Exclusive: tomorrow night, Jim Hazel will be acknowledged at a Property Council of Australia’s Property Hall of Fame Gala Dinner which will take place at the Great Hall in Parliament House in Canberra.
He will be only the 26th inductee of the Hall of Fame in its history.
Jim is being recognised for having had a significant role in the establishment and success of the retirement village sector in particular, and retirement living in general.
Property Council Chief Executive Mike Zorbas says “Jim played a foundational role in the success of the retirement living industry. The results of his decades of commitment, bold thinking and customer focus will benefit senior Australians for generations to come. He has extended his access, advice and network to property executives across the country, thus assisting industry’s advancement at the same time.”
He is both the first South Australian and first from the retirement living sector to be inducted.
Retirement Living Council Executive Director Daniel Gannon says: “Jim Hazel has built a name for excellence in retirement and seniors’ living across Australia.”
“He has contributed to the improvement and advancement of this important asset class around the country and helped shape this industry as an executive, investor, advocate, and innovator.”
A quiet achiever, Jim first entered the village sector in the early 1990s as Chief General Manager of Adelaide Bank, where he stepped in and rescued a number of early villages caught in a credit squeeze. Rather than close them, he engineered their rescue.
Today, he has personal direct and indirect investments in a number of retirement villages, plus he is Chairman of Ingenia, a position he will step down from at the annual meeting in November.
Also being inducted to the Hall of fame tomorrow night is Charlotte Vidor AM, co-founder of the Toga Group, and pioneer of serviced apartments in Australia.
In next week’s The SOURCE, we will review Jim’s career and contributions in more detail.