Ask those who know Barry Thomas to describe the man and they use words such as persistent and tenacious.
Skyline Enterprises chairman Ken Matthews said that in addition to being tenacious, Mr Thomas also had a great sense of judgement.
"It was great to be able to refer to him when we were dealing with sensitive issues, and more often than not you would leave a meeting and think 'Why didn't I think of that?'."
Second-best was not an option for Mr Thomas and he was careful to protect his patch, Mr Matthews said, but he was loyal and supported staff and managers.
"He was always interested and he would always follow up soon after to see how things were going."
Fellow businessman and former university classmate Sir Eion Edgar described Mr Thomas as persistent and conservative, attributes he said had served Skyline Enterprises well and made it a strong company.
"He may have missed some opportunities, but when he saw it, he went for it."
A HISTORY OF GROWTH
Inflation-adjusted profits. -
• 1970 - $200,000.
• 1980 - $528,000.
• 1990 - $1.68 million.
• 2000 - $6.5 million
• 2004 - $10 million.
• 2010 - $16.5 million.
Source: Skyline - A New Zealand tourism success story by Jim Sullivan
