Born in Port Macquarie in 1945 to a traditional seven-boy, two-girl Catholic family, Greg did some schooling at St Joey’s, but didn’t do so well. He worked hard on the family farm, chopped wood, plucked chooks, grew veggies … that was his real schooling.

School was done at age 15. He couldn’t get a job in Port Macquarie so tried his hand at bait fishing to earn a penny. His folks weren’t impressed, so through friends they got him a job in an office in Pitt Street, Sydney. He hated it. Every weekend Greg would escape the city by hitchhiking the 450 kilometres back to the farm.

Greg didn’t last long at the Metropolitan Sewerage Board. He did a runner, much to his parents’ disgust and ended up in WeeWaa, Narrabri, chipping cotton. He tried his hand at anything to make a living. He set off hitchhiking around Australia, even knocking on doors saying he would work for a feed. There was no dole or welfare then; Greg did whatever he could to survive.

The highest paid job he ever got was as a “shit carter” in Croydon, Queensland. He even slept on a wire stretcher bed right where he hosed out the dunny pans. Greg thought the creosote was a bit on the nose, but the money was damn good.

In 1964, he hitchhiked to Perth and then up to Broome and on to Darwin. He got a job packing pearl shell into crates, which were sent to China to make buttons. He loved the life and slept on the beach just below Government House. He buried his meagre belongings in the sand in the morning and went off to work. The beach was his home.

But in his heart he had a dream. He remembers his mum’s Women’s Weekly magazines featuring amazing full-page Albert Namatjira watercolour paintings from around Alice Springs. Greg thought those places looked like heaven. Even in school he couldn’t concentrate because those paintings were always in his mind.

One night in Darwin he met a mechanic who was off to Ayers Rock to fix generators. Greg saw a golden opportunity and grabbed it. As a 21 year old, his dream was about to come true. He hitchhiked with the mechanic to The Rock and then jumped off in Alice on the way back. That was way back
in 1965.

Greg had friends in Alice and soon got a job with the Northern Territory Administration. He got to run around after all the visiting government bods, as a chauffeur driver and running errands; anything he could do to keep them happy. “I couldn’t stand that job,” he says. “You just didn’t work.” So he put the word out that he was looking for some real work and found himself a job at Egars Supermarket in Todd Street. “I really loved that job,” he says. “Always busy, I did a lot there, from packing shelves to extending the premises when they ran out of space.”

After Egars he got a job with “Papa” Luigi Ruffino at the Alice Springs Supermarket at Northside. Papa was a legend in Alice Springs, known for his Italian restaurants, Il Sorrentino and Papa Luigi’s.

THE LANDMARK AILERON MAN

That experience and partnership would last 25 years. Alice Springs Supermarket was just a small store next to the Continental butcher shop and Hoppy’s Milk Bar. It wasn’t long before the supermarket doubled then tripled in size.

After about six years, Greg said to Luigi: “We should trade seven days a week.” Luigi replied: “If you want to do it you can open it yourself.” So he did – and that started seven-day-a-week trading in Alice Springs.

But Greg’s relationship with Luigi came to an abrupt halt one night when he was working back late. A bunch of Probo’s (Military Police) walked in and arrested him. They marched him down to the Alice Springs police station and asked the local coppers to lock him up. The local coppers said: “We can’t lock him up – he’s a good bloke.”

Greg was charged with dodging National Service. The court was real comedy hour. Old Father Dwyer and Judge Hall knew him well. They called a break and said: “Come here, boy,” and led him into the legal chambers at the back of the courthouse.

The next thing he knew was they were pouring him whisky. Judge Hall said: “Mr Dick, they want us to send you to jail. If you accept that we will let you out on weekends so you can see that lovely Italian girlfriend you are going out with – or we’ve got to fine you. Hell, the fine is too much. How about we make it $100 and give you five years to pay?”

The court was reconvened and there was uproar when the military brass and legal boffins heard Judge Hall’s recommendation. The final verdict was that Greg join the army for two years.

