa Executive Airport to display his vintage aircraft collection. It's no doubt a welcome distraction from an acrimonious divorce proceeding, which most recently had Potter winning his court fight to have a private investigator follow his ex-wife.
72. MOLSON FAMILY
$509 million
In February, Molson Inc. completed the US$6-billion merger with Adolph Coors Co. after Molson and Coors shareholders overwhelmingly approved the deal. Though the marriage is still in its early stages, it's fair to say the honeymoon is over: third-quarter earnings for the two constituent companies were down 18% over the same period last year.
73. PIERRE KARL AND ÉRIK PÉLADEAU
$498 million
President and chief executive of his family's Montreal-based Quebecor Inc., Pierre Karl continued to expand his reach outside Quebec by acquiring Craig Media Inc.'s Toronto 1 station in late 2004. But like Quebecor's printing arm, the renamed Sun TV can't seem to stem its losses.
74. ROBERT BEAMISH
$495 million
Beamish, the co-founder and chairman of Mississauga, Ont.-based Woodbridge Group, a global producer of foam products for the auto industry, is on the board of directors of the Arthritis and Autoimmunity Research Centre Foundation, and is also its largest funder.
75. JODREY FAMILY
$495 million
While the family's Minas Basin Pulp and Power Co. Ltd. was hit hard by Nova Scotia Power's 17.2% rate increase, its 25% stake in Heritage Gas Ltd., the provincially funded gas distribution project, will benefit from higher energy prices.
76. BELKIN FAMILY
$485 million
A trade tribunal decision to maintain duties on foreign sugar means that life will continue to be sweet for the Vancouver-based Belkin family and their stake in the Rogers Sugar Income Fund. The family also invests in real estate and pulp and paper through privately owned Belkorp Industries Inc.
77. ALAIN BOUCHARD
$477 million
Bouchard must be burning the midnight oil as his convenience store empire, Alimentation Couche-Tard, gobbles up new additions. His recent purchase of 16 gas station/convenience stores in New Mexico will reportedly add US$66 million to annual revenue. Not bad for a guy who got his feet wet in the business as a teenaged stock boy in a local depanneur.
78. ALDO BENSADOUN
$473 million
See story: Profile: Well-heeled.
79. BILL COMRIE
$471 million
The founder of the Brick Warehouse Corp. converted his private company into an income trust last year; this year he collected $1.20 a unit on his 10 million Class A shares.
80. JOHN RISLEY
$469 million
Following an announcement that it would suspend both distributions and plans to buy back 10 million units, Clearwater Seafoods Income Fund's units hit a record low. The company, co-founded by Risley, blames higher-than-expected vessel repair costs and the government's waffling on income trusts. See additional story: John Risley And Michael Lee-Chin — The Cable Guys.
81. STEWART BLUSSON
$467 million
The diamond prospector's memorable Northwest Territories find in 1991 and his charitable donations to B.C. educational institutions bagged him the Order of Canada this year.
82. LEON FAMILY
$458 million
Sales are at a record high for Leon's Furniture Ltd., the 96-year-old furniture and appliance chain. An April arrangement with online retailer Furniture.com shows family-owned Leon's, which opened Canada's first big-box store in 1973, is ready to tackle the future.
83. ROBERT GRATTON
$446 million
Gratton lightened his load in May, stepping down as CEO to become chairman of Power Financial Corp. Maybe now he'll have more time to spend the $173.2 million he earned last year — the highest executive compensation in the country for 2004.
84. JACK COWIN
$446 million
See story: Jack Cowin — The Burger King.
85. LAWRENCE STROLL
$436 million
Hoping to turn his high-end New York fashion label Michael Kors into a repeat of his $1.8-billion Tommy Hilfiger triumph, Stroll established Kors' Canadian headquarters in his hometown of Montreal this year.
86. CHARLES (CHUCK) FIPKE
$433 million
The co-founder of the $2.8-billion Ekati diamond mine in the Northwest Territories is taking his talents south to Angola. “It's the best place in the world to look for diamonds,” he says.
87. GAIL REGAN, ROSEMARY PHELAN AND HOLIDAY PHELAN-JOHNSON
$422 million
In the first year after taking their Cara Operations Ltd. food empire private, the entrepreneurial women had to deal with a strike at Cara's Montreal flight kitchen. To protest the wage conditions of a new contract, 520 workers walked off the job at the company that provides in-flight meals for airlines.
88. ANDRÉ CHAGNON
$418 million
Chagnon, the founder and former head of Quebec cable company Vidéotron, donated $400 million to fight childhood obesity. A committee on which Chagnon sits found that one in four young Quebecers is overweight.
89. LOUISE BLOUIN MACBAIN
$414 million
See story: Louise Blouin MacBain — The Art-World Aficionado.
90. ISADORE SHARP
$413 million
After three difficult years for the travel industry, Sharp, the founder of the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts empire, was on the rebound in 2005, as the company announced an ambitious expansion plan. In February, the Toronto-based chain said it hoped to have 100 properties under management within seven years, compared to the 64 it currently manages or owns.
91. DE GASPÉ BEAUBIEN FAMILY
$411 million
The Montreal family has been in business for 350 years. In May, patriarch Philippe helped launch the Business Families Centre at the Richard Ivey School of Business in London, Ont.
92. LEE KA LAU
$403 million
Until 2000, Lau was vice-president of strategic planning for Markham, Ont.- based ATI Technologies Inc. The company has struggled with record-high inventory levels and sluggish demand this year, and ATI shares have slid as a result. Due largely to ATI's woes, Lau saw his personal net worth slip by about 21%.
93. PETER GILGAN
$397 million
See story: Peter Gilgan — The Builder.
94. DOUGLAS FREGIN
$396 million
See story: Douglas Fregin — The Other RIM Guy.
95. RANDALL MOFFAT
$392 million
Richardson Capital Ltd., a private equity company Moffat is involved with, jumped into Alberta's booming oilsands industry by snapping up a 16% stake in Petrobank Energy and Resources Ltd.'s Whitesands project. See additional story: They Got Game.
96. ALLAN THORLAKSON
$386 million
Kelowna, B.C., residents breathed a sigh of relief in October when Tolko Industries Ltd., the forestry company Thorlakson leads, quashed rumours it had plans to close the city's sawmill.
97. JOHN BRAGG
$385 million
The king of frozen wild blueberries — Bragg's Oxford Frozen Foods is the world's largest supplier — hopes to dominate the Maritime phone market, too. His Halifax-based cable company, EastLink, the first in Canada to offer local service, expanded into rural Nova Scotia and New Brunswick this year.
98. RICHARD CURRIE
$383 million
Currie, chairman of BCE Inc., made headlines in June when he announced the telecom giant's stake in Bell Globemedia — which owns The Globe and Mail, CTV, TSN and a variety of specialty networks — is up for sale. The price tag? Upward of $1.5 billion.
99. LIBFELD FAMILY
$369 million
The Libfeld family stayed largely under the radar this year. In February, the Conservatory Group (a Libfeld-owned development business) gave a cut of its home sales business to the SickKids Foundation and the Children's Wish Foundation.
100. DR. JOHN MULL
$366 million
Despite the fact that he has a significant investment in CML Healthcare Income Fund units, Mull, the company's chairman and CEO, was able to weather the income trust storm this year and saw his net worth inch up by 4%.
