Directors »
Murray Gutry Chairman
Murray Gutry has been with the Perry Group since 2001, and since 2007 as Chief Executive. Murray is a Director of the Perry Investment Management Limited Board as well as the Chair of Spartan Engineering Limited. In addition, Murray holds Directorships on a number of other Boards and organisations including the Lion Foundation, SPARC, St Paul’s Collegiate and other Perry investments.
Murray represented Waikato in rugby and was a national athletics representative for 10 years. He is married to Robyn, has two sons and enjoys keeping fit, golf, fishing and coaching his boys' sports teams.
Simon Perry Director
Simon Perry is Chairman for Perry Investment Management Limited and also chairs the Brian Perry Charitable Trust, and more recently Swim Waikato. Simon sits on numerous Boards as a Director for the current Perry investments including Spartan Engineering as well as being a Director for a number of other organisations including the Lion Foundation.
Simon enjoys all sports including golf, tennis, squash, skiing and cycling, and is married to Marlene, who is also a trustee of the Brian Perry Charitable Trust. Together they have four children.
John Penny Director
John is the founding Director of Penny Homes Ltd, a well established residential building company operating throughout the Bay of Plenty, Wellington and Christchurch. Penny Homes has operated successfully since 1998 in all facets of the building industry, from residential building, to redevelopment sites, commercial projects and multi-unit developments. John is very passionate about the building industry and his role as a Director on the board of Spartan Engineering Ltd.
John has been involved in various motor racing categories during a successful motorsport career, including Open Wheelers, Tarmac Rallying and Speed boating. For 15 years John competed in Pro-Motocross in NZ where he held a top NZ ranking for many years. For the past 5 years John has been racing in the NZV8’s Championship series with some promising Top 10 finishes including a 9th place overall in the 2009/2010 Championship.
Dave Steele Director
David is a qualified chartered accountant and a director of DPA, his Taupo based chartered accounting firm. He has 25 years experience as a chartered accountant - working with established businesses; advising and assisting new businesses; mentoring clients through change and growth periods; facilitating, negotiating and liaising as required, and his abilities in sports and entertainment management are highly respected and sought after.
David has facilitated and negotiated for a number of businesses and organisations including the Welsh Rugby Union, Lake Taupo Sports Advisory Council, Lake Taupo Development Company and the Hillary Commission. David’s drive, enthusiasm and energy stems from mentoring and coaching a wide range of businesses and professional people.
In November 2010 David received a fellowship bestowed upon him by the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants, for outstanding service to the community and most recently won “Business Person of the Year” at the Towncentre Taupo Business Awards.
John Alexander Managing Director
John has been the Managing Director at Spartan since 2009 bringing a wealth of senior management experience.
He was most recently General Manager at Fortress Fasteners, a leading supplier to the New Zealand hardware and construction sectors where he was responsible for strengthening its internal culture and capabilities. John previously headed the New Zealand business unit of Irwin Tools, part of the Global Newell Rubbermaid Group, a Fortune 500 company listed on the New York stock exchange where he was responsible for sharpening Irwin’s portfolio and creating a more competitive, faster-growing, innovation-driven organization.
John’s key focus with Spartan is adapting an already successful business model to one centered on Consumer/End User understanding, innovation and brand building. This coupled with an unrelenting focus on customer service and continual improvement form the key planks of Spartan culture.
John is Married to Lisa, has four children and enjoys Golf, Skiing, Rugby and keeping fit.