Holdmark Property Group
Sarkis Nassif, Winner of the Medium-Large Business Award 2019 with Joseph Assaf, the Founder of EBA Foundation.
INSPIRE - verb
to make someone feel that they want to do something and can do it.
That's exactly what our Ethnic Business Award winners and finalists do for us. They totally inspire us.
The Ethnic Business Awards are Australia’s longest running national business awards program, celebrating diversity and multiculturism for more than three decades. Each year the Ethnic Business Awards shines a light on the stories of inspiration of our finalists. With 2020 being a year of challenges it’s a great idea to look back at these stories of inspiration. These stories are often moving story and they provide us with hope and inspiration for our own lives.
“I want to sincerely thank the EBA’s for affording me this honour, to be in the finals, it is a very humbling moment. When I look back at my journey as a migrant to Australia, it had its ups and downs, but I cannot stress enough how incredibly grateful I am to call myself an Australian citizen. I imagine life wouldn’t be the same if I had chosen to work elsewhere. Australia provided me with the perfect environment of freedom and opportunity and it has been and always will be, my goal to give back to Australia and to be able to provide opportunities to other migrants and Australian citizens alike.”
We are excited to share the story of Mr. Sarkis Nassif, founder and managing director of Holdmark Property Group.
The Ethnic Business Awards Foundation was honored to have Mr. Sarkis Nassif as a winner of the Henry Ngai Medium to Large Business Award category. It was a classic combination of instability, inspiration and a good ol’ dose of the entrepreneurial spirit that saw Sarkis Nassif go from form-worker to founder of one of Australia’s largest property development groups. With the outbreak of war in his homeland of Lebanon, Sarkis left all that he knew and arrived in Australia in 1987, with ‘no money, no degree and no background in the English language’. However, what he lacked in advantage, he made up for in ambition. Working 7 day shifts as a form-worker for a meagre $60/day, Sarkis saved enough money after 7 years to purchase his first small development site which formed the foundations for Holdmark Property Group. Today, Holdmark employs thousands of people across its multiple sites and is the name behind some of NSW’s most iconic residential and commercial property precincts with projects ranging from $500 million in Majors Bay, to the $2 billion urban development at Shepherds Bay, Ryde.
Sarkis Nassif is a very active philantropists who supports many many charities. One very close to his heart is the John-Paul Foundation which he created along with his family in memory of his son, John Paul Nassif. This Foundation assists families facing hardships due to illness, tragedy and adversity. The foundation has supported Westmead Children’s Hospital with the help of Arab Bank through the distribution of funds and in their support many Australian charities with a focus on family and children’s charities, local communities, disaster relief and vital equipment. “The John Paul Foundation seeks to help solve complex issues and ensure that a high standard of life is awarded to all children in our care.”
During his acceptance speech after winning at the EBA’s in 2019, Mr. Sarkis Nassif pledged to donate $1 million to support farmers struggling with the drought.
“As a person who takes pride in the farming industry, I understand how vital it is to maintain this industry for our survival as a nation. Our farmers need support and I want them to know that they are not alone. We will face the hardship together,”
He added that in addition to the million dollar donation, Holdmark will also be working with Rural Aid to provide additional community assistance across the next five years on the 10 Towns Project.
Due to the challenge of Covid-19, Burwood Plaza (Holdmark property group) initiated “Burwood cares” which is a program to support the local business community as they understand that this unprecedented global event is a difficult time for everyone. Through the ‘Burwood Cares’ initiative, and in conjunction with Burwood Council and St Paul’s Anglican Church, they are finding effective ways to support local residents and businesses while keeping everyone safe.
It is inspiring that one who came to this country with so little material wealth has reached such heights in this golden land but yet he stays grounded and looks to share and give to those in the greatest need.