John Ilhan (born Mustafa İlhan; 23 January 1965 – 23 October 2007) was an Australian businessman. He was the founder of
Crazy John's
Crazy John's was a mobile phone retail chain in Australia started by Turkish Australian businessman John Ilhan. Crazy John's was the largest independent phone retailer in Australia, employing more than 400 people with more than 600 retail stor ...
mobile phone
retail chain
A chain store or retail chain is a retail outlet in which several locations share a brand, Management, central management and standardized business practices. They have come to dominate many retail markets, dining markets, and service categories ...
Yozgat
Yozgat is a city in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. It is the seat of Yozgat Province and Yozgat District.migrated to Australia with his family when he was five. He grew up in working-class Broadmeadows in Melbourne's north-west. Here he attended Jacana Primary School and then Broadmeadows High School. Whilst at Jacana Primary he played in the school
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
, soccer and basketball teams.
After just one year at university and a short time as a salesman at Ford, Ilhan took a sales job at the phone and electrical retailer Strathfield Car Radio. He left in 1991 to set up his own mobile-phone shop, right across the road from Strathfield's store in inner-city Brunswick. After expanding the business into Australia's biggest
Telstra
Telstra Group Limited is an Australian telecommunications company that builds and operates telecommunications networks and markets related products and services. It is a member of the S&P/ASX 20 stock index, and is Australia's largest telecomm ...
mobile dealership, with 18 stores in Victoria, Ilhan opened a handful of stores in Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide.
Personal life
Ilhan was a vocal supporter of the
Richmond Football Club
The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed the Tigers or colloquially the Tiges, is a professional Australian rules football team competing in the Australian Football League (AFL). Founded in 1885 in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond, Victoria, Ric ...
in the
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition ...
. He made bids for the board and even offered to buy out Terry Wallace's contract in a bid to improve the team's performance by recruiting Kevin Sheedy.
Wealth and philanthropy
Ilan was ranked first in '' Business Review Weeklys Australia's Young Rich List 2003, with a
net worth
Net worth is the value of all the non-financial and financial assets owned by an individual or institution minus the value of all its outstanding liabilities. Financial assets minus outstanding liabilities equal net financial assets, so net w ...
of A$200 million. In the 2007 Rich List, he was assessed as the 126th-richest man in Australia with a net worth of A$310 million. Having a net worth of over A$300 million by the age of 40, Ilhan became inspired to become a philanthropist, and contribute a large percentage of his earnings to charity. Before his death at the age of 42 in 2007, he was recognised as one of the country's most generous philanthropists, having had provided regular donations to a wide range of charitable organisations.
In 2006 Ilhan founded the Ilhan Food Allergy Foundation. The Foundation is dedicated to promoting research and educating the public about the issues and causes surrounding
anaphylaxis
Anaphylaxis (Greek: 'up' + 'guarding') is a serious, potentially fatal allergic reaction and medical emergency that is rapid in onset and requires immediate medical attention regardless of the use of emergency medication on site. It typicall ...
. He contributed A$1 million to establish the Ilhan Food Allergy Foundation, inspired by his daughter's severe allergy to peanuts. During his lifetime, the Ilhan Food Allergy Foundation contributed towards the
Richmond Football Club
The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed the Tigers or colloquially the Tiges, is a professional Australian rules football team competing in the Australian Football League (AFL). Founded in 1885 in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond, Victoria, Ric ...
, Kids Under Cover,
The Alfred Hospital
The Alfred Hospital, (also known as The Alfred or Alfred Hospital) is a leading tertiary hospital in Melbourne, Victoria. It is the second oldest hospital in Victoria after Melbourne Hospital which is still operating on its original site. The ...
Department of Allergy, Immunology and Respiratory Medicine, and
Murdoch Children's Research Institute
The Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) is an Australian paediatric medical research institute located in Melbourne, Victoria, affiliated with the Royal Children's Hospital and the University of Melbourne. The institute has six resear ...
Allergy and Immune Disorders Research Group Department of Allergy and Immunology.
Death
Ilhan died of a suspected heart attack, during a morning walk in
Brighton
Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
,
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
, on 23 October 2007, aged 42, but an autopsy later revealed that he died of a hereditary heart condition. He was survived by his wife, Patricia, and four children. His final interview was broadcast on ''
Today Tonight
''Today Tonight'' was an Australian current affairs television program produced by the Seven Network. It aired from January 1995 to November 2019 in Adelaide and Perth. Editions in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne were previously produced be ...
'' on the day before his death. A traditional
Islamic funeral
Islamic funerals () follow fairly specific rites, though they are subject to regional interpretation and variation in custom. In all cases, however, sharia (Islamic religious law) calls for burial of the body as soon as possible. The deceased is ...
was held at the Broadmeadows Mosque on 26 October 2007. Among the approximately 3,000 mourners were Ahmed Fahour and
Eddie McGuire
Edward Joseph McGuire (born 29 October 1964) is an Australian television and radio presenter, journalist, Australian Football League commentator and former TV executive. He is also an occasional ''Herald Sun'' newspaper columnist. He hosted C ...