Patrick Grove
Patrick Grove | |
|---|---|
| File:Patrick Grove Corporate Shot take in KL 2008.jpg | |
| Born | April 30, 1975 |
| Occupation(s) | Co-founder & Group CEO, Catcha Group Co-founder & Deputy Chairman, IProperty Group (ASX:IPP) Co-founder & Director, Catcha Media Berhad (0173) |
Patrick Grove (born 30 April 1975 in Singapore) is an entrepreneur who is one of the judges on the television series Angel's Gate, which began broadcasting on Channel NewsAsia in 2012.[1]
Grove is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Catcha Group,[2][3] an investment group which controls media and entertainment companies in Asia. He is also the co-founder and Deputy Chairman of the IProperty Group,[4] an AXS-listed company headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which owns online property portal websites in Malaysia, Singapore, India, the Philippines, Indonesia and Hong Kong.
Television work
Grove served as one of the judges on the reality TV series Angel's Gate, which began broadcasting on Channel NewsAsia in February 2012. The show gives budding investors in Asia an opportunity to pitch business ideas to investors. Grove is one of four judges on the show alongside William Klippgen (founder of Tigris Capital), Ken Mandel (Managing Director of Buddy Media Asia Pacific) and Karan Singh Thakral (Executive Director of the Thakral Group of Companies).
Business career
Whilst he was a student at the University of Sydney in Australia, Grove started two companies – JDI (a night club promotions business) and Vibecom (a chain of mobile phone shops). Upon graduating in 1996, he joined Arthur Andersen and served in both the Corporate Recovery and Corporate Finance divisions before leaving in June 1999 to start the dot-com company Catcha.com.
Catcha.com quickly became a high-profile dot com in Asia and raised over US$12 million from a combination of angel investors, venture capitalists and publicly-listed companies.[5] The company received approval in principle from the Stock Exchange of Singapore in early 2000. Whilst on a global IPO roadshow, the NASDAQ crashed in April 2000[6] and the IPO was famously aborted[7] as the company become a victim of the dot-com bubble.
With an aborted IPO, a collapsing media environment and US$1.5m in debt[8] bankruptcy seemed imminent, but Grove managed to turn the company around and is credited with being one of the rare dot-com survivors.
In 2001, Catcha launched a publishing arm which has since become one of the largest magazine publishers in South-East Asia. The company is primarily based in Malaysia but also publishes in Singapore and Indonesia. Its portfolio of titles include JUICE, Stuff, K-Zone, Evo, MiNT, Fairways, Clive and Prestige.
By 2004-2005 Grove and his partners had turned around the business and completed a successful management buyout.
In 2007, moved back into the online space by acquiring iProperty.com.my. He and his partners revamped and grew the business into the largest network of online property portals in Asia. They successfully listed the company on the Australian Stock Exchange on 11 September 2007.[9] Since listing, the company has made a number of acquisitions including gohome.com.hk in Hong Kong and other portals in the region.
In 2009, Catcha launched Catcha Digital in conjunction with Microsoft to run all their online assets in Malaysia.[10]
In July 2011, Grove listed Catcha Media Berhad (www.catchamedia.com) on the Malaysian Stock Exchange.
Besides the two listed companies, IPGA and Catcha Media, Grove also controls a number of private companies including CDA (www.catchadigital.asia), Dealmates.com and Catcha Ventures.
Awards
Among the awards and recognition Grove has received for his entreprenerial achievements are:
- 2000: Named a "Global Leader of Tomorrow" by the World Economic Forum[11]
- 2002: Named a "New Asian Leader" by the World Economic Forum
- 2004: "Austcham Young Entrepreneur of the Year"[12]
- 2007: Recognised by KLue magazine among the "Top 40 under 40 to watch"
- 2008: Named as one of "Asia's Best Young Entrepreneurs 2008" by Bloomberg Businessweek[13]
- 2011: Named on the "BRW Young Rich List 2011", part of the annual BRW Rich 200[14]
Early life and education
Grove was born in Singapore on 30 April 1975 to a Singaporean-Chinese mother and an Australian father. He spent his early years in Singapore and Indonesia, where he studied at Tanglin Trust School, the United World College of South East Asia,[15] and the Jakarta International School. He moved to Sydney, Australia, in 1993 and completed his high school education at the Scots College.
Grove then went on to the University of Sydney, where he majored in Finance and Accounting and completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree.
References
- ^ So you want to be an entrepreneur?, channelnewsasia.com, 2 February 2012
- ^ Catcha Media Corporate Site, Catcha Corporate Site,
- ^ IPGA Corporate Site, IPGA,
- ^ ASX, Australian Stock Exchange,
- ^ Zdnet, Catcha.com,
- ^ Nasdaq Crash of April 2000, Nasdaq Crash of April 2000,
- ^ Shaky IPOs chill Singapore's Internet dreams, Asiaweek June 9, 2000,
- ^ Go go Grove, New Straits Times Jan 16 2005,
- ^ Online Property Firm IPGA Debuts on ASX, Sydney Morning Herald September 11, 2007,
- ^ MSN Embraces Magazines in Malaysia, Asia Media Journal September 4, 2009,
- ^ FT Profile, FT Markets
- ^ Prestige Asia, Prestige
- ^ Asia's Best Young Entrepreneurs 2008, Bloomberg Businessweek, August 8, 2008
- ^ [1],"Tech Kings Dominate BRW Young Rich"
- ^ UWCSEA, UWCSEA,