SPECIAL EDITION FEBRUARY 2020 50 WealtGREhEKS iIN eAMsERIt CA An Annual Edition of our Community's Top Achievers The National Herald www.thenationalherald.com This special edition was sponsored in part by Michael and Robin Psaros 2 SPECIAL EDITION FEBRUARY 2020 50 Wealthiest Greeks in America THE NATIONAL HERALD ❙ Welcome to TNH’s Annual 50 Wealthiest Greeks in America Special! 2020 is the second year that I am spearheading this incredible courage is the indispensable kindling needed for the American patented many in their 80s and 90s still going to the office at least five days a project. Although most of our top ten have been at the top of rankings entrepreneurial approach to work that creates jobs and fortunes. week. Thus, while the numbers may be the most ‘fun’ part to skim such as Forbes magazine for many years, their incredible stories and Many studies have been conducted in an effort to understand why over and the easiest way to list these individuals, it is by far the least biographies still strike me year after year. They instill in me a real human brains love lists. In an article written just a few years ago, the valuable. Contrastingly, what is valuable is each person’s unique story sense of pride and relatedness – even though I have not had the New Yorker stated that whenever we encounter new information, our – their struggles, their triumphs, their journey. They cover an opportunity to meet most of these high-net individuals first hand. I like brains immediately try to make sense of it. Once they figure out what impressively wide spectrum of industries: energy, retail, finance, to believe that this is because their stories are relatable – they are we’re seeing in a physical sense, they provide personal context and shipping, food service, engineering, publishing, entertainment – just to familiar to me. Growing up with immigrant parents, like most of our decide if it’s relevant enough to focus on further. The process is name a few. I encourage everyone to take the time this weekend to readers, I have heard and read countless stories about their hardships instantaneous – we don’t even realize we’ve made a choice in the actually read the biographies of these individuals – you may be and year after year I can’t help but feel a renewed admiration for our time our minds have selected one path or another. Our gaze either surprised at how much we all have in common and you may get some people, our culture, our perseverance, and our work ethic. Many of our stops, or we simply keep scanning. Recall a time when you were ideas on what the next steps of your career should be. featured Greek-Americans came here with nothing in their pockets spacing out while skimming a stream of content and then, without Although countless hours were spent researching the various and had no other choice but to work incredibly hard to just put food on quite knowing why, found yourself pausing to actually process the individuals featured on our list, we are aware that this list is not all their table every night. Eventually, they caught their big break (again, information. This is likely because we saw a phrase, a word, a location encompassing (some individuals do not like to be in the public eye) with that unwavering work ethic and a little bit of luck) – and what is that we identify with. and that the net worth of the individuals are approximations (i.e., the truly noteworthy is that most of these individuals managed to instill It’s the same with our list. Once we see the name of the island we stock market’s daily fluctuations may cause some people’s net worth the same principles and ideals in their children (even if they were not have roots in, or see the name of our church, or even see a job title or to change minute by minute). This is a ‘problem’ that is not unique to able to be home too often). passion that we share with a particular individual, we automatically The National Herald but also to Forbes, for example, which is widely America’s genius has always been its ability to attract the world’s start paying closer attention. However, I encourage you to actually regarded as the ‘gold standard’ of such rankings. brightest minds and hardest working people and have them live spend the time to read each and every one of the biographies of our We invite you, once again, to enhance this list by letting us know of alongside each other to advance the common good – while at the same featured individuals. Although many of the same individuals are any information – including, perhaps, a particular Greek-American we time maintaining and advancing our history, culture and religion. Our list featured year after year, their biographies are updated as more may have overlooked, so that this Special Edition can continue to get proves that Greeks have been contributing mightily to the American information becomes available. Not only that, the saying that ‘old better and better, year after year. success story for as long as they have been coming to these shores in habits die hard’ is truly representative of our culture. Despite the age Vanessa Diamataris the hopes of a better life for themselves and for their families. This of many of the people on our list, they have not slowed down – with Editor-Publisher The 50 Wealthiest Greeks in America List JIM DAVIS & FAMILY - Davis, now 77, is the Massachusetts-born son 320 running shoe. Davis’ wife, Anne, joined the 1Massachusetts of Greek immigrants. He graduated from Middle - company in 1977 and now serves as NB’s Vice $7.7 BILLION (Forbes) bury College with a degree in biology/chemistry Chairman. The company has since grown, remai - NEW BALANCE but soon realized he didn’t enjoy school (“hated ning one of the few shoemakers that continues school” were his exact words in an interview with to manufacture some of its shoes in the United Middlebury College Sports Business Daily). After college, he started States, and now features clothing and equipment (Biology/Chemistry); selling equipment having to do with biology and for lacrosse and soccer. Davis and his family own Married, 2 Children chemistry. He then decided it was time for him to an estimated 95% of the company, which is still buy a small company for himself and New Balance private. With a huge bump in net worth since last year was the first one he looked at. At the time, he In June of 2019, the Boston Globe announced – 2.1 billion to be exact – James S. ‘Jim’ Davis, said he knew a little about sporting goods but no - cided to buy the now 114-year old retail sports that New Balance was planning to open what Davis the owner and Chairman of New Balance (NB) tops thing about footwear, so he decided to pass on footwear company. described as a “factory of the future” in Methuen, The National Herald’s 50 Wealthiest Greek-Ameri - the offer. However, a year later, in 1972, the com - In 1976, the company began soaring to new cans once again. pany was still for sale, and that’s when Davis de - heights with the development of the New Balance Continued on page 4 Vios Advisors at Rockefeller Capital Management congratulates the top 50 wealthiest Greeks Nick Bapis and Michael Bapis Structuring Wealth for Today’s Luxury and Tomorrow’s Security 45 Rockefeller Plaza 2603 East Parleys Way 5th floor Salt Lake City, UT New York, NY 10111 84109 212.549.5488 801.736.9950 [email protected] SPECIAL EDITION FEBRUARY 2020 3 ❙ THE NATIONAL HERALD 50 Wealthiest Greeks in America 4 SPECIAL EDITION FEBRUARY 2020 50 Wealthiest Greeks in America THE NATIONAL HERALD ❙ Continued from page 2 Gores oversees approximately 40 companies live in Beverly Hills, CA, but also maintain a home with some $19 billion in assets through his Los in Birmingham, MI. In January 2020, an article Massachusetts. The report said that state tax bre - Angeles-based private equity firm, Platinum Equity about property taxes was published which discus - aks amounting to $900K and property tax breaks – which he founded in 1995. Platinum Equity is sed the property taxes in Los Angeles. The article of $272K would help subsidize the $33M project. one of the largest private companies in the United stated that there are 12 homes in LA that pay more The factory will be New Balance’s sixth in the New States and has offices in California, New York, Bo - than $1M a year in property taxes. One of those England region, where the brand produces most ston, London, and Singapore. Its in-house business homes was the $100M Holmby Hills mansion of of its Made in USA footwear. This will be the first development, M&A, transition, legal, real estate, Tom Gores. Gores bought this 10 bedroom, 20 ba - manufacturing plant New Balance has opened in marketing, finance, and operations teams enable throom, 30,000 square foot mansion in 2016. The two decades. In return for the tax breaks, New Ba - us to resolve matters expeditiously. master bedroom of the home is 5,300 square feet lance has pledged to create 60 new jobs in the Since its founding in 1995, Platinum Equity has – roughly twice the size of the average home in 80,000 square-foot factory. According to the Globe, completed nearly 200 acquisitions in a broad range the U.S. The article stated that the Gores estate the focus will be on testing advanced manufactu - of market sectors.