In her first major interview, Joanna Millard outlines her ambitions for the automotive business her father has run for 55 years.
In a video interview recorded early this year, John Hughes laid out, very succinctly, his succession plan.
For starters, the 88-year-old made it clear he has no plans to retire.
“They will carry me out of here in a six-foot case,” he said.
And he left no doubt about who will take the reins, whenever the succession occurs.
“My daughter is very intelligent. She will be managing director,” Mr Hughes said.
“My son [Jeremy] is in the US. He is not part of the equation because of his location.”
His daughter is 42-year-old Joanna Millard, who has been a director of John Hughes Group for the past decade, quietly learning the ropes of the family business.
Her voice has started to feature on the group’s radio advertisements this year, but apart from that she has kept a very low public profile.
Ms Millard recently sat down with Business News to share her story and plans.
She is under no illusions about what she will be taking on.
“Do I feel a shadow? Definitely. He’s an awe-inspiring person, he’s an icon of the industry in Perth, he’s a household name,” she said.
“But I have learned a lot from him and I feel like I can really help to grow and build on the success he’s had.”
Ms Millard plans to carve her own path.
“He does have very, very big shoes to fill, but I’ll find my own shoes,” she said.
“I’m very proud of him and a lot of him has rubbed off on me, but we are different people and I don’t do things exactly the same way he does.”
With annual revenue of about $900 million, John Hughes Group is one of Western Australia’s top 12 private companies, according to Data & Insights.
It has 550 staff and sells 20,000 cars a year through its retail dealerships.
Ms Millard sees a long future for the group.
“Our intention is to keep this business going for many more years.”
She also believes there are opportunities beyond the existing operations.
“I won’t be as hands-on and operational because I see broader opportunities within our family group,” Ms Millard said.
“Big-picture property, diversification and expansion of our current business; you can’t do that while also being intricately involved in the day-to-day aspects.
“That’s where I really see my role in future. And also looking after our family and making sure the business is run smoothly for future generations.”
Ms Millard’s career plans extend beyond John Hughes Group.
“I’ve just started a property development company with my husband,” she said.
“We have secured a big parcel of land [near Wangara] and we’re doing a sub-division there.
“We’re looking to grow that and do more developments.”
John Hughes Group is well known for its expansive dealerships at Victoria Park. Photo: Michael O’Brien
To support her expansive plans, Ms Millard is keen to get wider experience.
“I also want to get on some external boards to get more experience and different perspectives and learn from people in other industries running big businesses,” she said.
“There is so much out there that you can apply to your own business if you just have a broader outlook.”
For now, Ms Millard continues to work closely with her father, who has been treated for cancer over the past two years.
“He never talks about his health or lets that be a focus,” she said.
“He is charging along, he’s very motivational. John still works six-and-a-half days a week.”
That said, the family does have a succession plan.
“He acknowledges reality. He won’t be around forever and we need to make plans for the future.”
Gilpin Park
Ms Millard signalled she has no interest in pursuing an ASX listing for the business.
Nonetheless, the family has made some big changes to the governance structure at its parent company, Gilpin Park Pty Ltd.
The most notable move was last year’s appointment of Melbourne-based family business adviser Craig Holland as chairman.
He succeeded Ms Millard, who is focused on the big opportunity rather than her own title.
“We are building it out, in terms of the governance structures and the strategy of the family company,” Ms Millard said.
“We wanted to put in place a more robust governance structure and have an independent person sit on the board and provide their insights on working with other families as well.
“It’s set it up for the future ... to make sure it provides as much support as possible.”
Mr Holland, who heads advisory firm Generation Private, met the Hughes family 18 months ago.
Clearly they made a good connection.
“John and Joanna are both extremely impressive,” Mr Holland told Business News.
Mr Holland’s appointment was not the only change at Gilpin Park, which counts Ms Millard and both her parents, John and Margarita Hughes, as directors.
Former ANZ Bank state manager and Wallis Drilling chairman Mark Crumby joined the board as a non-executive director in 2022.
The board also includes the automotive group’s veteran chief operating officer, Rod Gailey, and long-time tax adviser Dudley Elliott, who both joined in 2021.
Another long-time adviser is Frank Iannantuoni, who heads up Victoria Park accounting firm Morris & Co.
Collectively, it is a large and very experienced board for a family holding company.
The governance structure at the operating business is much leaner and simpler.
John Hughes is founder and chairman while Ms Millard and Mr Gailey are executive directors.
A key decision for the group in the coming year will be the selection of a chief executive to handle the day-to-day operations of the automotive dealerships.