During his National Service, he managed to escape back to Alice to wed his Italian girlfriend, Mary Simonetto.

On discharge, Greg went straight back to Alice with Luigi and the supermarket. It wasn’t long before he started the first business of his own, Maryland Chicken. His wife managed it while he continued to work and expand business with
Papa Luigi.

Nearly all of Alice Springs’ bread was brought in from Adelaide and the supermarket used to sell truck loads of it. Greg thought there must be a fortune to be made if he had his own bakery.

In 1971, he managed Alice Springs first dedicated bread bakery at the back of the chicken shop. Luigi was away in Italy at the time and when he came home he hit the roof. “Hey, boy! What do you think you are? Are you going to sell to the world?”

Greg said: “Did we make a business out of that. When we started we only did about 3000 loaves of bread a week, but we finished up taking over the whole town.”

He knew knew he had to build a bigger bakery.

Greg went to Luigi with plans already drawn up and his reply was: “No! No! Boy, what do you want to be – the Tip Top?” Greg’s reply was: “No, I want to be bigger.” So he bought the land and got Ross Engineering to build a huge new bakery next to them in Elder Street. That was in 1976.

“My wife Mary ran the bakery and at times we had up to 40 staff. We had that business for 27 years. Then when one day Goodman Fielder flew in and wanted to buy us out. It wasn’t for sale but they bought it anyway.”

But expanding the supermarket game was always on his mind. His next foray was with Luigi when they started the Tennant Creek Supermarket in 1971.

That was followed by the building of Flynn Drive Supermarket in Alice.

“At the peak we had 150 local people employed in our businesses.”

Greg also bought a truck to try his hand at a freight run between Alice Springs and Tennant Creek. He thought he could take supermarket supplies and fresh bread to Tennant but it didn’t fire.

On his way home from Tennant one night, he stopped off at Ti Tree roadhouse and found old Ken “Foggy” Fogg painting it battleship grey. Greg joked: “You must be selling if you’re painting it.” Foggy said: “Yes, I am.” So Greg pulled a crumpled chequebook out of his pocket and put down a $10,000 deposit. “Tell a soul and I won’t buy it,” he said and walked out the door.

Greg said: “I could just see a vision of doing something more than just bread and pies. I didn’t have enough to buy it on my own so I put a mate’s name on the deed too. That was 1973 and that was my first roadhouse.”

He was driving past Aileron, 130km north of Alice, every day. The old pub burnt down in 1970 and there was just a small store and a few rooms when Kevin King and Greg bought it in 1974, and spent more than $5 million developing it – roads, water, electricity generation, buildings, accommodation and all the attractions.

Tourism was just starting in the NT, and Greg loves meeting tourists.

But in recent times the genuine tourist adventurers who used to travel the Stuart Highway have disappeared and been replaced with convoys of caravans – grey nomads, aka SADs, as they call them: See Australia and Die.

Greg says the majority of travellers are good, but there are a few who should never leave home.

His life at Ti-Tree and Aileron had given him an experience and the respect that can only be earned by the passage of time.

After the years of hard slog against all the odds, Greg still hasn’t slowed down. He’s up at 3.30am every day, prays and sets about his daily chores. He’s sold off most of his empire and lives out his dream in Aileron.

“I wouldn’t have been much of a bloke if it hadn’t been for Luigi Ruffino. He taught me all I know. He was tough, but he was the best teacher I ever had.”

The years of hard work have rewarded the kid from St Joey’s handsomely. He is surrounded by the works of art that inspired him in his youth. Namatjira’s watercolours are his passion and he has acquired some of the very images he saw in his mum’s Women’s Weekly.

Greg’s 50-year legacy to the NT lives on. His supermarkets and roadhouses endure. They contribute greatly to the NT economy. The residents of Centralian communities, the foreigners and SADs travelling the Stuart Highway all benefit from the vision of this true Territorian.

GREG UNLOADING RELIEF SUPPLIES FROM A HERCULES AIRCRAFT AFTER THE 1983 FLOODS IN ALICE SPRINGS