By Matthew Henry
MELBOURNE: The funeral of former Teac boss, Gavin Muir, was held at Scots Church in Melbourne last Friday with family remembering him as a lover of life who was often misunderstood and misrepresented as egotistical.
The 63-year old died last weekend at a Gold Coast hospital after suffering a stroke just weeks before he was to face court over 11 charges under the Corporations Act.
Muir was to face seven counts of failing to act in good faith in the best interests of Teac Australia, two counts of dishonestly using his position as a director of Teac Australia and two counts of falsifying company books.
The Teac Australia business entered administration in 2005 with around $140 million in debt to creditors, Teac Japan and the ANZ Bank.
Teac Japan bought the business back and last year offloaded the Australian subsidiary to Singapore-based consumer electronics group TT International.
Muir’s funeral was attended by family and friends who remembered him as a kind family man often misrepresented as egotistical – particularly after the collapse of his development plans at the former Teac Australia premises in Bay Street, Port Melbourne.
“He never wanted to call the development The Muir,” said his son Ashley, according to The Age newspaper.
“His best mate at the time, who was in advertising, pushed the issue.”
The Age today printed Muir’s eulogy, remembering a self-made Brunswick boy who rose through Brashs electronics division to form a three-way partnership with the retailer, Teac Japan and himself to develop Teac Australia – a business in which he later came to own a 50 per cent stake.
Muir lost many of his high profile friends in the failed real estate development, leading to a relatively lonely time in the final months of his life living at Broadbeach in Queensland, which he was unable to leave due to the terms of his bail.
“There is no pot of gold, no fantasy insurance policies; just a man who loved life, loved his family and loved walking his dog Fifi on the beach,” said Ashley.
“I think he missed his mates, but in doing so found himself.
“For the last months of his life he was happy. He used to say to me, ‘just have a go and do the best you can’.”