Billionaire Brett Blundy is not a household name but the retailers that he’s invested in and supported through many decades are: from jewellery store Lovisa, to footwear groups such as Hype, Platypus and The Athlete’s Foot, and lingerie outfit Bras N Things, or discount clothing retailer Best & Less.

At the helm of the retail groups that Blundy has backed are a team of loyal and talented retailers and executives who have worked and co-invested alongside him for decades, becoming multimillionaires in their own right.

More than a decade ago, Brett Blundy decided to take his private investment vehicle BBRC global. Credit: Nic Walker

Blundy, whose fortune is estimated at about $3 billion, has previously spoken about not having just one right-hand person, but multiple executives who fit that description. He has described those executives as “outstanding”, and certainly would have viewed some as capable of managing his global investment vehicle BBRC.

Among those executives are Ray Itaoui, who has headed music group Sanity, and now runs Best & Less, and has been a co-investor and manager with Blundy in many businesses including Bras N Things and Honey Birdette.

There is Daniel Agostinelli, the chief executive of Accent Group, which has stores such as Hype, Platypus, The Athlete’s Foot, and Glue. There is also Darren Holland, who for two decades helped run and build the bulky goods retail centre owner Aventus, before it merged with David Di Pilla’s HMC Capital.

So it was surprising this past week when 64-year-old Blundy – who has donated $US10 million ($15 million) to the Xprize that is focused on developing an anti-ageing treatment – went for an outsider to manage his global investment vehicle BBRC.

Mark McInnes, a former chief executive of David Jones and Premier Retail, was announced as the global chief executive of retail and consumer at BBRC, and starts in the role next month. McInnes was previously very successful at running both David Jones and Solomon Lew’s Premier Retail, and also managing his own profile.

However, the question that’s still to be answered is whether McInnes is more talented than those who have been working alongside Blundy for decades. A key difference between McInnes and those who have worked with Blundy is that McInnes has been a chief executive, while the top retailers who have worked with Blundy have been chief executives and owners.