His employees barely get a glimpse of him when he visits the company’s futuristic, gated headquarters in the middle of vineyards close to Vienna, with its spacious, modern office buildings and showrooms displaying the latest gambling machines. He’s brought there in a large black limousine early in the morning and stays all day ensconced with his inner circle in conference rooms.
He has made sure Novomatic is among Austria’s most sought-after employers with higher-than-average salaries, food courts, private pension contributions and company cars. Senior executives and business partners have built luxurious vacation homes. The last Novomatic CEO, Harald Neumann, had a penchant for fancy cars, often arriving at Vienna’s Café Landtmann -- where the city’s rich and powerful meet to talk business and politics -- in a Porsche Cayenne or a Lamborghini Urus.
Local politicians were keen to support Novomatic after the company’s global expansion led to the creation of 3,000 well-paid jobs in the region.
Still, increasing political pressure in markets such as Germany and Austria led to stricter gambling rules. Regulatory concerns and writedowns at its M&A targets made bankers and investors hesitate over a stock market listing in 2017, pulling the plug less than 24 hours before a planned announcement -- the second cancellation in six years.
While other company founders in their 70s step back, Graf -- only one of whose three sons is active in the business -- is still very hands-on. Insisting on being called by his honorific “professor,” Graf keeps busy.
Even more so after supervisory board members left in September last year and the CEO quit in February in the wake of the company’s troubles. Novomatic says its two-member board of long-term executives Ryszard Presch and Johannes Gratzl will keep the show going.
Consolidation of its business in Europe, where machines are operating again, and new offers, both physical and online, in Latin America, the U.S., Australia and Africa will drive its post-pandemic growth, Novomatic says. In the U.S., for example, it plans to install gambling machines in bars, cafes or at gas stations as more states allow it.
For now, though, as the cloud of bribery allegations hangs over the company, luring top business talent, renewing licenses, getting bank loans and drawing investors remains a major challenge. Novomatic may have to retreat from some markets or cut staff to boost profits. Selling its iconic building in Vienna is an option it is considering.
Graf declined to be interviewed for this article, pointing instead to the company’s public statements. Novomatic executives have said they may shrink the Austrian business to take some heat off, noting that it’s no longer a “core” market.
When Graf’s house and Mercedes Maybach limousine were searched on Aug. 12 last year, he wasn’t amused, according to a police protocol published by Falter magazine. Graf noted that while he makes 5% of his revenue and pays all of his taxes in Austria, he gets “80% of the s---” from the country.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.