Who was rich-lister Chloe Wright?

Monday, 25 September 2023

Chloe Wright came from humble beginnings but built a business empire alongside her husband Wayne. (File photo)

Bay of Plenty rich-lister Chloe Wright died in September, being known for her philanthropy, advocacy for new mothers.

Wright built four privately run birthing centres where women could give birth and stay for free. She also launched a campaign calling for the government to fund three-nights free stay for all new mothers.

During that time, she also sent the Counties Manukau DHB a $170,000 invoice for the services provided by her birthing centre, even after the DHB had refused to fund it.

“We continue to provide primary birthing and postnatal care to the mothers of Manukau, but it is a strain on our finances, and we are not able to expand… I trust you can find a way to pay this account,” she wrote.

The 2023 National Business Review rich list put the Wright family’s wealth at $360 million. (Wright and husband Wayne set up the Wright Family Foundation in 2014.)

Chloe Wright is lobbying for maternity care to change.

Her son, Wayne L. Wright, told a reporter she was a “remarkable” woman. However, he said the family had nominated BestStart chief executive Tony Ryall as a spokesperson following her passing, and wouldn’t comment further.

BestStart is among the family’s child-focussed businesses, and has become the largest early childhood education provider in Aotearoa.

Formerly known as Kidicorp, it has 260 centres and receives more than $200 million a year in child-based government funding.

Kidicorp transformed into a tax-free charity when it was sold to the Wright Family Foundation in 2015. The foundation bought it by borrowing money from the Wright Family Trust.

Wright pictured with Maltese cross dogs Phoebe and Philomena.

Chloe Wright previously told Stuff that she grew up in a state house in Lower Hutt, where her dad worked for the postal service while mum looked after the kids.

“In the winter we had yesterday’s bread chopped up with some sugar sprinkled over it, and scalding milk.

She grew up in a house of nine children and became a mother of five. She said her humble but stable upbringing drove her family-oriented philanthropy and business endeavours.

“We got smacked, and we damn well deserved it, but that’s what they did in those days.

“We had absolute security, and what I see all the time when those mothers are pushed out [of hospital], is that they don’t have that connection and the space to get those hormones going with someone caring about them.”

Wright pictured at the Bethlehem Birthing Centre when she launched a campaign for funding three-night free stays for all new mothers. (File photo)

Son Wayne Wright previously spoke admiringly of his parents in an interview. The pair met and married in the lower North Island, and set about building a family business empire.

“Both my parents are just very conservative, very modest, I think, and they believe in a strong work ethic.”

As well as ECE, the Wrights have had investments in various industries including manufacturing crib retaining walls, kiwifruit orchards, telecommunications as well as owning 75 properties. More recently, they got involved in news media.

Wayne Wright recalled that broadcaster Sean Plunket visited the family household with a pitch about how the media had become too close to the government and a new radio station was needed.

Plunket sought a considerable sum to launch The Platform, and assumed it might be split between around 10 backers.

“We huddled together for a couple of minutes, and we came back and said, ‘Sean, we’ll do the lot’,” Wright said. “His jaw just dropped.”