Career plan
Ms Millard said she had been focused on a business career from a young age.
After growing up in Perth, she completed a law/commerce degree at The University of Sydney.
“I worked as a solicitor for a couple of years,” she said.
“That just solidified my desire to not be a lawyer and actually get into business.”
Upon her return to Perth, Ms Millard set up her own fitness centre in Cottesloe.
“While I was in Sydney, I saw the first wave of a new style of fitness and exercise, which was the concept of group pilates centres,” she said.
“We had nothing at the time in Perth so I saw an opportunity to start my own business.
“That was a really intense learning experience because I grew everything from the ground up.”
Her Pure Moves fitness centre expanded to have 20 staff and 80 classes a week. However, after focusing on that business for several years she was ready for the next opportunity.
Within the space of two years during that time, Ms Millard had three young children, including twins.
She said it was a decisive point in her life that required her to fine-tune how she organised her personal and professional responsibilities.
“That’s when I had to make a decision,” Ms Millard told Business News.
“What do I want my life to look like?
“It was very much immersing myself in business. I realised I’m definitely a career person and I just wanted to stay in that world.
“I said to dad I was really keen to do more, to contribute and learn about the family business.”
She started by spending time with the various managers in different departments.
“I spent time just understanding how the business works,” Ms Millard said.
“There are so many different parts: from batteries and tyres to lending to the wholesale business.
“That got me excited about things I could get involved in. There is a lot of opportunity.”
Ms Millard also completed an MBA through the Australian Graduate School of Management at UNSW Sydney.
“I wanted a diverse perspective and to look at things differently, to learn from professionals on the east coast and overseas and learn from other businesses,” she said.
“I wanted that breadth of experience.”
Seemingly, the learning has never stopped.
Ms Millard has completed the Australian Institute of Company Directors course and its Boardroom Mastery program and served as WA president of YPO (Young Presidents’ Organisation).
“It’s a fantastic organisation,” she said.
“The conversations you have, the diversity of thought, the different scales of business and different industries.
“I’ve got so much out of it.”
In her spare time, she is also a council member at St Hilda’s Anglican School for Girls and recently joined its foundation.
Flexible role
Ms Millard said her role at John Hughes Group was very fluid.
“I really enjoy that. I have complete flexibility and autonomy, and I really like challenging myself,” she said.
“I feel like I have a really broad set of skills and experience and I can apply them in all areas of the business.
“Energy flows where it is needed and where the opportunities arise.”
Ms Millard has brought some notable innovations to the automotive business, which encompasses eight new car franchises, including MG, Volkswagen, Mitsubishi and Hyundai.
Joanna Millard wants to keep the flexibility that comes with private ownership. Photo: Michael O’Brien
It has expanded from its sprawling Victoria Park base to Rockingham, Wangara and Welshpool.
“We have a great brand presence, a great name, and it’s maximising that in the [other] automotive hubs,” Ms Millard said.
A new venture she started under the John Hughes umbrella was car subscription business Switch Cars.
“I saw an opportunity for an alternative to traditional car ownership or renting a car,” she said.
“It’s for people who need a car but don’t want to or can’t buy one.”
They get a new car in return for an all-inclusive weekly payment.
“It’s a relatively new concept and there is definitely a market for it in Perth,” Ms Millard said.
The group also plans to expand its lending business, Sovereign Credit.
“It will be rebranded and there is new strategy and technology platform,” Ms Millard said.
“We’re looking at funding sources, so that’s a big project.”
Another part of the group is finance brokerage Yes Loans.
Like Sovereign, it’s a standalone business that attracts its own customers.
Yet another business is We Want Your Wheels, which looks after people who want to sell a car but don’t intend to buy another.
Not listing
John Hughes Group has twice explored an ASX listing, initially in 2015 and again during COVID when automotive sales were booming.
On both occasions it signed up local broker Euroz Hartleys to manage the deal. Ms Millard said her father ultimately decided it was not the right move.
“The reason he went into business in the first place fifty-five years ago was because he wanted to do things a certain way and be his own boss and have full control,” she said.
“The closer it got to listing, the more it dawned on him that would have to change.
“It was a very hard decision because we invested a lot of time and effort and energy into it.”
Asked if she would go down that path again, Ms Millard was unequivocal.
“No,” she said.
“It seems there is a lot of energy diverted into governance and regulation and reporting, that side of things, and it can restrict flexibility and innovation and entrepreneurship and quick decision making, that has been one of our advantages.
“That would have been compromised in a public setting.”
