Yorkshire Rich List: The 19 richest people in Yorkshire and their 2024 wealth

Jobs and finance writer

4th Nov 2024, 12:45pm

These individuals and families topped 2024’s Yorkshire rich list 💼

In this year's Insider Media Rich List for Yorkshire, many of the individuals making the most money have self-made backgrounds, often starting from modest beginnings.

For instance, Paul Sykes, who developed Meadowhall, left school without any qualifications. Similarly, Steve Parkin was a coal miner before he founded the logistics company Clipper.

Graham Kirkham, adopted as a baby, didn't do well in school and couldn't become an RAF pilot. So instead, he entered the furniture industry and made a fortune with the sofa retailer DFS.

Some of these successful individuals also continue to work well into their later years, like Malcolm Healey, who launched Wren Kitchens in his mid-60s.

Wren Kitchens generated £1.1 billion in revenue last year, and now employs over 7,100 people, creating numerous jobs in the region.

Wren also made a significant contribution to the economy, paying over £17 million in corporation tax and an additional £20 million in employers' National Insurance last year, along with millions more in various other taxes.

As we round out 2024, here are the richest people in the region and how they made their success.

He may have celebrated his 80th birthday this summer but there is no sign of this kitchen magnate turning down the heat on what has been an extraordinary career. Healey’s Humberside-based Wren Kitchens last year reported annual sales of £1.1bn – up 16% on the previous 12 months. He only started the group in 2009 and already has 111 showrooms in the UK and the US. There are plans to roll out more stores on both sides of the Atlantic in the coming years

1. Malcolm Healy, 80 (£1.7bn)

He may have celebrated his 80th birthday this summer but there is no sign of this kitchen magnate turning down the heat on what has been an extraordinary career. Healey’s Humberside-based Wren Kitchens last year reported annual sales of £1.1bn – up 16% on the previous 12 months. He only started the group in 2009 and already has 111 showrooms in the UK and the US. There are plans to roll out more stores on both sides of the Atlantic in the coming years | William - stock.adobe.com

The Shepherd's earlier this year sold portable buildings maker Portakabin to French infrastructure business Antin. Although the value of the deal was not public, a price of at least £1.5 billion was mooted ahead of the sale. York- based Portakabin began in the 1960s as an offshoot to the Shepherds’ construction firm. Taking account of tax on the recent sale, a sturdy run of dividends and other family wealth should now elevate the Shepherds into the ranks of Yorkshire’s billionaires

2. The Shepherd family (£1.3bn)

The Shepherd's earlier this year sold portable buildings maker Portakabin to French infrastructure business Antin. Although the value of the deal was not public, a price of at least £1.5 billion was mooted ahead of the sale. York- based Portakabin began in the 1960s as an offshoot to the Shepherds’ construction firm. Taking account of tax on the recent sale, a sturdy run of dividends and other family wealth should now elevate the Shepherds into the ranks of Yorkshire’s billionaires | Google

Kirkham made £450m from floating the sofa retailer DFS on the stock market. He then made another £400m by buying up the shares and selling it onto a private equity group in 2010. He later teamed up with the owner of Iceland, making £89m when the frozen food retailer was sold to a South African businessman. Conservative party donor Kirkham lives in the Georgian mansion Cantley Hall, near Doncaster

3. Lord Kirkham and family, 79 (£1.14bn)

Kirkham made £450m from floating the sofa retailer DFS on the stock market. He then made another £400m by buying up the shares and selling it onto a private equity group in 2010. He later teamed up with the owner of Iceland, making £89m when the frozen food retailer was sold to a South African businessman. Conservative party donor Kirkham lives in the Georgian mansion Cantley Hall, near Doncaster | YPN

Shelley, Morrison and Kernighan are the three eldest children of the late “king of the tills” Sir Ken Morrison. The supermarket surpremo left £235m in his will after his death six years ago and the 2021 sales of Morrisons to a US private equity group put a £700m price on his family’s remaining stake. Sir Ken’s offspring have businesses themselves, including a farm near Northallerton and holidays lets near York and on the island of Majorca

4. Andrea Shelley, William Morrison and Eleanor Kernighan and family, 63, 48 and 50 (£960m)

Shelley, Morrison and Kernighan are the three eldest children of the late “king of the tills” Sir Ken Morrison. The supermarket surpremo left £235m in his will after his death six years ago and the 2021 sales of Morrisons to a US private equity group put a £700m price on his family’s remaining stake. Sir Ken’s offspring have businesses themselves, including a farm near Northallerton and holidays lets near York and on the island of Majorca | simon - stock.adobe.com

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